Element “Prevention and preparation ” Training workshop for employees “How societies can be resilient and evaluated

What communities can do to protect themselves and how they can maintain essential functions and infrastructure during a disaster, thus enabling recovery. These were the main themes of the Resilience Workshop for Communities During and After Disasters, organized by the EU Southern Programme and held in Madrid from September 12-15, 2011.

More than 40 experts from national civil protection authorities, international organizations, and NGOs from 13 Mediterranean and Balkan partner countries gathered in Spain to participate in the four-day workshop. The workshop was opened by Ms. Victoria Sánchez, Director of Spanish Civil Protection, and Mr. Francisco Fonseca Murillo, Head of the European Commission Delegation in Spain.

The purpose of the workshop was to define and deepen a new approach to disaster risk management based on the concept of community resilience. Generally, resilience is the capacity to absorb stresses or destructive forces through resistance or adaptation. For example, Al Jazeera identified the pro-democracy Egyptian protesters who recently continued to defy the curfew, gathering in Tahrir Square and helping each other carry food and provide ways to ensure the safety and medical assistance of those present.