1st UKADR Conference (UCL, London, United Kingdom - 9th-10th January 2017)
After arriving on Sunday evening, spending some time exploring Covent Garden, and getting a good night’s sleep before what was going to be a busy 2 days, the NSU Northumbria Disaster and Development Society (DDS) delegation arrived at Kings College (Strand Campus) on Monday the 9th of January 2017 for the inaugural UK Alliance for Disaster Research annual conference 1. The theme for the conference was ‘What are the areas of data, knowledge and capacity that research funders should prioritize to maintain UK’s international science leadership and responsibility under the Sendai Framework2?’. The conference was attended by approximately 100 researchers, research funders, government and other policy makers/practitioners from the UK and overseas. It was hoped the conference would provide a space for the attendees to influence thinking on UK policy and research funding. The DDS was there primarily to present a poster on their work on ‘The Youth Voice’ in the study of Disasters & Development. The poster would be on show for the duration of the conference and people would be able to look at it between sessions. The vice-president of the society, Peter McGowran, also contributed to the session on ‘Mobilising Young Scientist’s Contribution to Disaster Risk Reduction’ chaired by Virginia Murray (Consultant in Global Disaster Risk Reduction, Public Health England), by being a panel member alongside 2 UK based PhD students who act as focal points for the UN Major Group for Children and Youth, Young Scientists Platform on DRR. During this session, Peter also gave a short talk to conference about the work of the DDS and why ‘The Youth Voice’ should be heard in the field of Disasters and Development/ Disaster Risk Reduction.
The delegation was made up of 3 DDS committee members Peter McGowran (Vice-President), Hannah Gowling (Secretary), Peter Blanch (events coordinator) and 2 society members Angelina Gudzio and Jennifer James. All 5 delegates are students on the Disaster Management and Sustainable Development MSc course at Northumbria University. Attending the conference provided a great opportunity for the students to witness how theories, concepts and methodological approaches studied in modules such as Disaster Risk Reduction and Response and Approaches to Project Management are being put into practice at the cutting edge of Disaster Research and Practice, but also stand up to criticism in an academic environment.
The DDS would like to acknowledge the support of Prof. Andrew Collins in helping the society to attend and contribute the conference, along with the session chair Virginia Murray and the UNMCGY focal points Lydia Cumiskey and Robert Sakic Trogrlic for building the DDS’s contribution into the session Mobilising Young Scientist’s Contribution to Disaster Risk Reduction. The DDS would also like to thank Northumbria University Student’s Union for part-funding the trip for the conference, with members of the DDS also contributing. The DDS would also like to acknowledge financial support from the Department of Geography for the poster production.
The delegation was made up of 3 DDS committee members Peter McGowran (Vice-President), Hannah Gowling (Secretary), Peter Blanch (events coordinator) and 2 society members Angelina Gudzio and Jennifer James. All 5 delegates are students on the Disaster Management and Sustainable Development MSc course at Northumbria University. Attending the conference provided a great opportunity for the students to witness how theories, concepts and methodological approaches studied in modules such as Disaster Risk Reduction and Response and Approaches to Project Management are being put into practice at the cutting edge of Disaster Research and Practice, but also stand up to criticism in an academic environment.
The DDS would like to acknowledge the support of Prof. Andrew Collins in helping the society to attend and contribute the conference, along with the session chair Virginia Murray and the UNMCGY focal points Lydia Cumiskey and Robert Sakic Trogrlic for building the DDS’s contribution into the session Mobilising Young Scientist’s Contribution to Disaster Risk Reduction. The DDS would also like to thank Northumbria University Student’s Union for part-funding the trip for the conference, with members of the DDS also contributing. The DDS would also like to acknowledge financial support from the Department of Geography for the poster production.