Phase V

2009-2012

Via a competitive application-selection process, to enhance the sustainability of Gestión de Riesgo programs and extend their breadth and depth at selected universities in the LAC region by:

  • Supporting advanced education and training for a small number of carefully selected individuals committed to disaster/emergency management careers upon completion of their degree programs
  • Encouraging and supporting new applied research in risk analysis, hazards, and disasters
  • Encouraging outreach, academic alliances, and partnerships in Gestión de Riesgo

Goals:

  • Establish 3-year “Bell Scholarships” open to any field with disaster relevance (e.g., medicine, public health, planning, administration) and applicable for use in any country with the appropriate higher education degree programs.
  • Promote applied research in “Bell Centers” (where possible) emphasizing mitigation measures and techniques, including but not limited to:
    • Developing protocols for testing/updating existing building codes.
    • Incorporating local materials specifications into multi-hazard oriented building codes, using engineering laboratories to test and re-test new building design techniques and materials improvements.
    • Integrating building codes into urban development planning processes.
  • Disseminate updated/state-of-the-art micro-zoning approaches, especially by taking advantage of windows of opportunity (e.g., during post-disaster early recovery, new development planning efforts, innovative land use management initiatives, important investments in new infrastructure/utilities).
  • Promote the application of updated/state-of-the-art GIS and Remote Sensor systems within EWS and DRR studies.