Introduction The High School Students Summit on “World Tsunami Awareness Day” in Kuroshio was held for two days starting on November 25 of last year in Kuroshio Town, Kochi. It was the first time this type of summit was held in the world, and a total of 739 people, including 361 high school students from 30 countries, Minister in charge of Building National Resilience and Minister of State for Disaster Management, and ambassadors from various countries, participated in the summit. The summit was successfully brought to a close thanks to the support and cooperation of many parties, especially the authorities and organizations involved. In the summit, the participating high school students were organized into three groups, each with a different area of focus, namely “learning about natural disasters,” “preparing for natural disasters,” and “recovering from natural disasters.” Each group made a presentation on the measures that are being implemented in their respective countries. After the presentations, the students engaged in a discussion. The students also participated in a tsunami evacuation drill, which involved evacuating to high ground, and visited a tsunami evacuation tower. Through such activities, the students learned about what the Kochi Prefectural Government and the Kuroshio Municipal Government are doing to prepare for a Nankai Trough earthquake. These activities were followed by an active discussion on issues that were brought up in the presentations concerning the wonderful measures that are being implemented in each country. The discussion resulted in the adoption of the Kuroshio Declaration, which was based on the consensus of the participants. The declaration expressed the determination of the students to do everything in their power to protect the precious lives of as many people as possible from natural disasters, such as a tsunami, while inheriting the responsibility for passing on previous generations’ vision for disaster mitigation and risk reduction to future generations. We believe that the declaration was the greatest achievement of the summit. During the summit, the high school students were able to meet people from many different countries and regions and share with them the disaster risk reduction measures that are being implemented in their own countries, which we believe was an extremely valuable experience for them. We have great expectations that, as “Youth Ambassadors for World Tsunami Awareness Day”, the students will become successful leaders in their respective countries and regions. While the High School Students Summit on “World Tsunami Awareness Day” in Kuroshio has come to a close, Kochi Prefecture and Kuroshio Town will make every effort to inherit the spirit of the Kuroshio Declaration by engaging in active efforts to raise more awareness about disaster risk reduction and implement various measures to ensure that progress is made in preparing for the Nankai Trough earthquake, which will undoubtedly occur in the near future. To conclude, we’d like to express our sincere gratitude to the authorities and organizations involved in this event as well as the residents of Kochi Prefecture, who welcomed the students warmly, for their tremendous support and cooperation in holding the summit. We also hope that word about the achievements of the summit will spread around the world through this report. Kochi Prefecture Kochi Prefectural Board of Education Kuroshio Town Kuroshio Town Board of Education CONTENTS 1. The Kuroshio Declaration ………………………………………… 1 2. World Tsunami Awareness Day …………………………………… 2 3. Documentary Photography ……………………………………… 7 4. Overview of Summit ……………………………………………… 14 5. Summit Schedule ………………………………………………… 16 6. The List of Participating Schools and Workshop Groups ………… 17 7. Message from the Prime Minister of Japan ……………………… 19 8. Message from the Secretary-General of the United Nations ………… 21 9. Message from the Advocate of the World Tsunami Awareness Day ………… 22 10. Message from the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction ………………………………………… 23 11. Report from Workshops and Presentation Summaries of Participating Schools … 24 12. Fieldworks ………………………………………………………… 156 13. Report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Tohoku School ……………………………… 162 14. Report from a Disaster-affected Area of the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami ………………………………………………………… 164 15. Participants Questionnaire ……………………………………… 169 16. Comments from Participants …………………………………… 173 17. The Unveiling Ceremony of Stone Monument for Commemorative Tree Planting ………………………………………………………… 179 The Kuroshio Declaration 11 2 To commemorate the establishment of “World Tsunami Awareness Day” at the United Nations General Assembly, for the past two days, on 25th and 26th of November 2016, we have gathered 3 at Kuroshio Town, Kochi, which is predicted to suffer from significant damage by a devastating tsunami the Nankai Trough earthquake may cause. 