International Symposium on Tsunami Risk Reduction & Community Resilience

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ABOUT

On December 26^th, 2004, several coastal areas along the Indian Ocean were affected by 30-meter-high Tsunami waves from a 9.1-9.3 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. More than 200,000 people were killed and nearly 2 million people were displaced across 14 countries in this disaster. Fifteen years after this devastating event, how far have we advanced in early warning, mitigation and adaptation to Tsunamis? Through the medium of this symposium, we will provide a platform to policymakers, NGOs, technological innovators, and scientists to share their knowledge and answer questions that will help develop resilient communities across the world.

The Ministry of Earth Sciences (Government of India), the Indian National Center for Ocean Information Services (ESSO-INCOIS), Esri India, and Amrita’s prestigious UNESCO Chair on Experiential Learning for Sustainable Innovation and Development, UNESCO Chair on Gender Equality and Women Empowerment, School of Sustainable Development, and the Center for Wireless Networks & Applications are jointly hosting an international symposium to critically reflect on the imprints of the December 26, 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, its subsequent impact on our society, and advances in science and technology that have helped to build sustainable and resilient communities.

SYMPOSIUM OBJECTIVES

The symposium seeks to provide a platform to integrate the last 15 years of research in science and technology to improve the rehabilitation and resilience of coastal communities, and revive scientific social responsibility to reduce the risk and vulnerability factors. We seek to achieve this by:

Understanding the impact of Tsunamis on coastal community
Reflecting on lessons learned from the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami
Marking the advances in science and technology in monitoring and modeling of the Tsunami and its impacts
Coming up with a strategic framework to further advance our disaster preparedness, adaptation, and mitigation efforts to build sustainable and resilient communities

THEMES

Theme 1: Tsunami – Responses & Lessons Learnt

a) Humanitarian Responses: Case Studies

The December 2004 Tsunami triggered an enormous humanitarian response that was unprecedented. The vastness of the affected geographical areas, population, and the number of countries affected made it a global phenomenon. Disaster response strategies and techniques adopted by NGOs and government agencies need to be comprehended and translated in a scientific way that will help prepare for the future.

b) Lessons Learnt

The disaster left many imprints and taught several lessons in disaster management, social and economic planning, and policy development. It is imperative for the global community to become aware of these lessons as an aftermath of the Tsunami.

Theme 1 Foci:

Case studies by agencies who worked at the grassroots level
Short-term and long-term responses from affected countries
Challenges: Governance, Relief, Response, and Mitigation
Lessons Learnt

Theme 2: Tsunami – Are We Ready for the Future?

a) Response, Governance, & Community Resilience

South Asian coasts were greatly affected by the December 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami with varying degrees of disaster impact. Lives and properties were lost, different levels of socio-economic impacts were experienced and moreover, a new feeling of vulnerability developed within the coastal communities. To deal with these impacts and to build resilience, an integrated framework that includes the policies for preparedness, recovery, adaptation, mitigation and education is needed.

b) Technological Innovations: Monitoring, Detection and Early Warning Systems

Advanced monitoring of Tsunami events using IoT systems, remote sensing, and GIS are important in developing an early warning system. With the advent of AI and Geoinformatics, especially modeling with machine learning, deep neural networks and numerical coupled models have highly improved our early warning systems. It is important to understand how these technologies help to improve resilience across global coastal communities.

Theme 2 Foci:

Response, Governance, & Community Resilience
- Policies & Governance: Decisions Support System and SoPs
- Community Engagement Strategies
- Implementation Strategies: Resilience Strategies

Technological Innovations – Monitoring, Detection and Early Warning Systems
- Technologies for Monitoring Spatially Distributed Hazards
- Simulations/Decision Models Early Warning System
Technical Session in ‘Spatial Technology Applications for Disaster Risk Reduction’ by Esri India
- The session showcases how geospatial infrastructure enables an integrated platform for disaster risk reduction. It also demonstrates the capabilities and applications of Esri’s ArcGIS for disaster risk management as well as in spatial monitoring of Tsunami.

