ROME, 23 November, 2018 - The Rome Declaration was adopted today by representatives of 55 countries at the close of the European Forum for Disaster Risk Reduction. The Declaration was read out by Italy’s Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Emanuela Claudia Del Re, at the closing ceremony and spells out the challenges and opportunities facing the region as it seeks to reduce disaster risk and disaster losses. In her closing remarks, Minister Del Re emphasized the importance of implementing the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction in coherence with the Paris Agreement on climate and the Sustainable Development Goals.

Mexico City, 21 November 2018. – Companies and businesses in Mexico have created a national Network of the Private Sector Alliance for Disaster Resilient Societies (ARISE) and agreed to work together to build a more resilient Mexico against disasters.

Disaster Risk Reduction Knowledge Service (DRR) team attended the International Data Week 2018 (IDW 2018) during 5–8th November 2018 in Gaborone, Botswana.

The IKCEST International Symposium 2018, with “Next Generation Artificial Intelligence and Knowledge Service” as its theme, was held in Deqing on October 26, 2018. The symposium is co-hosted by UNESCO and the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE) and organized by IKCEST and People’s Government of Deqing County and so on.

The team of Disaster Risk Reduction Knowledge Service (DRR) attended the meeting of the 1st session of the second governing board and advisory committee of the International Knowledge Centre for Engineering Sciences and Technology under the Auspices of UNESCO (IKCEST) on October 25, 2018.

The Second International Workshop for Disaster Risk Reduction Knowledge Service System was held on Oct.20-21, 2018, Beijing, China. The workshop was co-hosted by the International Knowledge Centre for Engineering Sciences and Technology under the Auspices of UNESCO (IKCEST) and Section on Earth Sciences and Geo-Hazards Risk Reduction, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO DRR),organized by Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The opening ceremony of the International Training Workshop on Resource & Environment Scientific Data Sharing and Disaster Risk Reduction Knowledge Service for “the Belt and Road”, was held at the Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, on October 10th, 2018.

2018 ICEE&IKCEST International Engineering Education Training Workshop was held at Tsinghua University on October 12-14. A total of 16 overseas students from 10 developing countries along the “Belt and Road” took part in the workshop. LIU Chang, Deputy Director of the Office of Knowledge Center, General Office, Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE), and IKCEST head of International Cooperation Affairs attended the opening ceremony and delivered a welcome speech. This workshop is the offline training part of the blended training on micro-diploma of computer science.

Ningxia Hui autonomous region's capital, Yinchuan, is aiming to become a smart city to create a better living environment for its residents. The city received approval from the central government in 2013 to become one of China's smart construction pilot cities.

Bonn, 26 September 2018, UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) organized training to improve understanding and use of the online Sendai Framework Monitor (SFM), launched in March, to monitor progress on implementing the global plan to reduce disaster losses by 2030, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.