AIWEST-DR 2023: Special Session on Inclusive Disaster Risk Reduction(Hosted by IRIDeS)（2023/10/12）
Theme: 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, disaster risk reduction, international
conference
Venue：Faculty of Psychology, Gadjah Mada University (Yogyakarta, Indonesia) and online
URL：https://aiwestdr.psikologi.ugm.ac.id/"The 15th Aceh International Workshop and Expo on Sustainable Tsunami Disaster Recovery(AIWEST-DR 2023) took place in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, from October 11 to 13, 2023. Fifteen
members from our institute, including Professor Shinichi Kuriyama, the director (DisasterPublic Health Lab), and Vice Director Professor Yuichi Ono (2030 Global DRR Agenda Office),
attended On October 12, 2023, our institute organized a special session titled ‘Leaving No One
Behind: Disasters, Vulnerability, and Social Inclusion in Japan, Indonesia, and Their Partners.’
It focused on inclusive disaster risk reduction, with a particular emphasis on people withdisabilities.
In this session, we were honored to host guest speakers Ms. Momoko Takahashi, who is withdisability requiring medical care, and Ms. Miwako Takahashi, her mother and caregiver. They
shared their personal experiences during the 2011 Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami,
shedding light on the challenges they faced in disaster isolation, including limited access toessential supplies like food and water. These insights deepened our understanding of people
with disabilities and improved our disaster preparedness knowledge.
The importance of providing special consideration for people with disabilities throughout
disaster prevention, response, and recovery was underscored. The discussions also included
insights from Indonesia about disasters and people with disabilities.
Additionally, Researcher (Specially Appointed) Miwako Kitamura (International ResearchCollaboration Office), Assoc. Prof. Sebastien Boret (International Research CollaborationOffice), Asst. Prof. Hyejeong Park (Disaster Medical Informatics Lab), Asst. Prof. Ryo Saito(Cognitive Sciences Lab), Asst. Prof Julia Gerster (Disaster Culture and Archive Studies), andAssoc. Prof. David Nguyen (Tsunami Engineering Lab) contributed to a wide range ofdiscussions on inclusive disaster risk reduction.
During the opinion/experience exchange between the Takahashi family and people withdisabilities from Indonesia, there was an opportunity to discuss the situation of mothers andchildren with disabilities in Indonesia. This exchange also included interactions among people
with disabilities through art of Ms. Momoko Takahashi. Among the discussions, topics such as
the challenges faced by mothers who provide care to people with disabilities, including sleep
deprivation and feelings of loneliness, were raised. It became evident that there are common
challenges related to caregiving and the roles of families and mothers in both Japan andIndonesia.
Through these valuable opportunities, new insights into the challenges faced by people withdisabilities from an international perspective were gained. This has expanded the possibilities
for future collaborations in disaster research and projects involving people with disabilities
requiring medical care.
Text and Photos：Miwako Kitamura (International Research Collaboration Office)Hyejeong Park (Disaster Medical Informatics Lab)
Yuta Hara (2030 Global DRR Agenda Office)Sebastien Boret (International Research Collaboration Office)Elizabeth Maly (International Research Collaboration Office)Yuichi Ono (2030 Global DRR Agenda Office)Shinnchi Kuriyama (Disaster Public Health Lab)(Continues to the next page)Share their experiences during the Great East
Japan earthquake and tsunami in the special
session, offering valuable insights into disability
challenges during disasters.

A touching interaction between an
Indonesian child with disability, Ms.
Takahashi Momoko, and their family

Indonesian people with disabilities sharing theirdisaster experiences and engaging inmeaningful discussions

Art exchange between Indonesian childwith disability, Ms. Takahashi Momoko,
and their families