China will host the office of the new international programme, Integrated Research on Disaster Risk (IRDR). The International Programme Office for IRDR will be established in Beijing at the Headquarters of the Center for Earth Observation and Digital Earth (CEODE)—the first time an international office of this type has been hosted in Asia.
ICSU, along with the other IRDR co-sponsors—the International Social Science Council (ISSC) and the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UN ISDR)—selected Beijing following an international call for offers The office will be jointly funded by the China Association for Science and Technology (CAST) and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).
‘China offers an impressive array of facilities and talented researchers within Beijing, and throughout the country. I am confident that the programme office will benefit from the support and resources that will be put at its disposal,’ said Professor Gordon McBean, Chair of the Scientific Committee overseeing the programme.
(Source: ICSU 13.11.2009, for full press release go to www.icsu.org)
