From Disaster Risk Reduction to Comprehensive Resilience Towards a Common Understanding

On 23rd June 2011, ActionAid and VOICE jointly held a panel discussion on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) and its relationship with building comprehensive resilience, with the aim of moving towards a common understanding of this increasingly prominent concept. The event was organised in light of growing recognition within the sector that, while reducing the risks of disasters makes sense on both economic3 and humanitarian grounds, natural disasters are just one of many factors driving vulnerability - including social, political, economic and cultural shocks and hazards. Therefore, building resilience in a holistic way has become increasingly central in humanitarian discourse. However, questions remain as to what is meant by comprehensive resilience; its implications for practice across a variety of contexts; and to what extent it moves us beyond DRR.