International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction
Next: October 13, 2027
Ready today, safer tomorrow.
The story
Where it comes from
The International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction began in 1989, when the UN General Assembly called for a day to promote a global culture of risk awareness and disaster reduction, as part of its International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction. In 2009 the Assembly fixed the date as 13 October. The day celebrates how people and communities around the world are reducing their exposure to hazards, and it is led by the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR).
How it's celebrated
UNDRR sets a theme each year, often on how households and communities can prepare. For a family, marking the day can be as simple as agreeing a meeting place, saving emergency numbers and finding out how local warnings are sent.
Did you know
- Just 24 hours' notice of a hazardous event can cut the damage that follows by up to 30 per cent, according to the UN.
- Disaster-related deaths are at least six times lower in countries with good early-warning systems.
- The UN's current plan for reducing disaster risk, the Sendai Framework, was agreed in Sendai, Japan, on 18 March 2015 by 187 countries after a final negotiating session of more than 30 hours.
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- World Food Day · October 16, 2027
- International Day of the Intangible Cultural Heritage · October 17, 2027
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