The Earth Sciences and Seismic Engineering Center Participates in a Training course on Risk Reduction Strategy in Urban Areas in Japan
Between 13th and 15th of October 2010, Engineer Ra'fat Kittaneh from the Faculty of Engineering at the University participated in a training course titled "Reducing Seismic Risks in Urban Areas" which was organized at Kobe University in Japan. A number of representatives of different countries including China, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Mongolia, Syria and Palestine participated in the course.
Kittaneh mentioned that the course aimed to familiarize the participants with the Japanese experience in disaster management, especially earthquakes and the different technologies used to construct buildings that have the ability to withstand such disasters. The participants were also trained on how to prepare advanced plans to face natural disasters before and after they occur. Such plans are built in parallel way through preparing individuals, institutions and infrastructures to face different kinds of disasters and mitigate their hazards and impact on people.
Kittaneh also participated in the 9th International Symposium on New Technologies for Urban Safety of Mega Cities in Asia in addition to participating in an international workshop that aimed to exchange expertise and knowledge with other experts in the field of disaster management. Such issue has become more and more important in light of the increasing rate at which different disasters take place, particularly earthquakes. Disasters happen on a mass scale and affect a wide population of people around the world, therefore, governments began to pay greater attention to them and the technologies needed to face them effectively.
Through participating in similar events, Palestinian engineers and experts can expand their knowledge and enhance their experience in studying and understanding different kinds of disasters by acquainting themselves with the experiences and knowledge that other countries enjoy such as Japan. And as a country that faces daily earthquakes, it has gained substantial experience in dealing with disastrous situations and disaster risk reduction management.
