In today’s world, people aged over 60 constitute 11 per cent of the global population. By 2050, this proportion will have doubled, to 22 per cent – that is, 2 billion older people. Populations are ageing most rapidly in developing countries, which are currently home to 60 per cent of the world’s older people, projected to rise to 80 per cent by 2050.
All over the world, older persons contribute to build resilient societies. They are often actively engaged in voluntary work or other forms of labour contribution. Despite this, they are often regularly excluded in many aspects of the workings of society. Celebrated yearly since 1989, the 2014 International Day for Disaster Reduction (IDDR), will focus on older persons, their needs and how they can be included in planning to gain a better understanding of disaster risk in their communities.
Here are some suggestions on how to promote IDDR:
1) Use the assets available at www.unisdr.org/2014/iddr to promote the cause and celebrate the day;
2) Start using the hashtag #IDDR in your social media posts.
3) Share the concept note with your city officials and partners in celebrating the IDDR at their locations. IDDR website includes links to all the media files for the IDDR including photos, videos, statistics, etc. It also provides links to similar media in Spanish.
4) Organize celebration events at your locations. Global events are taking place in South Africa, Jamaica and China. Many local and national governments plus partners are calling for similar celebrations.
5) Announce plans this 13 October, on how cities and local authorities plan to engage older persons in disaster risk reduction.
6) You could also organise Public Service Announcements(PSA), road shows, TV or radio talks to create awareness.
