US-Vietnam Workshop on Multiple Natural Hazards Assessment and Mitigation under the Impact of Climate Change

该项目将支持美国科学家和工程师参加将于2012年夏季在越南河内河内建筑大学校园举行的关于气候变化影响下多种自然灾害评估和减灾的研讨会。亚洲是世界上人口最多的地区；拥有世界58%的人口。亚洲大多数沿海地区容易受到一种或多种自然灾害的影响，如台风、海啸、沿海洪水或河流洪水。事实上，世界上50%以上的重大自然灾害都发生在亚洲。随着亚洲沿海地区人口和财富的稳步增长，潜在的台风和洪水破坏风险明显增加，而缺乏适当的减灾做法往往加剧了这种风险。例如，在越南，59%的土地面积面临台风和洪水的威胁。1990年至2009年期间，自然灾害造成的经济损失平均每年约占GDP的1.31%，1.3万人丧生。因此，从1990年到2009年，越南在受气候风险影响最严重的国家中排名第五。在未来数年，全球气候变化可能导致海平面的变化，以及台风和洪水的强度和/或频率增加。越南是受气候变化影响最严重的五个国家之一。如果海平面上升一米，越南的5% ？中国11%的人口和7%的农业用地将受到影响，预计损失将占GDP的10%。气候变化将如何影响区域气候、建筑环境和可持续性尚不清楚，这限制了预测和适应相应影响的能力。东南亚尤其脆弱。讲习班的目标是促进开展长期合作研究活动，重点放在美国和越南共同支持的减灾和研究生教育方面。讲习班将提供一个交流信息的场所，有助于发展专业合作关系，并将加强科学和工程研究。目标是：1)查明在发展中国家实施更具成本效益的减轻灾害战略所面临的挑战和障碍，这些国家面临多种自然灾害的风险，容易受到气候变化的潜在影响；2)促进和鼓励越南和美国研究人员之间的研究和教育合作。研讨会将讨论如何提高我们对预测和应对自然灾害和气候变化对建筑环境影响的理解和能力，并努力在越南和类似地区建立更具可持续性和弹性的沿海社区。预计通过今后的合作，两国研究生将共同开发和应用减轻多种灾害做法的基本方法。

This project will support the participation of US scientists and engineers to participate in a workshop on multiple natural hazards assessment and mitigation under the impact of climate change to be held in the summer of 2012, on the campus of the Hanoi Architecture University (HAU) in Hanoi, Vietnam. Asia is the most populous region of the world; home to 58% of the worlds' population. Most coastal areas in Asia are susceptible to one or more natural hazards, such as typhoons, tsunamis, costal inundation or river flooding. In fact, more than 50% of the world's major natural disasters occur in Asia. With the steady increase in population and wealth in coastal areas of Asia, there is an evident increase in risk of potential typhoon and flood damage, which is often exacerbated by the lack of proper mitigation practices. In Vietnam, for example, 59% of the land area is at risk to typhoons and floods. Between 1990 and 2009, economic losses due to natural hazards averaged about 1.31% of GDP per year, while 13,000 lives were lost. As a result, Vietnam ranks #5 among the countries most affected by climate risk from 1990 to 2009. In the coming years, global climate change may result in changes in the sea surface level as well as an increase in typhoon and flood intensity and/or frequency. Vietnam is listed among five hardest-hit countries by climate change. If sea level rises one meter, 5% of Vietnam?s land, 11% of its population and 7% of its agricultural land would be affected with the losses estimated at 10% of GDP. How climate change will affect regional climates and the built environment and sustainability is not well known, limiting the ability to predict and adapt to consequential effects. Southeast Asia is particularly vulnerable. The goal of the workshop is to facilitate the initiation of long-term collaborative research activities focused on hazard mitigation and graduate education supported by both the US and Vietnam. The workshop will provide a venue for exchange of information, contribute to developing professional collaborative relationships, and will strengthen scientific and engineering research. The objectives are 1) to identify challenges and barriers to more cost-effective hazard mitigation strategies in developing countries, which are at risk of multiple natural hazards and vulnerable to potential impacts from climate change; and 2) to facilitate and encourage research and educational collaboration between researchers from Vietnam and the US. The workshop will address a need to improve our understanding and ability to predict and respond to the impacts of natural hazards and climate change on the built environment, and to work toward more sustainable and resilient coastal communities in Vietnam and similar regions. It is envisioned that through the future collaborations fundamental methods for multi-hazard mitigation practices will be developed and applied by graduate students from both countries working together.