4 Natural hazards bring severe damage across the world, and many people face having to recovery their communities as a result. Although the diversities in countries and regions we live in may 5 create differences in disasters caused by natural hazards we face and our approaches to disaster risk reduction, we all share the common goal of saving all human lives from disasters. 6 Today, as high school students from around the world, we have learned about what we should and can do to achieve our goal and to contribute to recovery of disaster affected areas. 7 We hereby declare that we will continue to make our best effort to understand the risks and effects of tsunamis, to pass onto our predecessors’ experiences and knowledge of disaster 8 mitigation and risk reduction to future generations, and most importantly, to save people’s lives from tsunamis and other hazards. 9 We will learn. １ 10 ■ Wewillobtaincorrectknowledgeonthemechanismsofnaturalhazards,andthehistoryof damageanddisasterssothatwecanenhanceourunderstandingofnaturalhazardsandtheir 11 risks. ■ Wewilllearnandstudyknowledge,skills,andactionsthatareusefulfordisasterriskreduction tosavepeople’slives. 12 ■ Wewilllearnhowtofacehazardsandhowtoliveourlivesfrompeoplewhohaveexperienced suchdisasters. 13 ■ Wewillutilizetechnologytoenhanceourlearning. 14 2 We will take actions. ■ Wewillkeepremindingpeopleoftheriskofdisasterscausedbynaturalhazardsand 15 constantlycarryouteducationalactivitiestoraisepeople’sawarenessofdisasterrisk reduction. 16 ■ Wewillrecognizeourselvesaspeoplewhoofferhelptoothersinsteadofpeoplewhoreceive helpandwewillactivelyparticipateinvolunteeractivitiesthatconsiderothers. ■ Wewillcontributetocommunitydevelopmentasmembersofthecommunitythroughactivities 17 suchasproposingactionsfordisasterriskreductiontothelocalcommunityandnationaland The Kuroshio Declaration The Kuroshio localgovernments. 3 We will create. ■ Byutilizingouracquiredknowledgeandskills,wewillcreateusefultoolsandsystemsfordisaster riskreductionforallkindsofpeople. ■ Wewillcreateglobalandregionalnetworksofhighschoolstudentstolearntogetherand cooperatewitheachothersothatwecanlivetogetherwithourfriendsintheworld. ■ Wewillmakeuseofourwisdomandvitalityasfutureleadersfordisasterriskreduction.Wewill notonlyrevitalizethedevelopmentoflocalcommunities,butalsocontributetomakingourcities andcountriesmoreresilienttohazardsforthesakeofourselvesandchildreninthefuture. While appreciating the blessings of nature and understanding the risks that nature sometimes brings about disasters, we will love and live with nature without fearing those risks. November 26, 2016 High School Students Summit on “World Tsunami Awareness Day” in Kuroshio ― 1 ― 1 World Tsunami Awareness Day 2 Concept of 3 “World Tsunami Awareness Day” 4 for UN international day Proposetoestablishthe5thofNovemberofevery Follow-uptotheWorldConferenceonDisaster 5 1 yearas“WorldTsunamiAwarenessDay” 3RiskReduction Tsunami are a relatively rare type of natural disaster, The best way to prevent the damage of tsunami is to 6 but they have also caused devastating damage in many quickly disseminate and share the necessary information, countries around the world. They pose a serious threat through “early warning.” The Sendai Framework also which could hinder the achievement of sustainable incorporates new elements including the importance of 7 development. Following the Sendai Framework for Disaster investing in DRR and “Build Back Better.” It is noteworthy Risk Reduction adopted at the Third UN World Conference that the increasing the availability and access to multi- 8 on Disaster Risk Reduction (WCDRR) held in March 2015 in hazard early warning systems was agreed as one of the Sendai and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, targets. The Sendai Framework for DRR also points out the and with the aim of protecting the precious lives of importance of ensuring “the use of traditional, indigenous 9 the people around the world by raising awareness of and local knowledge and practices.” Japan believes precautionary measures against tsunami, Japan together that the number of tsunami victims will be reduced with many countries has proposed that the UN designate by increasing such awareness among the international 10 the 5th of November of every year as “World Tsunami community through the establishment of “World Tsunami Awareness Day”. Awareness Day” as a follow-up to the Sendai Framework as well as the 2030 Agenda, thereby contributing to the 11 Thethreatoftsunamiinmanycountriesaround achievement of the targets of these agenda. 2theworld