Real Risk

]

When

Know Risk

was published in January 2005, to coincide with the World Conference on Disaster Reduction in

Kobe, public and private sector organizations around the world acknowledged that disaster risk reduction is the

responsibility of everyone. Among other measures, the summit would result in the

Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-

2015

, a plan for developing the disaster-resilience of nations, communities and individuals.

Even as

Know Risk

was produced, a massive tsunami in the Indian Ocean devastated many communities, causing

hundreds of thousands of deaths. Among the succession of major disasters across the world since then, the devas-

tation of New Orleans by Hurricane Katrina brought home the fact that communities of any size, in any nation, rich

or poor, are vulnerable to natural disasters.

They can be vulnerable, but they do not have to be. For this reason, it is time to revisit the findings of

Know Risk

, to

see how its messages are being understood and implemented, and what can be learnt from recent disaster experiences.

One point that has become abundantly clear is that any discussion of natural disasters must also take into account

human nature – there can be no hard-and-fast division between acts of nature and man-made risks. Human phenom-

ena like urbanization, deforestation, the use of land and of water, and building practices all contribute to increasing

or decreasing risk and vulnerability. In acknowledging this, we recognize that everybody, at every level, owns disas-

ter risk, and that everybody plays a part in reducing that risk.

Clearly, discussion and recommendation are not enough – sustained action is needed to reduce vulnerability and

risk in the knowledge that another disaster can and will strike at any time. In Indonesia alone, the past two months

have seen a major earthquake followed by the eruption of Mount Merapi, and at the time of writing, an undersea

earthquake of magnitude 7.7 has caused a tsunami to hit the island of Java, leaving over 650 people dead and 52,700

displaced. As we know from experience, those figures could be even higher if the mechanisms for recovery are not

in place.

As the articles in this volume illustrate, it is possible to reduce disaster risk and to mitigate the effects of disasters

through a wealth of techniques including education, shared experiences, microfinance and planning. Where action

is being taken and knowledge shared, vulnerability is being reduced.

Real Risk

represents the ongoing work of a broad spectrum of private and public organizations, united in the view

that disaster risk and mitigation are shared by everyone, the world over.

Our thanks go to all of the organizations that have contributed their time, thought and resources to this volume.

We trust that

Real Risk

will be a useful addition to the knowledge sharing that lies at the heart of disaster risk reduc-

tion and mitigation.

Sean Nicklin

Tudor Rose

August 2006

Foreword