Each year Tajikistan experiences

• 50,000 landslides
• 5,000 tremors and earthquakes
• hundreds of avalanches and debris flows

Although these disasters happen so often, many people don’t know what causes them, how to prevent them, and how to prepare for them. There are no organizations in Tajikistan that offer information about this topic. Schools don’t address this issue in classes. There are no textbooks, manuals, or other publications on emergencies.

That’s why Timur Idrisov had an idea to establish the first Emergencies Resource Center in Tajikistan. Last year he received a grant from the Provention Consortium to make his idea happen. The Provention Consortium is a global coalition that helps people in poor countries mitigate natural disasters.

The Center organized classes to teach people on how to correctly behave before, during and after earthquakes, fires, landslides, mudflows, and floods, Timur explains.

He especially focused on reaching out to teachers and children.

The Center used creative hands-on approaches to illustrate the dangers of disasters. For example, children and their parents engaged in a 'hazards hunt,' where they looked for dangerous things at home and made them safer. They put together a family safety plan, and practiced how to prepare an emergency bag or an escape bag, Timur says.

Children and teachers are interested in this topic, and want to learn more in the future, he adds.

Now schools have become interested in this subject, and several have added classes on this topic!

What does it mean?

Grant:  Money won in a competition to conduct proposed research. It doesn’t need to be repaid.