Learning from disasters: how do we share the knowledge and experience?Introduction:Understanding the difficulties of sharing knowledge generated from disaster situations is essential to allowing for a better process of disseminating the u2018lessons learnedu2019 from the ongoing natural and manmade situations which result in healthcare crises.Aim:To explore nurses ways of gaining knowledge from previous experiences, with a particular focus on earthquakes and natural disasters, in the New Zealand (NZ) setting.Method:Initial analysis of a series of individual, semi-structured interviews with a small group (n=10) of emergency department registered nurses from a range of geographical areas in NZ.Results:While familiar with the major earthquake events that have recently affected different areas of NZ (most notably Canterbury, Kaikoura and Wellington), few could recall detailed information or lessons generated from these events. When asked about the most effective means of learning about and from disasters, direct experience was identified as the most effective followed by narrative retelling and vicarious experience.Discussion: Recognition of the value of u2018story-tellingu2019 in sharing information, and of the importance of offering experiences in a way that allows colleagues to experience or place themselves in the situation in a u2018virtualu2019 sense is necessary for learning to occur. This involves an emotional as well as an intellectual connection to occur. There is a risk for knowledge to be lost, and lessons to be constantly u2018re-learntu2019, as each succeeding generation needs direct involvement to retain the information and insight generated. We need to tailor the medium by which this information is shared, for maximum effect.

Initial priorities for U.S. participation in the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction, declared by the United Nations, are contained in this volume. It focuses on seven issues: hazard and risk assessment; awareness and education; mitigation; preparedness for emergency response; recovery and reconstruction; prediction and warning; learning from disasters; and U.S. participation internationally. The committee presents its philosophy of calls for broad public and private participation to reduce the toll of disasters.

This book is the first to discuss, in practical and theoretical terms, the pedagogical approach of service-learning to establish partnerships for social good that build disaster resilience. Across 12 chapters a collection of academics and practitioners provide insights on the benefits of utilizing service-learning to address existing needs, build community capacity, and strengthen social networks while enhancing student learning. Key features: Discuss how sustainable service-learning partnerships can contribute to building disaster-resilient communities; Provide practical tools to cultivate and manage collaborative partnerships, and engage in reflective practices; Integrate disciplines to create innovative approaches to complex problems; Share best practices, lessons learned, and case examples that identify strategies for integrating service-learning and research into course design; Offer considerations for ethical decision-making and for the development of equitable solutions when engaging with stakeholders; Identify strategies to bridge the gap between academia and practice while highlighting resources that institutions of higher education can contribute toward disaster preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation. Service-Learning for Disaster Resilience will serve as a user-friendly guide for universities, local government agencies, emergency management professionals, community leaders, and grassroots initiatives in affected communities.

It is widely assumed that humanity should be able to learn from calamities (e.g., emergencies, disasters, catastrophes) and that the affected individuals, groups, and enterprises, as well as the concerned (disaster-) management organizations and institutions for prevention and mitigation, will be able to be better prepared or more efficient next time. Furthermore, it is often assumed that the results of these learning processes are preserved as "knowledge" in the collective memory of a society, and that patterns of practices were adopted on this base. Within history, there is more evidence for the opposite: Analyzing past calamities reveals that there is hardly any learning and, if so, that it rarely lasts more than one or two generations. This book explores whether learning in the context of calamities happens at all, and if learning takes place, under which conditions it can be achieved and what would be required to ensure that learned cognitive and practical knowledge will endure on a societal level. The contributions of this book include various fields of scientific research: history, sociology, geography, psychoanalysis, psychiatry, development studies and political studies, as well as disaster research and disaster risk reduction research.

Offers an informative introduction to the subject of disaster risk reduction education and highlights key places of education such as family, community, school, and higher education. This book describes and demonstrates different aspects of education in an easy-to-understand form with academic research and practical field experiences.

This volume offers a simple, systematic guide to creating a knowledge sharing practice in your organization. It shows how to build the enabling environment and develop the skills needed to capture and share knowledge gained from operational experiences to improve performance and scale-up successes. Its recommendations are grounded on the insights gained from the past seven years of collaboration between the World Bank and its clients around the world—ministries and national agencies operating in various sectors—who are working to strengthen their operations through robust knowledge sharing. While informed by the academic literature on knowledge management and organizational learning, this handbook’s operational background and many real-world examples and tips provide a missing, practical foundation for public sector officials in developing countries and for development practitioners. However, though written with a public sector audience in mind, the overall concepts and approaches will also hold true for most organizations in the private sector and the developed world.

This book is the first to discuss, in practical and theoretical terms, the pedagogical approach of service-learning to establish partnerships for social good that build disaster resilience. Across 12 chapters a collection of academics and practitioners provide insights on the benefits of utilizing service-learning to address existing needs, build community capacity, and strengthen social networks while enhancing student learning. Key features: Discuss how sustainable service-learning partnerships can contribute to building disaster-resilient communities; Provide practical tools to cultivate and manage collaborative partnerships, and engage in reflective practices; Integrate disciplines to create innovative approaches to complex problems; Share best practices, lessons learned, and case examples that identify strategies for integrating service-learning and research into course design; Offer considerations for ethical decision-making and for the development of equitable solutions when engaging with stakeholders; Identify strategies to bridge the gap between academia and practice while highlighting resources that institutions of higher education can contribute toward disaster preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation. Service-Learning for Disaster Resilience will serve as a user-friendly guide for universities, local government agencies, emergency management professionals, community leaders, and grassroots initiatives in affected communities.