1. MAYORS VISIT MITRA DRR LEARNING CENTER IN LALITPUR

Hon. Mayor Santosh Lal Shrestha from Tansen municipality, a representative from Pokhara, and NSET visited Mitra Disaster Risk Reduction and Learning Center (MDRRLC) in Lalitpur to learn about how local level DRR knowledge hub can be utilized to raise awareness on DRR to the students and local residents.

Supporting the visit was the principal of Bhassara Secondary School who explained the process of being involved in the making of the DRR educational tools which were on display at the center. The center offers customized training programs for municipalities, schools and communities to educate people on DRR strategies as well as practical methods of preparations at schools and households. Schools regularly bring their students to undergo a practical training at the center.

The center was established in December 2019 as a part of CityNet project to support the DRR education project in Nepal to act as the knowledge hub for schools and communities to raise their awareness on disasters and its preparedness. It has also received visitors from overseas including from Japanese universities as the concept behind its inception evolves from the Japanese DRR principle of self-help, mutual-help and public-help.

2. FIRST PSYCHOLOGICAL FIRST AID (PFA) WORKSHOP CONDUCTED FOR NEPALESE TEACHERS

The 2015 Gorkha Earthquake left a mental and emotional scar among many children in Nepal. This is common after disasters or conflicts globally where children continue to suffer from trauma and very few know how to deal with them. Upon receiving request from the teachers in Nepal for the topic, workshop on Psychological First Aid (PFA) was conducted with the help from an expert from Save the Children Japan. The workshop shared the three action principles of PFA – ‘Look’, ‘Listen’, and ‘Link’ with practical application of how adults need to approach children who have experienced difficult times. The workshop highlighted what is and what is not PFA as the subject matter is commonly misunderstood by adults who wish to provide support. The three action principle is adapted from the WHO’s ‘Psychological First Aid: Guide for Field Workers’.

In the context of Nepal, talking about mental stress used to be a taboo and receiving counseling from professionals was almost non-existent as there was no realiable information on where such help could be obtained from and going to such counseling risked being isolated even from family members. Gradually with the advancement in literacy and proper awareness on such topics, people are now more willing to share their issues and seek help.

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