AGENDA

Inaugural Ceremony
03:00 pm – 03:03 pm	Introduction
03:03 pm – 03:05 pm	Prayer
03:10 pm – 03:05 pm	Welcome Note Dr. Maneesha V. Ramesh, Director & Professor, Amrita Center for Wireless Networks & Applications; UNESCO Chair on Experiential Learning for Sustainable Development & Innovation
03:10 pm – 03:15 pm	Video Message Tsunami Awareness Day Ms. Mami Mizutori, United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR)
03:15 pm – 03:25 pm	Inaugural Address Dr. M. Rajeevan, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Govt. of India
03:25 pm – 03:35 pm	Amrita Tsunami Response and Relief – Video film
03:35 pm – 03:50 pm	Presidential Address Indian Ocean Tsunami 2004: Mata Amritandamayi Math’s Response Swami Amritaswarupananda Puri, President, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham
03:50 pm – 04:00 pm	Address by Esri India Mr. Agendra Kumar, President, ESRI India
04:00 pm – 04:03 pm	Vote of Thanks Dr. Sudhesh K. Wadhawan, Advisor and Adjunct Professor, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham; Director General [Retired], Geological Survey of India
THEME 1: Tsunami – Responses & Lessons Learnt
04:05 pm – 04:15 pm	Keynote 1 – Short and long term disaster responses for coastal communities across Asia Dr. Patrick Kilby, Senior Lecturer, Australian National University
04:15 pm – 04:35 pm	Keynote 2 – MAM’s humanitarian operations in the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami: Implications for theory and practice Dr. Bhavani Rao R., Director, AMMACHI Labs; UNESCO Chair in Women Empowerment & Gender Equality
04:35 pm – 04:45 pm	Keynote 3 – Tsunami response and lessons learnt from Sri Lanka Ms. Madhavi Malalgoda Ariyabandu, Director, Duryog Nivaran – South Asia Network for Disaster Mitigation, Sri Lanka
04:45 pm – 04:55 pm	Keynote 4 – Environmental Implications of Disaster Management: Lessons Learnt from the Indian Ocean Tsunami. Dr. Hari Srinivas, Professor of Environmental Policy, Graduate School of Policy Studies, Gakuin University, Japan
04:55 pm – 05:55 pm	Panel Discussion – Reflections on Case studies & Lessons Learnt Moderator: Dr. Maneesha V. Ramesh Rapporteur: Dr. Joost Monks, University of Geneva, Switzerland
05:55 pm – 06:05 pm	BREAK
THEME 2: Tsunami – Are we ready for the Future?
06:05 pm – 06:15 pm	Keynote 1 – Are We Ready to Face Another Tsunami? Dr. Shailesh Nayak, Director, National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS)
06:15 pm – 06:30 pm	Keynote 2 – Early Warning System: INCOIS Tsunami Warning System Dr. T. Srinivasa Kumar, Director, INCOIS
06:30 pm – 06:40 pm	Keynote 3 – Making Indian Ocean Coastal Community Tsunami Ready Mr. Ardito M. Kodijat, Head of the IOT Information Centre, UNESCO Office, Jakarta
06:40 pm – 06:45 pm	Keynote 4- Pacific Disaster Center: Tsunami Early Warning Video Dr. Chris Chiesa, Deputy Executive Director, Pacific Disaster Center
06:45 pm – 06:55 pm	Keynote 5 – Development of Indian Tsunami Buoy System Sagar Bhoomi – A Tsunami propagation detection and reporting system in the Ocean Dr. R. Venkatesan, Scientist-G and Programme Director, Ocean Observation Systems, National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT)
06:55 pm – 07:05 pm	Keynote 6 – OceanNet: Mobile Offshore Communication Network for Real Time Dissemination of Imminent Disaster Warning Dr. Maneesha V. Ramesh, Director & Professor, Amrita Center for Wireless Networks & Applications; UNESCO Chair on Experiential Learning for Sustainable Development & Innovation
07:05 pm – 07:15 pm	Keynote 7 – Amrita-Kripa: Technology assisted Targeted Timely Disaster Relief Prof. Sethuraman Rao, Associate Professor, Amrita Center for Wireless Networks and Applications, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham
07:15 pm – 07:45 pm	Technical Session – Geospatial Technology Applications for Disaster Risk Reduction Ms. Seema Joshi, General Manager – Strategic Solutions & Technology, ESRI India
07:45 pm – 08:05 pm	BREAK
08:05 pm – 08:55 pm	Closing Panel Discussion – Tsunami: Are We Ready for the Future? Have we sufficiently addressed gaps from the past and learnt from its lessons? Moderator: Prof. N. Vinod Chandra Menon, Founder Member, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA)
Valedictory Session
08:55 pm – 09:05 pm	Welcome – Dr. Bhavani Rao R., Director, AMMACHI Labs; UNESCO Chair in Women Empowerment & Gender Equality, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham
09:05 pm – 09:10 pm	Institutional MoU Signing – Amrita & ESRI
09:10 pm – 09:15 pm	Recommendations – Prof. N. Vinod Chandra Menon, Founder Member, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA)
09:15 pm – 09:30 pm	Invited Special Addrtess by the Guest of Honour Prof. Ian Davis, Visiting Professor, Kyoto, Lund, Oxford Brookes Universities and Honorary Visiting Professor, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT)
09:30 pm – 09:45 pm	Valedictory Address by the Chief Guest Shri. Kamal Kishore, Member, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA)
09:45 pm – 09:50 pm	Vote of Thanks Mr. Vishal Sharma, ESRI