Call for Participation
BACKGROUND
The Caucasus Summer School (CSS) aims to encourage global, regional and national knowledge exchanges, the identification of suitable models and the improvement of higher education teaching and learning practices in the Caucasus.
After the success of the First Caucasus Summer School (CSS2016), it is our pleasure to announce and invite you to the Second Caucasus Summer School (CSS2021). The CSS is a statutory event of the Scientific Network for the Caucasus Mountain Region (SNC-mt) established back in 2016 within the framework of the project, “Supporting Sustainable Mountain Development in the Caucasus”, financed by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF)
The Second Caucasus Summer School will be organised by the SNC-mt and its Coordination Unit (Sustainable Caucasus) with scientific advice and input for the event provided by the Institute of Geography of the Russian Academy of Science and Ilia State University with support from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).
TOPIC: “Natural Hazards in the Mountains: Mapping and Risk Assessment”
DURATION: 5 days
DATES: 20-24 September 2021
OBJECTIVE
Mountains are the arena of natural hazards and disasters. The driving forces of hazardous processes are geophysical, geological and climatic phenomena that can cause a number of gravitational and hydrological processes that threaten human lives, infrastructure and the mountain environment. An understanding of the factors, processes and consequences of natural hazards is necessary for optimal disaster risk reduction (DRR) and disaster risk management (DRM).
The Second Caucasus Summer School aims to introduce participants to the principles and tools for identifying mountain hazards and their causes; to provide them with basic skills for disaster risk mapping, as well as to integrate their data into the wider scope of the SMD study, and to become familiar with the basics of DRR & DRM.
During the seven-day course, participants will learn:
- Classification of natural mountain hazards, including their primary, secondary and long-term consequences;
- Which natural factors cause the hazards risk with special attention to the Caucasus on examples of regional catastrophic events;
- Methods and tools for recognizing and mapping evidences and risks of natural hazards in the mountains;
- How to perform the real-time mapping the natural hazards and to share data obtained;
- How to assess the risk of natural disasters and zone the territory according to the risk degree for DRR & DRM purposes.
TARGET AUDIENCE
The Summer School is open to young researchers (masters, graduate students and doctoral students) worldwide with a priority for participants from the countries of the Caucasus region.
There will be a maximum of 22-24 participants.
COURSE CONTENT
The programme contains a combination of various theoretical as well as practical events such as lectures, fieldwork, and classwork assignments that facilitate the acquisition and consolidation of new knowledge and skills.
Introductory lectures cover the basic principles of studying natural hazards and introduce the basics of DRR and DRM.
Classwork includes practical exercises in GIS use, processing of remote sensing data, thematic mapping and data dissemination to the public. Classwork is aimed also at consolidating the knowledge gained, discussing the results, creating disaster risk maps and developing the final presentations.
Two field routes will focus on hands-on awareness and mapping of the effects of floods, mudflows and landslides in mountainous terrain, and identification of the potential risks. Particular attention will be paid to the identification of factors causing natural hazards.
For fieldwork and preparation of the final presentation, the participants will be divided into teams.
THE LOCATION
The Second Caucasus Summer School is planned to be held in Tbilisi at the Ilia State University
APPLICATION PROCESS:
Download the Call for Applications in PDF format here.
Download the Application Form here.
Please send Application Forms to: summerschool@caucasus-mt.net
DEADLINES:
Submission deadline: 31 July 2021, 18:00 GMT+4
Notification of application acceptance: 15 August 2021, 18:00 GMT+4
Additional Information:
All digital materials and maps will be provided by organisers.
The language of training is English.
The programme and daily schedule of the course will be announced later.
If you have any questions please contact Ana Abulashvili: aabulashvili@sd-caucasus.com or visit: https://www.caucasus-mt.net