Education for Disaster Risk Reduction in Hyogo to Be Handed Down Through Generations

Abstract

Twenty-five years have passed since the Hanshin-Awaji earthquake. While Hyogo Prefecture and the city of Kobe have made a strong recovery, they also have a social responsibility to pass on lessons learned from the past to future generations. To retell the past, disasters are also well known for their war stories and peace education programs. Various peace education initiatives have been implemented around the world. While many people can talk about the Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake based on their experiences, an increasing number of people have not experienced the disaster. In addition, the number of schoolteachers who cannot describe the disaster to children are increasing because they were born after the disaster. This paper introduces the Promotion Program of Education for disaster risk reduction implemented by the Kobe City Board of Education and investigates how education for disaster risk reduction has developed in schools. The authors involved and surveyed two elementary schools, one junior high school, and one high school. This survey points out the importance of continuous education for disaster risk reduction, and highlights the importance of dialogue and interaction with people who have not experienced the disaster, so that the story of the disaster can be narrated in their own words.