3:45 PM - 4:00 PM
[G02-07] Educational approach for risk reduction in Himalayan seismic zone II -Hazard map making workshop at a high school
Keywords:disaster prevention, earthquake, hazard map
The 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake confronted us with the fact that the knowledge of science alone would not motivate someone take preventive action. This indicates that risk reduction cannot be completed only by hazard assessments but also by motivating people to take preventive action. With the concept of "community-based understanding of disaster risks" and "personal empowerment to take preventive action", we held a workshop at a high school in the Lesser Himalayan Region. The workshop consists of 2 sessions; 1) understanding the scientific backgrounds of earthquakes and disasters, and 2) hazard map making. Prior to the workshop, we carried out a questionnaire survey to high-school students about how they perceive the risk of the local hazard. After the first session, we provided about an hour of question time, and carefully analyzed what they said. Together with the answers of the questionnaire, it is strongly implied that they understood scientific backgrounds but do not have awareness of disaster and are not motivated to take preventive action. Session-2 consists of several parts such as giving clear images of earthquake consequences, leading them to imagine each victim's life that was broken up all of the sudden on March 11th 2011 as well as showing hot to find out and manage risks by making hazard map. The workshop was closed with their presentation that clearly shows the internal change of the participants. Many of them referred to the importance of lives such as "Life is a precious gift to us from God. Don't take it as a fun. And if you take it as a fun, then remember your family." In the presentation, we share the good practice that can be applied to other disaster-prone countries if we pay regard to the community-based understanding of disaster risks.