I think one of the huge issues of disasters is that all traces of the damages are many times gone totally from the landscape and then from people's memories. I recall reading that in Japan someone found a after their latest subduction quake and tsunami a small monument constructed to an earlier tsunami warning residents of the future dangers. It didn't work very well. Future generations don't pay attention to the past and thus history and disasters are repeated.
Besides the renewed business activity and all the new buildings they did achieve peace in that region because of this calamity. One significant benefit that came out of all the destruction. Too bad it takes a disaster to have that type of outcome.
I also noted this quote:
"In the Philippines, which has a rich history of civil society engagement and NGO work, I would say, empower them. Let them make decisions from the onset about planning; give them real responsibility to determine spending and how to allocate budgets and let them determine the priorities," Daly says. "You'll find projects will probably be more effective and more likely to last after the aid dries up."
It is the opposite of a top-down strategy. It takes longer to do, but the outcomes are better. As we all struggle with planning for disaster recovery let's take this advice to heart and use our community contacts and relationships, public and private, to build for a better tomorrow.
