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High-Level Symposium on Coastal Resilience

New York, September 26th, 2014: On Thursday, September 25th, R3ADY Asia-Pacific, the Global Partnerships Forum, and the U.S.-Japan Council, were honored to host the High-Level Symposium on Coastal Resilience, at the Ford Foundation, which was held in the margins of the 69th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.

The hosts were privileged to have an ensemble of distinguished speakers, share their views about the challenges faced by coastal communities.

Ms. Irene Hirano Inouye, President of the U.S.-Japan Council, and Chair of R3ADY Asia-Pacific Advisory Council, in her welcoming remarks, and introducing Madame Abe, focused on her goal of building strong people-to-people connections in order to form partnerships that will lead to innovative solutions.

The First Lady of Japan, Her Excellency Madame Akie Abe, in her keynote address, elegantly explained her special connection to the sea and land, the need for harmony with nature, and gave her valuable insights on the complicated issue of a Japanese seawall.

The High-Level Symposium was also honoured to have Ms. Margareta Wahlström, Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction, who gave a Special Address on the UN’s leadership role in addressing disaster challenges in a sustainable manner. 

The event was the brainchild of Ms. Jainey Bavishi, Executive Director, R3ADY Asia-Pacific. R3ADY Asia-Pacific, (formerly APDR3, the Asia Pacific Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience Network), was launched by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2011 at the APEC Summit in Honolulu.  Its mission is to reduce the risk of natural disasters and build resilient communities and economies through strategic and innovative partnerships.

Due to time unforeseen time constraints, Parker Liautaud, Fellow at the Yale Climate & Energy Institute and Polar Explorer, was not able to speak at the conference so we have captured his valuable insights on video.

Please follow the link to find the final program.  For a brief summary of the discussion, please click here.

For additional information, please contact Laura Cienkowski, Programme Officer, Global Partnerships Forum: lauracienkowski@remove-this.partnerships.org, OR Nora Westcott, Programme Officer, Global Partnerships Forum: norawestcott@remove-this.partnerships.org

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