The Indian Ocean Tsunami: 5 years later
Assessing the Vulnerability and Resilience of Tsunami affected Coastal Regions

An international workshop, organized by Resilience Project, will be held from 1st to 3rd of March, 2010 in Singapore.

Date:	March 1-3, 2010
Venue:	Allson Hotel, Singapore ( Access) (Hotel name will change to “Hotel Grand Pacific” from 1/1/2010)
Title:	The Indian Ocean Tsunami: 5 years later Assessing the Vulnerability and Resilience of Tsunami affected Coastal Regions
Participants: (tentative)	Japan: RIHN, Kyoto Univ., Hiroshima Univ. India: Tamil Nadu Agri. Univ., IWMI, UNESCO Sri Lanka: University of Moratuwa Indonesia: TDMRC Syiah Kuala University Thailand: Chulalongkorn University Singapore: National Univ. of Singapore, Nanyang Tech. Univ.
Remarks:	Handbill (PDF:93KB)

Objectives:

The Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami on 26 December, 2004 caused massive destruction throughout the coastal region. Nevertheless, early reports showed that some damaged soils and groundwater had recovered to their pre-tsunami states within a year. Other regions, however, especially those inaccessible to relief supplies, are still struggling five years later. Some residents suffer from post-traumatic syndromes or the challenges of new livelihoods.

A social and/or ecological system's ‘resilience’ is its capacity to respond to shocks. As coastal regions in general are vulnerable to large-scale disasters such as tsunami and storms, they are often protected by sea walls and port facilities. Although these facilities are designed to provide buffers against disaster, they do not by themselves create resilient social-ecological systems. If such shock-resistant facilities fail, the damage can be catastrophic and the costs of reconstruction very high. Disaster planning in vulnerable regions therefore should not attempt to resist shocks, but to develop the resilience that allows for flexible responses to challenging conditions.

The purpose of the workshop is as follows:

1)	to assess the impact of the 2004 tsunami qualitatively and quantitatively through case studies of the tsunami affected region;
2)	to consider the vulnerability and resilience of coastal regions through examination of damages sustained and processes of recovery;
3)	to identify key factors affecting recovery and consider how the region’s future resilience to disaster can be enhanced.

Program (tentative):

1st Day

Session 1: Natural science session
Session 2: Social science session

2nd Day

Session 3: Natural and social science session
Session 4: Discussion (1)

3rd Day

Session 5: Discussion (2) (morning)
Field excursion (20 SGD/person fee)