School and community-based hazards education and links to disaster-resilient communities

The growing impact of disasters worldwide highlights the urgent need to find new ways of creating and sustaining disaster resilient communities. Many groups in society are vulnerable to disasters.1 Research has consistently shown that children are especially vulnerable to the effects of disasters.2 In a wide-ranging review of the literature, Norris et aL3 concluded that children are the most vulnerable demographic group, experiencing severe effects of disasters much more than adults or the elderly. They found a significant risk factor for problematic functioning for adults after a disaster is having a child in the household. Given the inherent vulnerability of children, the role of schools in building community resilience to disasters is vitally important.