emi

The Earthquakes and Megacities Initiative (EMI) is an international scientific organization^[1] started in 1998 and established as a non-stock, non-profit organization in the Philippines in 2003.  Its mission is to advance policy, knowledge and practice of urban Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR).

In 2005, EMI was accredited by UNDP as an Implementing Agency for the UNDP/BCPR urban disaster risk reduction program. At the same time, the organization also became a part of the U.N. Task Force for Disaster Reduction. Since 2007, EMI has been a member of the UN Global Platform for Disaster Reduction (GPDRR), earning recognition for its authoritative knowledge, commitment and advocacy engagement in urban DRR. In 2009, EMI also became a member of the Primary Consultative Group for the Global Campaign on Building a Local Government Alliance for DRR, a worldwide effort being spearheaded by the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR). In recent years, EMI has been actively involved in several global DRR initiatives such as the UNISDR’s Making Cities Resilient Campaign and the 1 Million Safe Schools and Hospitals Campaign.

Over the years, EMI has also worked with and received support from the German Disaster Reduction Committee (DKKV), German Federal Foreign Office (FFO), Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai, Pacific Disaster Center, ProVention Consortium, United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), UN World Food Programme (WFP), UNDP/BCPR, UNDP Jordan, World Bank and World Bank Institute (WBI), among others.

EMI draws a lot of its strength from its network of partner cities, research and academic institutions, professional and local government organizations (LGOs) worldwide. By working closely and collaboratively with its partner cities, helping them with knowledge, technology and methodology, and by learning directly from them in terms of the highly challenging context of local-level policy and practice, EMI has been able to develop competence in DRR analytical approaches, strategic planning and problem-solving.  EMI has also developed unique knowledge in making use of participatory processes and competency building tools to guide stakeholders in mainstreaming disaster risk reduction in their processes and operations.

EMI’s mandate is to build capacity in developing countries and in enabling acquisition and implementation of scientific knowledge in both policy and practice.  Thus, EMI is constantly improving its knowledge sharing and knowledge management approaches and tools, including training and capacity building.