Urban

After the 1995 Kobe earthquake, residents of North Rokko used the participatory Machizukuri model to create alternative reconstruction plans, forming neighbourhood associations that strengthened community resilience and civic engagement.

Structured collaboration among stakeholders to enhance community resilience

A low-cost network of sensors built from open hardware that sends flood and mudflow alerts to officials and community leaders in Chosica, Peru. 

A community flood early warning system was built in Querecotillo, Peru, in 2016, with residents mapping flood zones and rehearsing an evacuation drill. CIIFEN worked with the municipality, the civil defence institute INDECI and the weather service SENAMHI between January and September 2016.

The Zambia Red Cross acted on a flood forecast in January 2023 to warn and equip households in Kitwe and Kafue before the water arrived.

The initiative combines participatory resilience assessment, university technical support and community engagement. A December 2023 Scorecard workshop identified data-management needs, leading the municipality and university to establish a dedicated data-collection portal.

Suryodaya connects neighbourhood organisation with municipal disaster risk governance. Its 201 Tole Development Committees support preparedness and community mobilisation, working with ward and municipal authorities. Participatory assessment and planning connect local knowledge with technical risk analysis and municipal action.

Municipal initiative integrating persons with disabilities into DRR and infrastructure planning through disaggregated data collection, workshops with caregivers and disability organisations, and a permanent communication forum linking communities and municipal departments.

The project titled “Itinerant Civil Protection” (Protezione Civile Intinerante), supported by the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Torino, aims to strengthen the dissemination of Civil Protection culture within the community through actions carried out across the entire municipal territory. It seeks to inform and raise awareness among the population about the risks that could affect the City of Turin, while also encouraging citizens to register for a personalized alert communication system.

“Mettiamoci al sicuro — Conto su di te” (“Let’s Get to Safety — I’m Counting on You”) is a Civil Protection project designed for schools to teach children and young people how to behave in emergency situations. It was created out of the need to talk about safety in a simple, positive, and non-alarming way.