A two day training course in Kathmandu, 30th -31st March, will introduce QSAND to humanitarian agencies in Nepal, supporting their vital work in disaster relief and recovery.
QSAND (Quantifying Sustainability in the Aftermath of Natural Disasters) practitioner training is an intensive two days aimed at enabling stakeholders in the humanitarian field to practically apply the QSAND tool on shelter and settlement reconstruction programmes.
Drawing on the standards of BREEAM, BRE’s world leading sustainable design and assessment method for buildings and communities, QSAND aims to drive and, where relevant, benchmark sustainable approaches to the recovery and reconstruction process. QSAND was developed jointing by BRE and The International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).
QSAND training is delivered through a mixture of presentations, workshops and exercises, and delegates are taken through the QSAND process, gradually building up their knowledge and confidence as a qualified QSAND practitioner.
The end result is a thorough understanding of the QSAND process and tool, and the benefits for disaster affected communities for both the short and long term.
The two day training has been organised in close co-operation with Catholic Relief Services in Nepal (CRS Nepal). Over 50 individuals are expected to attend, drawn from a wide range of relief agencies including Save the Children, Oxfam, Habitat for Humanity and Christian Aid.
“The collaboration with Catholic Relief Services is pivotal to the introduction of QSAND in Nepal” says Yetunde Abdul, QSAND Programme Manager at BRE. “They are facilitating the training and have provided vital local knowledge and contacts with a wide range of humanitarian agencies who are active in Nepal. We have attracted a wide range of participants right across the disaster relief spectrum in Nepal, and we feel this will add a valuable dimension to the use of QSAND in the region.”
Nepal is one of the most disaster affected regions of the world. The April 2015 Nepal earthquake, also known as the Gorkha earthquake, killed over 8,000 people and injured more than 21,000. The earthquake triggered an avalanche on Mount Everest, killing 21, making April 25th 2015 the deadliest day on the mountain in history.
More information on QSAND can be found at www.qsand.org.
For QSAND news follow us on Twitter @QSANDcalling
