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I am currently working on relief activities in developing countries in disasters and violent conflicts. My focus is on food security issues. I am looking for computerized decision-support systems that are used in relief. I would very much appreciate if anybody could send me information on such programmes, companies developing them, and agencies working with them. Thank you for your assistance, I look forward to hearing from you.
Torsten Feldbruegge
Institute for Food Economics and Consumption Studies
Chair Food Economics and Food Policy
Christian-Albrechts-Univerisity
Olshausenstr. 40
D - 24103 Kiel
Germany
Tel: # 49 - (0) 431 - 880 44 27
Fax: # 49 - (0) 431 - 880 73 08
E-mail: tfeldbruegge@food-econ.uni-kiel.de
I am responsible for EOC operations and planning for our water agency. My goal for this year is to move from a manual record keeping system to a computer driven system. Several newsletters ago someone mentioned using a Lotus Notes driven application to track information within the EOC during an incident. I am looking for comments on the availability of such software (who is marketing it and relative cost) and information from those of you who have implemented such a system (i.e. how well does it work, strengths & weaknesses). Of course I would welcome any additional comments that would help me computerize our EOC. You can respond to me at: tsbales@juno.com. Thanks for your help!
Todd Scott Bales
Assistant Customer Service Superintendent
California-American Water Company
Monterey CA USA
tsbales@juno.com
Does anyone know of any research that has examined changes in unemployment rates following natural disasters? Please reply to Eric Noji, e-mail: exn1@CEHOD1.EM.CDC.GOV. Thanks.
The Asian Urban Disaster Mitigation Program (AUDMP), at the Asian Disaster Preparedness Centre (ADPC), Asian Institute of Technology is seeking a Project Manager. The Project Manager will work under the supervision of the Senior Manager of the AUDMP and will be responsible for overall program management of several AUDMP country-level disaster management projects, including project planning and development and performance monitoring and evaluation. The project manager will work closely with in-country project managers to ensure that the project- level goals, as well as AUDMP program goals, are being achieved. He/she will also be responsible for broader AUDMP program management tasks as required, in areas such as financial management and general administration. The project manager will be expected to coordinate with other AUDMP and ADPC staff on overlapping areas of program management, training, and information and networking activities, as well as closely with other ADPC staff.
Duties and Responsibilities:
- Oversee the effective management of country-level projects
- Complete project monitoring reports, including project status and
evaluation and financial reports
- Assist with program financial management, including budgeting,
project cost estimates and contract oversight monitoring
- Develop and implement new disaster management projects as needed,
including formulating project proposals, implementation plans, and
budgets
- Maintain a tracking system for project/program activities and
financial accounts
Qualifications:
- Masters Degree in a related field preferred (e.g. international
development, business, public administration);
- Minimum of five years related experience, three years of which
should be in a project/program management capacity;
- Demonstrated knowledge of urban disaster management and development
issues;
- Experience with budgeting and accounting systems;
- Computer proficiency in word processing and spread sheets.
- Knowledge of accounting and project management software desirable.
- Excellent written and spoken English;
- Excellent interpersonal skills, team-oriented work style,
experience and demonstrated interest in a multicultural work
environment;
- Minimum two years working experience in a developing country:
- Living/working experience in Asia highly desirable.
Salary, Benefits and Contract Period:
- The Project Manager position will be classified at AIT as a Program
Specialist I, IFS Grade III.
- Annual salary will be commensurate with experience and salary
history but within the range of Baht 500,000 to 825,000 (US$20,000 -
33,000) inclusive of base salary, 20% housing allowance and
10% contribution to the individuals AIT Insured Savings Fund and
Health Insurance.
- Benefits include round-trip air travel, settlement and resettlement
grants, and an educational allowance for children. Any income tax
on salary drawn from the institute is paid by the institute to the
Royal Thai Government.
- Contract Period: The Project Manager will be offered a two-year
contract.
