Disaster Risk Reduction : Community Resilience and Responses

Bupinder Zutshi, Professor, Centre for the Study of Regional Development, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India. Prof. Zutshi has more than 38 years of teaching and research experience at post-graduate and research level. He has published 7 books, completed more than dozen research projects and written several research articles in research journals of repute published from India and abroad. He has organized several national and international seminars and conferences. His major research interests are issues related to human settlements and their changing habitat, disaster risk and vulnerability of human settlements. Other research interests are issues related to demographic changes and their consequences on population composition and population characteristics, education and child labour issues, studies on tribal communities. He has completed several research projects sponsored by national and international organizations, which includes UN Women (UNIFEM), UNESCO (New Delhi), International Bureau of Education (IBE, Geneva), United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (Geneva), Ford Foundation (New Delhi), International Labour Organization (New Delhi), National Human Rights Commission of India, Election Commission of India and Indian Council for Social Science and Research.

Prof. Dr. Akbaruddin Ahmad is the Director and ProfessorBircham International University, Spain and Vice Chancellor, Darul Ihsan University, Bangladesh and Chairman of Bangladesh's leading civil society think tank, Policy Research Centre.bd.(PRC.bd). At present he is involved as the Chairman, Network of Asia Pacific Schools and Institute of Public Administration and Governance (NAPSIPAG) earlier headquartered at the Jawharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi, now transferred to Colombo. He is also the Editor-in-Chief, Finance World Ltd. a weekly tabloid and Chairman, Royal Resort the only heritage resort in Bangladesh that manages the famous heritage palaces and mosque of the Nawab Bahadur Syed Nawab Ali Chowdhury, the co-founder of the Dhaka University. He is the General Body Member of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI). He is a reputed educationist and financial expert. He is a commerce graduate from the Dhaka University and obtained his MBA in Banking from the Edward University, USA and PhD in Banking & Finance from the Bircham International University, Spain. He is an outstanding scholar, management specialist with exposure in management of educational institutions of higher learning, financial institutions, banks and civil society think tank. Prof. Dr. Akbaruddin Ahmad is widely traveled and attended national, regional and international conferences, seminars and presented papers on disaster management, disaster law, financial sector reforms and tourism and authored several books and technical papers. He is a prolific writer and regular contributor to national dailies and peer reviewed national and international journals. He delivered lectures in BBA and MBA Programs. He has worked as a Senior Consultant for the World Bank/USAID for the Financial Sector Reform Project (FSRP) for the restructuring of four nationalized commercial banks and the Bangladesh Bank. He was also “IT” Advisor for Janata Bank, Rupali Bank and the Bangladesh Computer Council. Prof. Ahmad worked as the Vice-Chairman, International Information Systems Inc., Lowell, Mass., USA and Managing Director, Jeraisy Computer Services & Riyadh House Est., Saudi Arabia. He also worked as Senior Consultant, KPMG/ Rahman Rahman & Huq, Chartered Accountants. He has set up several schools, college, madrasahs as donor and founder and involved in several socio-cultural, religious and economic activities.

Dr. Ananda Babu Srungarapati is a societal awareness specialist, and a scholar. As the founder President of DMICS (Disaster Management Initiatives and Convergence Society), he has so far conducted Ten National and International Conferences and Two World Congresses on Disaster Management. He has recently edited and published ‘Together for a Safer World’, proceedings of the Second World Congress on Disaster Management. Dr. Ananda Babu’s PhD Thesis – Rethinking the Subaltern: Babu Jagjivan Ram and the Dialectic of Marginality from the Department of English, Osmania University, reflects his clarity of thinking and conviction of courage in matters of social justice and general well being of Indian society.