An-Najah National University (ANNU) is a Palestinian non-governmental public university governed by a board of trustees. It is located in Nablus, in the northern West Bank. The University is a vibrant hub of learning which nourishes science, knowledge and understanding. An-Najah offers undergraduate instruction in the fields of Medicine, Engineering, Humanities, Social Sciences and the Natural Sciences, as well as numerous courses of graduate study in the humanities and the social sciences.

An-Najah was established in 1918 as a primary school- An-Najah Nabulsi School- educating students from Palestine and abroad. It evolved over the years and was chartered as a full-fledged university in 1977. Since then, An-Najah has promoted the acquisition of modern knowledge whilst remaining committed to the transmission and preservation of Palestinian history, heritage and culture. Today, as the largest University in Palestine, An-Najah educates over 22,000 students and is home to 13 faculties, offering numerous undergraduate and graduate specializations.

An-Najah National University is ranked First in Palestine ‎and 37th ‎in the Arab World among 50 Arab universities according to QS University Rankings for the year 2021. This was released on Wednesday, October 28, 2020 ‎by global higher education analysts QS Quacquarelli Symonds, ‎which makes An-Najah among the top 24% universities in the Arab World for 2021.

An-Najah University partnered with UNDRR Regional Office for Arab States few years ago to implement the disaster resilience scorecard assessment for the city of Nablus in Palestine under the previous MCR Campaign.

The University later integrated the resilience scorecards into its syllabus which enabled students to apply the tool in their research efforts. Some graduates have now embarked on the application of the scorecard to develop seismic rapid assessment and structural retrofitting strategies in Tulkarm city, in addition to developing mechanisms to integrate disaster risk reduction within its development plans.

The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 (Sendai Framework) emphasizes that risk is everyone’s business – explicitly identifying the need for all-of-society and all-of-State institutions’ engagement. This puts the onus on all of us to understand the nature of risk – that death, loss or damage (impacts that define a disaster – that are the disaster) are a function of the context of hazard, vulnerability and exposure. The Sendai Framework exhorts us to reduce risk by avoiding decisions that create risk, by reducing existing risk and by building resilience.

The Sendai Framework tells us that the risk landscape has changed, that it is complex, and that we have perhaps been slow to realize this. This necessitates that we understand better the systemic nature of risk, how we can recognize, measure and model risk, and develop strategies to enhance the scientific, social and political cooperation needed to move towards systemic risk governance. In line with the guiding principles on inclusivity and shared responsibility, and given the complexity of the risk landscape, it is now more crucial to ensure an all-of-society engagement in DRR through new opportunities for partnerships and strengthened governance mechanisms at various levels, as called for by the Sendai Framework.

Globally and regionally, UNDRR has fostered partnerships with several DRR stakeholder groups in support of governments to implement their regional and national DRR strategies in line with Sendai Framework. In the Arab region, the Arab Science and Technology Advisory Group for DRR (Arab-STAG) and Arab Major Children and Youth Group for DRR were formed in 2018, among other groups, to support the implementation of Sendai Framework at regional, national and local levels. The groups delivered voluntary commitments at the last regional platform for DRR organized in Tunis in October 2018. Among its commitments, the Arab STAG committed to developing a roster of DRR experts and work towards bringing science and technology into sectoral plans and promoting DRR, research and innovation inclusion in higher education through regional related organizations.

Since youth who are under age 30 currently make up more than half the world’s population, they are the ones who will benefit most from reducing the risk and impact of disasters, curtailing climate chaos and achieving the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To strengthen the participation of youth as active stakeholders and change agents in DRR in the Arab region, their participation in evidence based DRR efforts through innovation and research is critical. Currently, the Arab STAG does not have under-30-year-old PhD holders in DRR among its members, and therefore, the need for more investment in Arab youth scientists in this regard is evident.

Noting that An-Najah University Master’s students have engaged heavily in the previous MCR campaign, the launch of the new MCR Program 2030 is of great interest to them. UNDRR has recently launched the new MCR Program 2030 as a unique cross-stakeholder initiative for improving local resilience through advocacy, sharing knowledge and experiences, establishing mutually reinforcing city-to-city learning networks, injecting technical expertise, connecting multiple layers of government and building partnerships.

Through delivering a clear roadmap to urban resilience and providing access to knowledge management and monitoring and reporting tools, MCR2030 will support cities on their journey to reduce risk and build resilience. MCR2030 aims to ensure cities become inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable by 2030, contributing directly to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 11 (SDG11) and other global frameworks including the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, the Paris Agreement and the New Urban Agenda.

The main target audience of the lecture will be master’s students from the Disaster Risk Management master program at ANNU. However, the session will feature over 180 participants including ANNU students, members of the National DRR Platform, National DRM Centre, engineer’s association, and officials from the planning directorates in the municipalities, in addition to members of a self-organized group of DRM Master’s graduates formed in March 2020 in Gaza.

1. Introduction to the concept of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) and Sendai Framework 2015 – 2030
2. Understanding the complexity of the systemic nature of risk nowadays and the cruciality of the all-of-society engagement.
3. Understanding the role of science and technology and youth in disaster risk reduction and developing resilient communities, and the crucial role of the Arab STAG and Arab Major Children and Youth Group for DRR as stakeholder groups.
4. Understanding the need for urban resilience (Introduction to Making Cities Resilience Programme 2030)

An-Najah National University

Prof. Dr. Jalal Dabbeek, Head of Engineers Association and Professor at An-Najah National University and Director of Urban Planning and Disaster Risk Reduction Center at ANNU.