For information on AIT employment policies, resettlement allowance, annual leave, annual cost of living allowance etc. check the AIT Human Resource Office at http://www.ait.ac.th/AIT/hro/
Please send letter of interest, detailed resume, salary history, three
letters of recommendation and contact information IMMEDIATELY [we
won't mention that the deadline, at least technically, is *today* -
ed.] to:
David Hollister, Senior Manager
AUDMP/ADPC
P.O. Box 4, Klong Luang, Pathumthani 12120
Tel (66-2) 524-5376; Fax (66-2) 524-5360
E-mail: pat@ait.ac.th
We do not usually mention new hazards/disaster publications in Disaster Research; there are simply too many of them. However, because in the past many readers have asked for information on this topic, we wanted to let you know about a new booklet available from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) - "Report on Costs and Benefits of Natural Hazard Mitigation." The report reviews the types of benefits that can accrue to different segments of society from mitigation measures, the costs that can be incurred, and the analyses needed to evaluate the cost effectiveness of specific measures. It includes 16 case studies of actual mitigation programs from across the nation. To obtain a copy of "Costs and Benefits of Natural Hazard Mitigation", contact the FEMA Publications Distribution Facility, 8231 Stayton Drive, Jessup, MD 20794; 1-800-480-2520 or (202) 646-3484; fax: (301) 497-6378.
Under a cooperative agreement with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI) is offering a professional fellowship for 1998 that will enable a practicing professional to gain greater skills and broader expertise in earthquake hazards reduction. The fellowship is designed to bring together an experienced practitioner with professionals conducting significant research. It provides a stipend of $30,000, commencing January 1998, to cover tuition, fees, relocation and living expenses for a six-month period. The fellowship is not intended to fund work toward a degree. The deadline for applying is September 5, 1997. For more information and an application form, contact EERI, 499 14th Street, Suite 320, Oakland, CA 94612-1934; (510) 451-0905; fax: (510) 451-5411; e-mail: eeri@eeri.org; WWW: http://www.eeri.org.
http://www.sustainable.doe.gov/freshstart/
Operation Fresh Start is a Department of Energy initiative
designed to help individuals and communities incorporate sustainable
principles and technologies into their plans when they recover from a
flood, earthquake, or other disaster. Operation Fresh Start is a
gateway to information from a variety of federal agencies that deal
with disaster recovery, and the Web site offers a host of resources
one can use to rebuild a community, business, or home - not just the
way it was before the disaster, but healthier, more energy efficient,
less expensive, safer, and more livable - in short, more sustainable.
http://www.lrc.fema.gov
The Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Emergency
Training Center (NETC) Learning Resource Center (LRC) has added its
on-line card catalog to the FEMA Web site. This index will provide
bibliographic access to NETC's collection of more than 50,000 books,
reports, periodicals, and audiovisual materials concerning fire
service and emergency management. The LRC is NETC's on-campus library
for staff and students of the National Fire Academy and the Emergency
Management Institute. The center concentrates on the social and
behavioral aspects of natural and technological hazards. Generally,
NETC students are not scientists but practicing emergency managers and
first responders, and the LRC is designed to meet their needs. While
full text will not be available on-line, the listings will give users
the opportunity to survey the center's wide range of material, and the
general public can gain access to the LRC's collection via inter-
library loan through their local libraries. Additional information is
available from the LRC Web site or by e-mailing netclrc@fema.gov.
http://www.eeri.org
The Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI) Web site
continues to grow impressively, now offering brief clips from the EERI
videos on the Kobe, Northridge, Loma Prieta, and Armenia earthquakes.
These brief videos that can be viewed on-line, and samples from other
EERI publications - including slide sets, CD-ROMs, and other resources
- are also available.
http://magma.Mines.EDU/students/j/jcrouse/reactive/reactive.html
Approximately half of the homes built in the United States today
are constructed on reactive soils - soils that, when exposed to
certain physical or geological conditions, undergo changes in shape
and structure that can lead to serious foundation and structural
damage to buildings. Reactive soils cause an estimated $6-$11 billion
damage annually - making them by far the most expensive of all
geological hazards. This site, created by a team of five students from
the Colorado School of Mines, is designed to assist home builders,
home buyers, and home owners in identifying the most common forms of
reactive soils. It describes the hazards these soils can pose to
various structures and offers feasible mitigation techniques to take
before or after construction.
