Foreword to the 2nd edition

The informal name for this text has been the “Foundation Module.” The information it includes is regarded as the foundation for much of the UNDP/UNDRO Disaster Management Training Programme (DMTP). This training module describes the components of disaster management and their context within the overall framework of United Nations agencies actively involved in disaster and emergency issues.

This training module has been produced for the UNDP/UNDRO Disaster Management Training Programme by the University of Wisconsin Disaster Management Center. The Technical Operational Partners for the DMTP provided valuable advice on the format and content. The principal sources for the content include the UNDP/UNDRO Disaster Manual and six complementary training modules prepared for the DMTP. Intertect Training Services has edited the material and prepared the educational components.

For those of you familiar with the first edition, you will see many changes in the second edition. It has been significantly reorganized. The chapters which focus on the UN have been moved adjacent to chapters on related topics - instead of being collected together in the former Part 4.

The chapter on Natural Hazards has been condensed. Each hazard type is described in a one-page summary. More extensive coverage is now available in the companion module, Introduction to Hazards.

A new chapter on Compound and Complex Emergencies has been added, highlighting this topic as an issue that has recently emerged into our collective consciousness. Many other chapters have been modified or rewritten with new exercises and illustrations added.