The event is the Regional Workshop for Central America and Caribbean of the EU FP7 CATALYST (Capacity Develop-ment for Hazard Risk Reduction and Adaptation) project. It is organised in the context of the 7th Annual Caribbean Conference on Comprehensive Disaster Management.

Central America and the Caribbean are among the most disaster-prone regions in the world. The frequent droughts, floods, hurricanes, storms, landslides and earthquakes constitute a threat to development and social welfare. Disaster risk management and efficient use of natural resources can help reducing the harm caused by natural hazards, with positive effects on security and poverty reduction.

The Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015 recognises the crucial role of capacity development in mainstreaming disaster risk reduction (DRR) in wider development and environmental protection agenda. CATALYST is intended to strengthen capacity development in DRR and climate adaptation. The project’s objective has been to set up a Think Tank comprised of regional experts to share, compile and analyse the best of existing knowledge, in order to develop knowledge products useful to regional practitioners.

The Central America and Caribbean regional workshop is organized in collaboration with the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), in the context of the 7th Annual Caribbean Conference on Comprehensive Disaster Management (CDM 7), the Caribbean’s premier event on Disaster Risk Management. This year, the Conference will be convened under the theme: “CDM: Building Disaster Resilience – A Shared Responsibility.”

The Catalyst workshop will focus on social vulnerability, in its urban and rural dimensions; ecosystem services for disaster risk reduction; and governance of risk and climate adaptation in the context of the international agreement replacing after 2015 the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA).

The workshop is meant to encourage:

  • Discussion of current practices and challenges in disaster risk reduction and explore the future challenges posed by human induced climate change;
  • Identification of best practices examples for the thematic areas address;
  • Gathering recommendations for fostering capacity development.

The results of the workshop will feed a series of Best Practices papers and a policy notebook, targeted at a wider group of stakeholders, policy makers, the public and the media. An educational module, based on the integrated knowledge arising from the workshop and other activities of the CATALYST project will also be produced. A major objective will also be the fostering and strengthening of cooperation and synergies among the different players in the field of DRR/CCA in the Central America and Caribbean region.

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The participation in the workshop is upon invitation only.
Further information about the Catalyst project is available at http://www.catalyst-project.eu/.