Information, but especially meeting and dialogue, are the elements that most want to characterize the days from October 10 to 12, dedicated to the continuation of the construction of the participatory path of civil protection planning initiated by the Municipality of Bagnara Calabra (Italy), in collaboration with the Italian Civil Protection Department, the Calabria Region and CIMA Research Foundation. The activities of these days are included in the Italian Civil Protection Week..
The activities to build the participatory path of civil protection planning began in November last year, on the occasion of the Strait Earthquake 2022 exercise, which aimed to verify the operational response of the National Service of Civil Protection to a simulated seismic event, in an area characterized by a high seismic hazard, and the consequent warning for the tidal wave that could be generated. Bagnara Calabra was among the municipalities involved in the exercise.
In agreement with the Italian Civil Protection Department, CIMA Research Foundation has decided to continue its activities this year, identifying Bagnara Calabra as a pilot municipality where to test a participatory civil planning process. Doing so, the plan is not just a tool for the population but a tool created with the involvement of the population itself, taking into account its voice, needs, and knowledge of the territory.
The experiment will pursue two elements as a priority: building collaboration between administration and stakeholders and the issue of disability. In fact, while disability may represent a social vulnerability, if included as a privileged subject in the pathway, it will be able to prompt and facilitate the strengthening of local resilience, through the development of support networks-and ultimately the strengthening of the spirit of community and collectivity, a necessary condition for being able to respond proactively to an emergency.
Thus, on October 10, the first participatory meeting was held to kick off this process in collaboration with Labsus.
Instead, Oct. 11 and 12 will be training days aimed at administrators, local technicians and Red Cross volunteers who are to support the participatory journey with the citizens. Several aspects are covered: from knowledge of the civil protection code to regional warning systems; from risk mapping to the operational phases of prevention and response to an emergency. These days want therefore give an overview of the functioning of the systems that operate at the territorial level for risk prevention and reduction, thanks to the contribution of the Italian Civil Protection Department, Calabria Region, Abili a proteggere and CIMA Research Foundation. In particular, October 12 is dedicated to a “table top” exercise (TTX, i.e., discussion sessions focused on roles and responses in the context of an emergency). The discussion that will close the exercise will allow to highlight strengths and weaknesses and starting a process of planning improvement.