Even Without The Storm: The XU DRRM Story

Dexter S. Lo
XU Engineering Resource Center, Xavier University - Ateneo de Cagayan, Philippines
Since the 1990s, Xavier University (XU) has been
involved in disaster-response operations. When Haiyan
hit the Philippines, XU sent special mission teams to
affected areas composed of professors and students
from
medicine,
psychology
and
engineering,
exemplifying a truly competency-based response to
disasters.

Competency-based Response Operations during Haiyan

Simulated
and Actual
Washi Flood
Footprint Maps

In 2008, XU partnered with local government units in

developing methodologies for disaster risk assessment
at micro-scale level. By the time Washi flooded Northern
Mindnao in 2011, XU served as a hub for scientific
analysis and for relief and rehabilitation operations.
XU also worked with the city government and
international donors in providing new homes for more
than 500 families who survived the flood brought by
Washi. Community building and sustainable livelihood
programs have been integrated to this new community
called Xavier Ecoville.

Xavier
Ecoville
Houses

To sustain these initiatives, the XU DRRM Program was

institutionalized in 2013, focusing on: Research, Capacity
Building, Advocacy, Response, and Rehabilitation. Because of
these science-based engagements, XU became a member of
the Regional, Provincial, and City Disaster Risk Reduction and
Management (DRRM) Councils.

DRR-CCA
Workshops

Curriculum Integration

XU is currently working with 45 riverside villages on their

local DRRM Plans; and GIS Training for local Planning and
DRRM officers to effectively integrate DRR-CCA in their land
use and development programs.
XU is gearing up with researches and workshops on disaster
risk reduction, particularly on the onset of a changing climate.
Projects include: Training for Trainers for Civil Society
Organizations and Government Agencies commissioned by
the Climate Change Commission; and formal integration of
DRRM courses in the curriculum.

The XU DRRM Program is a commitment to building sustainable and resilient communities by

enhancing capacities and strategies to reduce risk against disasters and the impacts of climate
change. It is a testament that academic institutions can serve as partners in making science
and technology useful in peoples lives.
UNISDR Science and Technology Conference on the Implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030
27-29 January 2016 | Geneva, Switzerland