A group of 10 community leaders led by Shri Rigzin Spalbar, Chief Executive Councilor, LAHDC, met Her Excellency the Governor of Gujarat state Dr. Kamla Beniwal as a part of their exposure visit to Gujarat. As a part of this exposure visit – facilitated by AIDMI – the group also visited CBOs and communities of Gujarat during February 08-14, 2012 to learn about various community managed disaster risk reduction (CMDRR) initiatives in Gujarat in the past ten years. The visiting group consisted women SHG leaders, representatives from education department, local CBO and youth from Ladakh.

Groups of women leaders from Kashmir visited AIDMI to learn lessons related to mainstreaming disaster risk reduction at community level. Earthquake recovery efforts, safety of children, community awareness on DRR, women and DRR, and microinsurance for the poor were discussed in details. Need for safer schools for children, resilient livelihoods, and disaster free cities was explored

Exchange for Change Program (2008): David Amstrongs, wife Nicola and Montegomery Searl

Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India offer both, a challenge and opportunity to integrate Disaster Risk Reduction with Climate Risk Adaptation.

The All India Disaster Mitigation Institute (AIDMI) in partnership with Directorate of Education, Government of Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI), and West Bengal Voluntary Health Association (WBVHA), facilitated a two-day refresher training on School Safety and Impacts of Climate Change at Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar Islands during December 20 – 21, 2011, under its Local Capacity Building Cycle Programme for 32 participants. This refresher training – as a follow up to the training of trainers organized in January 2011 – was held to update and increase local capacities for disaster preparedness and climate change by promoting awareness and providing scientific understanding of disasters among team of WBVHA and local school representatives.

The training addressed issues of participatory approach of disaster risk reduction in the form of Community Based Disaster Risk Reduction and addressing needs for making schools safer, School Safety Audit, School Safety Action Planning for Preparedness, Climate Change and Impacts of Climate induced Disasters on Schools, and National School Safety Program (NSSP). As a follow-up, Assessment of Schools in the form of School Safety Audit for all the schools of the islands was demanded by the participants in order to know the present resilience of the schools and making all the schools of the islands safer against future risks. Andaman and Nicobar Islands are prone to earthquakes, cyclones, volcanic eruption apart from tsunami. The islands suffered heavily during the year 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and frequently get tremors of strong earthquakes.

Mr. Ashok Sharma, Director and Mr. Ajayan T. K. S. Assistant Director, both from the Disaster Management Cell in ANI distributed certificate to the participants. Mr. Ashok Sharma suggested that “Such trainings and capacity building are important in making society safer through making schools and children safer”.