18 May 2012

Canterbury Earthquake Symposium Focuses on Disabled Community - International Guest Speaker Invites NZ to Share Learnings with World

International guest speaker Valerie Scherrer of CBM will be visiting from Brussels to speak at a Christchurch symposium addressing disability inclusion in emergency preparedness and response.

The symposium, to be held 28-29 May, will be aimed at collecting learnings from the Canterbury earthquakes and identifying what needs to be done to improve the emergency preparation and response for disabled people in future emergencies in New Zealand.

The symposium is sponsored by DPA, the Office of Disability Issues - Ministry of Social Development, the Ministry of Civil Defence & Emergency Management, the Ministry of Health, ACC and CBM.

Scherrer is coming to the symposium to add an international perspective on disability emergency preparedness and share her learnings from emergency relief work done overseas. She also urges New Zealand to share their learnings with the rest of the world.

She states that “emergency is, in a way, opportunity for change,” and “encourages New Zealand to continue its international leadership in building an inclusive society.”

“Disability inclusive emergency preparedness and response is a current and urgent issue for policy makers and practitioners around the world, and New Zealand is in a position to set the bar for international best practice. In months following Hurricane Katrina in the US, disability-inclusion was a key area to address. Learning that come out of New Zealand in regards to disability-inclusive emergency preparedness and response will add key material that the world will be interested in hearing.”

Scherrer has worked in disasters and conflict zones across Iran, India, Bangladesh, Haiti, the DRC, Israel, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Kenya, to name a few. Scherrer is an occupational therapist by training with more than 15 years experience in the disability field.

CBM is the largest international disability organisation addressing poverty and disability in the developing world. Their aim is to help persons with disability improve their quality of life and to be included in all aspects of life. Their projects are focused overseas yet the organisation supports governments and international institutions in inclusive policy and initiatives around the world.

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