Abstract.In an emergency situation shelter space is crucial for people affected by natural hazards. Emergency planners in disaster relief and mass care can greatly benefit from a sound methodology that identifies suitable shelter areas and sites where shelter services need to be improved. A methodology to rank suitability of open spaces for contingency planning and placement of shelter in the immediate aftermath of a disaster is introduced. The Open Space Suitability Index uses the combination of two different measures: a qualitative evaluation criterion for the suitability and manageability of open spaces to be used as shelter sites and another quantitative criterion using a capacitated accessibility analysis based on network analysis. For the qualitative assessment implementation issues, environmental considerations and basic utility supply are the main categories to rank candidate shelter sites. A geographic information system is used to reveal spatial patterns of shelter demand. Advantages and limitations of this method are discussed on the basis of an earthquake hazard case study in the Kathmandu Metropolitan City. According to the results, out of 410 open spaces under investigation, 12.2 % have to be considered not suitable (Category D and E) while 10.7 % are Category A and 17.6 % are Category B. Almost two-thirds (59.55 %) are fairly suitable (Category C).

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Indonesia is located in a region highly prone to geological hazards due to its position on the convergence zone of three different tectonic plates. The convergence zone of the Indo-Australian plate and the Eurasian plate extends along the west coast of Sumatra Island and is marked by the Sunda Arc and the Sumatra Fault, with high levels of seismicity and volcanic activity. One lesson learnt from the Tsunami that struck Aceh Province on 26 December 2004 and caused massive-scale destruction and loss of lives (mostly women and children), is that understanding the various vulnerabilities of the Indonesian society, raising awareness of geological hazard exposition, and educating school children in disaster preparedness and response plays an important role for disaster mitigation. Building disaster resilience is an essential but challenging task for the Indonesian Government. To raise and maintain awareness, not only of the public, but also institutional wise is a challenge for national and local governments in Indonesia. In order to cope with these challenges, the Indonesian government works with the German Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR) in a development cooperation project. The so called "Geomobil" is a mobile education and training facility which tackles playful capacity building for geological hazards in schools. It is one example of preparedness and awareness raising, managed by the Provincial Department for Mining and Energy of Aceh. The Geomobil regularly conducts visits to elementary schools throughout the province accompanied by professionals. Using theoretical and practical learning elements, pupils are enabled to understand the existing geological hazards and train how to safeguard themselves. This best practice example from Indonesian governmental institution shows how important effective information and training concepts are to build resilience within the society.

The 25 April 7.8 magnitude Gorkha earthquake and subsequent aftershocks, including the 7.3 magnitude earthquake in Dolakha, severely damaged or destroyed nearly 900,000 buildings and approximately 2.3 million people continue to be displaced. We conducted 284 household surveys in 177 shelter sites spanning 27 Municipalities/VDCs and 7 districts. The aim of the survey was to analyze the shelter response situation in both urban and rural areas with a view on emerging factors influencing the decision processes of displaced households seeking shelter and temporary housing. It was found that in-place sheltering close to damaged homes was favored by many residents in both urban and rural areas as many preferred to stay close to their homes, food reserves, livelihoods and social ties. The experience from this event shows that spontaneous sheltering behavior and participatory management of these sites should be accommodated and supported in the shelter response strategy.

Abstract. The Indonesian archipelago is prone to various geological hazards on an almost day to day basis. In order to mitigate disaster risk and reduce losses, the government uses its unique setup of ministerial training institutions. The Centre for Development of Human Resources in Geology, Mineral and Coal offers different level of technical training to local governments in order to provide them with the necessary means to understand geological hazards, mitigate risks, and hence close the gap between local and national governments. One key factor has been the continuous incorporation of new scientific knowledge into their training curricula. The paper presents benefits and challenges of this science-practice nexus using the standardised landslide survey as one example where mobile technology has been introduced to the training just recently.

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Abstract. In an emergency situation shelter space is crucial for people affected by natural hazards. Emergency planners in disaster relief and mass care can greatly benefit from a sound methodology that identifies suitable shelter areas and sites where shelter services need to be improved. A methodology to rank suitability of open spaces for contingency planning and placement of shelter in the immediate aftermath of a disaster is introduced. The Open Space Suitability Index (OSSI) uses the combination of two different measures: a qualitative evaluation criterion for the suitability and manageability of open spaces to be used as shelter sites, and a second quantitative criterion using a capacitated accessibility analysis based on network analysis. For the qualitative assessment, implementation issues, environmental considerations, and basic utility supply are the main categories to rank candidate shelter sites. Geographic Information System (GIS) is used to reveal spatial patterns of shelter demand. Advantages and limitations of this method are discussed on the basis of a case study in Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC). According to the results, out of 410 open spaces under investigation, 12.2% have to be considered not suitable (Category D and E) while 10.7% are Category A and 17.6% are Category B. Almost two third (59.5%) are fairly suitable (Category C).