Report
One of the main pillars of the Kobe University UNESCO Chair is the Education Program, held for undergraduate and graduate students. This year, the event was held from 7-8 December, with 4 students from Kobe University, 8 from Indonesia, 5 from Malaysia, 10 from Taiwan (including two facilitators) and 20 from Pakistan. The theme for this year was, “Talking about disaster – How can we make our societies safer?” The first half consisted of presentations about their countries from each of the participating universities, as well as a panel discussion. The panelists consisted of instructors and former UNESCO Chair Education Program participants. For the second half, groups consisting of students from all the participating universities shared their responses to the assigned task, comparing disasters in different countries and suggesting roles for students in disaster risk reduction.
Students not only experienced the difficulty of having discussions in English online with people they are meeting for the first time but also learned about differences and similarities among disasters in different places. According to the questionnaire responses, “I learned that there are a lot of disasters in the world. If we learn deeply about disaster risk reduction, everyone will be safer. I also learned how to communicate about disaster not only with my classmates but with people around the world” (NKUST). “I was glad to be able to hear from students in other countries about their cultures and about disasters in their countries, as well as their experiences of disaster. … I want to investigate about what to do if there is an earthquake and be ready when a disaster strikes” (KU).
We are planning on holding the Kobe University UNESCO Chair Education Program Conference next year, too. If you know of students who might be interested, please let them know. On 7-8 December, we held a conference sponsored by the Education Program of the Kobe University UNESCO Chair, “Gender, Vulnerability and Well-being in Disaster Support.” This year's theme was “Let’s talk about disaster – safety and security for all.”
For a full report, please click here [PDF].
Schedule
December 7 - 8, 2024
Lecturers
- Prof. Ronni Alexander（Chair Holder, Kobe University）
- Assoc. Prof. Sayaka Kotera（Kobe University）
- Professor Dr. Ir. HUANG Yuk Feng（Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman）
- Associate Professor Dr. TAN Kok Weng（Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman）
- Associate Professor Dr. Sun, Jhih-Sian（National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology）
- Associate Professor Dr. Yu, Huilung（National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology）
- Professor Dr. Yang, Ching-Chiao（National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology）
- Assistant Professor Dr. Badur Un Nisa（Shifa Tameer-e-Millat University）
- Senior Lecturer Anam Jamil（Shifa Tameer-e-Millat University）
Student Participants
Total number of student participants: 37
| ・Kobe University | 4名 |
| ・Universiti Tinku Abdul Rahman | 5名 |
| ・Universitas Gadjah Mada | 8名 |
| ・National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology | 10名 |
| ・Shifa Tameer-e-Millat University (SMTU) | 10名 |
About Kobe University UNESCO Chair Education Program 2024
This year’s theme: “Talking about disaster – How can we make our societies safer?”
Dates for 2024
December 7- 8, 2024
Eligibility
Enrolled students (graduate or undergraduate) at Kobe University
Qualifications
Ability to communicate in English.
Schedule
・Conference: 2024.12.7– 8
About Application
Flyer (PDF)
For more details, click here.