Professor of disaster mitigation at Universitas Brawijaya, Prof. Sukir Maryanto, S.Si., M.Sc., Ph.D explained the importance of disaster character education for early childhood, to increase awareness starting from childhood so that they are aware of disasters.
Prof. Sukir during the Plenary Session of PTNBH Council of Professors Council (MDGB), Wednesday (15/3/2023) at Ijen Suit Hotel Malang, revealed that disaster character education was adopted from programs in Japan, namely town and school watching.
“This is used to increase the awareness of students starting from childhood so that they are aware of the disaster. When disaster awareness starts from kindergarten and elementary school, it will become a culture. So, in Japan being aware of disasters has become a culture of kindergarten children so that when there is a disaster they already know what they are going to do.
This is inseparable education in Japan that focuses on character,” said Prof. Sukir.
He added that by instilling disaster character education, there will be multifunctions from schools, namely as character education and as a shelter when a disaster occurs.
“When they experience a disaster, the shelters for refugees are in schools,” he said.
Prof. Sukir gave advice in Indonesia itself when there was an initial zoning policy, the disaster curriculum should have been applied to school students.
He said, in the modified disaster awareness in the form of school and town watching. There is awareness from within the community regarding disaster.
“School watching is in the scope of schools, while town watching is in their own city or village. The point is that it is the community who can observe potential dangers. We, who are disaster experts, were not there when a disaster occurred. Therefore, it is the people who understand, the people who can, the people who know their character who can evacuate themselves when there is a disaster because they are the ones who are dealing with it themselves,” he said.
Prof. Sukir added that knowledge about disaster mitigation should be a government program.
Head of EMR Office of East Java Province, Dr. Nurkholis, SSos., MSi., CIPA., CIHCM explained things in dealing with the environmental and natural resource crisis in realizing a golden Indonesia 2045.
The Provincial Government of East Java has a vision for sustainable development in general, which is to ensure that the development carried out still meets the principles of being environmentally friendly and does not have a socio-economic impact.
“For our 2023 priority, we are in line with the national development RKPR theme, where the East Java Province has an increase in disaster resilience and the environment. Therefore, if at the center there is the name nawacita, in East Java Province there is Nawabhakti Satya where the environment is included in the 9th category, namely East Java Harmony by realizing social, natural and environmental harmony as well as preserving culture and developing the sports sector. This is in line with what was conveyed by the central government,” he said.
He added, consistently from 2019-2022 the East Java Provincial Government will continue to improve the environmental quality index.
“We also have a regional regulation related to waste management that has just been established as a commitment,” said Nurkholis. (NICE/OKY/Humas UB/ Trans. Iir).
