On May 12th, the tenth anniversary of the 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake, SCU hosted an International Memorial Forum which convened at the SCU-Hong Kong Polytechnic University Institute for Disaster Management and Reconstruction.
Niu Zhijun, Deputy Bureau Chief of the China Earthquake Administration; the Vice Governor of Sichuan Province, Yang Xingping; Wang Xinli of the Ministry of Education; Nepal’s former Minister of Education, Ganga Lal Tuladhar; Academician Cui Peng of the Chinese Academy of Science; Chairman of the University Council of SCU, Professor Wang Jianguo; SCU President Li Yanrong; and Vice-President Shi Yanjing attended the Opening Ceremony. Government representatives, experts and scholars from Nepal, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and other Southeast Asian countries, along with experts and scholars from well-known Chinese universities, and faculty and student representatives of SCU, as well as relevant personnel, joined the general meeting.
At the beginning of the forum, participants observed a moment of silence to commemorate those who lost their lives and loved ones to the 2008 earthquake, as well as those who gave their lives to save others during the ensuing rescue mission.
Wang Jianguo gave an address on behalf of Sichuan University, summarizing SCU’s efforts over the past ten years in education, research, social welfare and medical care, as well as high-end international collaboration and exchange in the area of earthquake prevention and natural disaster mitigation, which have brought SCU’s strengths as a comprehensive university to the fore. SCU will continue to dedicate itself to serving society, assuming responsibility, and working together with universities from across China and around the world to educate high-end experts, develop front-line, innovative technology, and exploit the skills and knowledge of SCU’s leading institutes to offer greater contributions to global disaster and crisis prevention, management and reconstruction.
Niu Zhijun and Wang Xinli in their respective speeches stated that they looked forward to working more closely with partners across national borders on disaster prevention education so as to more effectively reduce the risk of earthquakes and other natural disasters.
During the Opening Ceremony, the plaque for the new National Youth Research Base for Disaster Mitigation Education was unveiled. The Research Base will draw on the resources and strengths of different disciplines and international collaborative projects to support disaster mitigation education and raise general awareness. The goal is to help young students improve their emergency response and crisis management skills so that they will be able to assume greater social responsibility in confronting human catastrophes.
During the forum, Cui Peng gave a talk on “Western China and theTraining in Disaster Mitigation and Prevention,” while Ganga Lal Tuladhar reflected on the “Current State of Disaster Prevention Education and Relief Work in Nepal,” the Dean of SCU’s West China Medical School, Li Weimin, gave a talk entitled “Huaxi’s Emergency Response Medical Care & the History, Present State, and Future of Emergency Medicine,” and Gretchen Kalonji spoke on “The History, Present State and Future of IDMR Disaster Education Development
In his speech, SCU President Li Yanrong encouraged his listeners to help improve the population’s awareness and capability to mitigate and respond to natural disasters; the younger generation, in particular, must be educated; the capacity to respond scientifically to large-scale natural disasters must be improved; by consolidating the amassed knowledge of past experience, all that can be done must be done to reduce the casualties of future disasters. Sichuan University on this occasion renewed its commitment to working with international friends and partners to promote the study of disaster prevention and its continued development.
Through a series of academic exhibitions, publications, meetings, and international initiatives on disaster prevention, mitigation, and relief work, a concerted effort has been made to consolidate China’s wisdom and experiences (not only from the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake, aftershocks and subsequent reconstruction work, but also from experience gained in China’s more distant past) to create a platform for authoritative, international dialogue on disaster management, reconstruction, and sustainable development in China
As a university known to the world because of calamity, Sichuan University has more recently turned its attention to the world in order to support other regions and countries struck by disaster, such as Xinjiang Province, Jiuzhaigou Valley, and Nepal.
As one of SCU’s younger disciplines, the field of “disaster science and management” is among those selected for “world-class discipline construction.”
