2014•06•23     Bonn

UNU-EHS is honored to announce that Dr. Joern Birkmann, head of the Vulnerability Assessment, Risk Management & Adaptive Planning Section (VARMAP), has been invited to become a member of the Integrated Research on Disaster Risk (IRDR) Scientific Committee for a period of three years, until 2017.

This ten-year programme has been created in the recognition that disaster risk management is a critical component of the global poverty reduction agenda. Its aim is to address the major challenges of natural and human-induced environmental hazards. IRDR is jointly sponsored by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the International Social Science Council (ISSC) and the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UN-ISDR).

The Scientific Committee will meet twice per year, usually alternating between China and Western Europe, and it is composed of fifteen experts in the field of Environment and Risk Management from all around the world. Their responsibilities are to define, develop and prioritize plans for IRDR, to guide its programming, budgeting and implementation, to establish a mechanism for oversight of programme activities, and to disseminate and publicize its results.

UNU-EHS is enthusiastic about and looking forward to Dr. Birkmann’s new role in developing this important and timely international programme.