Lessons Learned from the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami

Learning from Megadisasters is a knowledge-sharing project that aims to encourage countries to mainstream disaster risk management (DRM) in their development policies and planning. The project intends to achieve this through sharing Japan’s knowledge on DRM and post-disaster reconstruction with countries vulnerable to disasters. In the first phase of the project, 32 knowledge notes have been produced, which are grouped into six thematic areas: (1) structural measures; (2) non-structural measures; (3) emergency response; (4) reconstruction planning; (5) hazard and risk information and decision making; and (6) economics of disaster risk, risk management, and risk financing. The notes analyzed and synthesized what worked, what did not, and why in the response to the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami. The authors offered recommendations for developing countries that face similar risks and vulnerabilities. The webinar will discuss some of the key messages that the project helped highlight.