In this instance, does not having an early warning system in place point to lessons that should be heeded by local, national, and international officials throughout the world? Disaster and emergency management experts in the U.S. and around the world are mindful of the difficulty of putting early warning systems to effective and efficient use -- there is a considerable distance to go before standardized technology, central coordination and notification, and local response achieve a balance that leads to a truly useful early warning system.
The complex issues involved in how to get to the point whereby a useful and effective early warning system is in place is the central theme of a Virtual Symposium sponsored by the Public Entity Risk Institute: Early Warning Systems -- Interdisciplinary Observations and Policies from a Local Government Perspective. The Virtual Symposium will take place April 18-22, 2005, and will be conducted in the Symposium Center on PERI's Web site and via email.
The PERI Symposium will be a 'collaborating conference,' and will be held concurrently, with the 2005 meeting of the ISCRAM Group (International Systems for Crisis Response and Management). ISCRAM is an international community of experts, and will be conducting its annual conference in Brussels, Belgium, April 18-20. (Fore more information, visit www.iscram.org.) PERI and ISCRAM will exchange information and jointly explore ways to contribute towards early warning system policy development.
Call for Symposium Papers
The Symposium program's moderator, Dr. Eelco Dykstra, has prepared a concept paper framing several critical issues involved in early warning systems. In his concept paper, Dr. Dykstra is inviting the submission of papers to be presented during the PERI Symposium.
Enroll in the Program At No Charge
Anyone interested in the topic of early warning systems can participate in the PERI Symposium by enrolling at no charge by using the online enrollment form on PERI's Web site.
The program will include the presentation of papers; an online, ongoing discussion; and other features.
Early Warning System Issues
Dr. Dykstra's concept paper is an attempt to look at the bigger picture of early warning systems, and to frame some of the issues involved in employing and using effective warning systems. It looks first at the issues surrounding the technology of early warning systems, most notably the need to integrate functional requirements and technical specifications. Second, it addresses the policy side by highlighting the need to find an often precarious balance between central coordination on the one hand and early awareness and active participation by local communities on the other. For without this balance, any system or technology is doomed to fail. Third, the paper will offer a simple scenario that can be used as a starting point for discussion and exchange.
Reprinted from PERI's Web site.