Oklahoma State University's masters degree of political science with emphasis in fire and emergency services administration is designed to provide a sound educational foundation for anyone serving, or desiring to serve, as a manger or administrator in fire protection or emergency services. For details, contact Michael Hirlinger, Graduate Director, OSU, Department of Political Science, 516 Math Sciences, Stillwater, OK 74078; (405) 744-5574; e-mail: mhirlin@okway.okstate.edu.
The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is holding a series of workshops on Increased Cost of Compliance (ICC) coverage (see DR #220), a change in coverage designed to help policyholders bring damaged property into compliance with local community floodplain management ordinances. The workshops are intended to aid insurance agents, adjusters, and other personnel in discussing this policy enhancement with clients. Workshops include:
Location Date
Jacksonville, Florida June 10, 1997
Miami, Florida June 12, 1997
Metairie, Louisiana June 17, 1997
Bridgeton, Missouri June 24, 1997
Charleston, South Carolina July 2, 1997
For details, contact Benita Woodard, National Flood Insurance Program, Bureau and Statistical Agent, P.O. Box 310, Lanham, MD 20703-0310; (301) 731-5300, ext. 730; fax: (301) 918-1476.
Below are recent conference announcements received by the Natural
Hazards Center. Most previous issues of DR contain additional notices.
For a comprehensive list of upcoming disaster-related meetings and
training, see our World Wide Web page:
http://www.colorado.edu/hazards/conf.html
Utah Floodplain Managers Association Annual Conference: "Flood and Floodplains, Lessons Learned." Park City, Utah: June 26-27, 1997. Contact: Judy Watanabe, Comprehensive Emergency Management, 1110 State Office Building, Salt Lake City, UT 84114; (801) 538-3750.
1997 California Water Symposium: "Precipitation and Flooding of 1997." Sponsors: Sierra College Science Center and the Floodplain Management Association. Rocklin, California: June 28, 1997. Contact: Charles Dailey, Sierra College Science Center, 5000 Rocklin Road, Rocklin, CA 95677; (916) 781-0475; fax: (916) 781-0455
Essentials of Risk Assessment. Offered by EEI Corporation. Seattle, Washington: July 7-8, 1997. Contact: Seminar Program Coordinator, EEI Corporation, 10448 Democracy Lane, Potomac, MD 20854; (301) 365-4762; fax: (301) 365-7019; e-mail: 102506.2600@CompuServe.com.
Critical Incident Stress Management Workshops. Sponsors: International Critical Incident Stress Foundation (ICISF), U.S. Coast Guard, and others. Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii: July 17-20, 1997. Contact: ICISF, 4785 Dorsey Hall Drive, Suite 102, Ellicott City, MD 21042; (410) 730-4311; fax; (410) 730-4313.
1997 Oklahoma Fire and Life Safety Education Conference. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma: August 6-8, 1997 (with pre-conference workshops beginning August 2). Contact: Fire Service Training, Oklahoma State University, 1723 West Tyler, Stillwater, OK 74708-8041; 1-800-304-5727 - or - (405) 744-5727.
1997 International Public Works Congress and Exposition (including a complete track on emergency management). Sponsor: American Public Works Association (APWA). Minneapolis, Minnesota: September 13-17, 1997. Contact APWA, 2345 Grand Boulevard, Suite #500, Kansas City, MO 64108-2625; (816) 472-6100; fax: (816) 472-1610; WWW: http://www.pubworks.org.
Second Colorado Wildland Fire Conference. Lakewood, Colorado: September 26-28, 1997. Sponsors: Colorado State Forest Service and others. Contact: Colorado Wildland Fire Conference, P.O. Box 3733, Evergreen, CO 80437-3733; (303) 674-3145; fax: (303) 674-8701.
Second National Conference of the Australian Risk Engineering Society and Industry Exhibition. Canberra, Australia: October 2-3, 1997. Contact: National Convention and Management Services, P.O. Box 3683, Weston, ACT 2611, Australia; tel: +61 6 288 2884; fax: +61 6 287 1937; e-mail: Conference@ncms.com.au; WWW: http://www.ieaust.org.au/society.htm - or - http://www.bit.net.au/ncms/
Public Risk Management Association (PRIMA) 1998 Annual Meeting. Minneapolis, Minnesota: June 7-10, 1998. Contact: PRIMA, 1815 North Fort Myer Drive, suite 1020, Arlington, VA 22209; (703) 528-7701.
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