Practical Action wins prestigious award for work on early warning systems

International development charity Practical Action has won the PODER “Think Tank of the Year” award for work during the 2017 floods and landslides in Lima.

When the disaster hit, the charity provided early warnings to the public to enable them to escape with their lives and also provided advice on response and reconstruction to national and local governments as part of the Zurich Flood Resilience Program, financed by Zurich Insurance Group.

The award was created in 2013 to acknowledge the work of Peruvian think tanks that seek to inspire politicians and government officials to make informed decisions.

Alfonso Carrasco, Regional Director, Practical Action Latin America said: “I am very grateful to the organizers of this event for this acknowledgement, which will help us to continue along the intended path”

The jury was particularly impressed by the way Practical Action helped guide learning after the 2017 disasters which “few research centres had the sense to address”.

Pedro Ferradas, Head of Risk Management at Practical Action, explained how the lessons learned allowed Practical Action to inform decisions made for the future. “During discussions around the reconstruction process, we were able to have input to the National Reconstruction Plan which controls how overall risk is managed.”

Specifically, Practical Action recommended that officials:

• Think innovatively about disaster recovery
• See restoration not just as a time to build infrastructure but also to build-back-better
• And improve the resilience of communities to future events and encourage sustainable development.

Heavy rains in March 2017 caused floods and landslides around the capital, claiming the lives of 72 people and affecting half a million more – including one woman who’s near-death experience caught in a mudslide became an internet video sensation. http://edition.cnn.com/2017/03/20/americas/peru-floods-mudslide-toll/index.html.

See all lessons learned from 2017 Peru floods http://www.floodresilience.net/resources/item/prioritizing-recovery-spending-lessons-from-the-2017-peru-floods~0

For more information and full video of event http://premiopoder.pe/

Hear from the beneficiaries: Nicanor’s personal experience with Practical Action early warning systems https://practicalaction.org/nicanor