European Civil Protection Forum 2015
5th edition of the Civil Protection Forum, organised by the European Commission on 6 and 7 May 2015 in Brussels.
About the Forum
The 2015 edition of the Forum gathered on 6-7 May close to 900 participants from the civil protection community, international and regional organisations, humanitarian aid partners, research and academia, as well as the private sector.
This year's event featured addresses from key figures such as Rihards Kozlovskis, Latvian Minister for the Interior, Frans Timmermans, First Vice-President of the European Commission, Christos Stylianides, European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management, and Carlos Moedas, European Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation.
Moreover, in an official signing ceremony, the President of the Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Authority, Dr. Fuat Oktay, signed with Commissioner Stylianides the agreement to join the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.
“The EU needs more innovation and should embrace new technologies. Moreover, Europe must show to its partners that it is there to answer the call in times of need. The European Commission considers the international partners and the NGO community important partners. We have to continue to nurture these partnerships in the future”.
Partnership and Innovation
The 'Partnership and Innovation' exhibition aimed to put forward opportunities for partnership and cooperation between the civil protection community and the research and development communities. Exhibitors displayed innovative projects, services and products relevant to disaster management, including on the results of EU-funded projects. Topics covered were: situational awareness, early warning systems, forest fire prevention, satellite-based software and practical applications, operational solutions for disaster management operations.
As part of the exhibition, three 'Remotely Piloted Aerial Systems' (RPAS) used in disaster management were demonstrated on the football pitch of Parc du Cinquantenaire in Brussels.
In the margins of the Forum, on 6 May, the European Commission's Directorate-General for Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection (DG ECHO) hosted a High-Level Roundtable with civil protection representatives of the EU Neighbourhood countries, discussing among 45 countries the objective of closer association with the EU Civil Protection Mechanism. Also, on 5 May, a joint event by DG ECHO and the Committee of the Regions gathered local, regional and national authorities from the Member States and EU policy makers to discuss new opportunities for cooperation in disaster management.
The Emergency Response Coordination Centre of the European Commission organised guided visits for interested participants.
Highlights
How can social media help in disaster response?
Patrick Meier, Co-Founder of the Digital Humanitarian Network, CrisisMappers and the Humanitarian UAV Network explains in an interview during the European Civil Protection Forum 2015 how the Digital Humanitarian Network works and how it was put to use during the Nepal earthquake.
What is the top priority for Iceland's civil protection?
"No nation can deal with major emergencies on its own, Iceland decided early on to be a participating member to the Mechanism". Víðir Reynisson, Head of the Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management under the National Commissioner of the Icelandic Police, explains the added value of participating in the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.
Why does poverty increase vulnerability?
Margareta Wahlström, Special Representative of the United Nations’ Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction and Head of UNISDR, explains poverty as an aggravating a factor to the impact of disasters.
What is the role of the Joint Research Centre in civil protection?
Listen to Delilah Al Khudhairy, Head of Unit Global Security and Crisis Management within the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, explain the role of the Joint Research Centre and its cooperation with EU's Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department (ECHO) towards improving disaster risk management.
How crucial is innovation in the field of civil protection?
Laurent Prevost is the Director-General for Civil Security and Crisis Management in France. Listen, as he explains the role of innovation in everyday work for strengthening disaster management prevention, preparedness and response.
Must the training of the response teams be standardised?
Albrecht Broemme is the President of the Federal Agency for Technical Relief in Germany. Here, he speaks about the added value of emergency management exercises under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.
Award Ceremony
During the closing ceremony of the European Civil Protection Forum, training certificates were delivered to three successful Chinese colleagues from the Emergency Management Office of Quingdao city, a 6 million inhabitants city in Shandong Province, East of China.
They represent a group of 125 students that have successfully completed the training activities under the EU-China Disaster Risk Management Project.
This project aims at supporting China in developing it disaster risk management system. It is co-financed by the European Commission through EU development funds and by the Chinese authorities.
Final Report
Final Report of the 5th European Civil Protection Forum
(4.44 MB - PDF)Other Editions
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