2004 Roundtable
The second Roundtable of Federal Hazard Mitigation Partners in the Pacific
Islands (FHMPPI) was held March 16 to 18, 2004, in Honolulu, Hawai`i, and resulted
in the establishment of the Pacific Risk Management `Ohana, or PRiMO. Local,
national, and regional agencies, institutions, and organizations in attendance
included the following: NOAA, EPA, FEMA, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Geologic Survey, State of Hawai`i, Territory
of Guam, Territory of American Samoa, South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission
(SOPAC), South Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), Pacific Resources
for Education and Learning (PREL), Pacific Basin Development Council (PBDC),
American Red Cross, and participants from New Zealand, Australia, and French
Polynesia.
The overall objective of the 2004 meeting was to sustain and expand
upon the dialogue started at the 2003 meeting about ways to enhance
communication, coordination, and collaboration among the `ohana, or
family, of partners and stakeholders involved in the development and
delivery of risk management–related information, products, and
services in the Pacific. Specific objectives for the 2004 meeting included
the following:
- Cultivating a sense of community and an appreciation
for the unique physical and cultural characteristics of the Pacific
Islands;
- Expanding the community as a means to increase the awareness
of a regional perspective and enhance opportunities for collaboration;
- Updating
participants on the status of agency, institution, or organization
hazard mitigation projects and activities being conducted in the
Pacific Islands;
- Reviewing the outcomes of the 2003 FHMPPI meeting for the purpose
of revising and refining the embryonic action plan;
- Activating several
working groups, or hui o hana; and
- Establishing a regional coordinating
council.
At the 2004 meeting, information about a wide range of partner agencies
and their programs, initiatives, projects, and activities was shared,
and opportunities for collaboration were explored. In this way the
unique challenges and opportunities of working in the Pacific, given
issues of geography, culture, politics, and risks, were illuminated.
Some specific accomplishments of the 2004 meeting include the following:
- Growth
in attendance of participants and organizations involved in risk
management–related
programs and activities from 55 participants in 2003 to 90 in 2004;
- Activation of working groups, or hui o hana, in the following areas:
- Coastal and Ocean Observations and Processes
- Data Management
- Data Analysis and Decision-Support Tools
- Communications Infrastructure and Information Dissemination
- Post-Disaster Evaluation and Performance Indicators
- Education, Outreach, and Training
- Traditional Knowledge and Practices;
- Identification of a specific
set of actions (PDF,
requires a plug-in such as Adobe® Reader® to
view) to be carried out by each
hui over the next 12 months that are intended
to enhance the delivery and development of risk management–related
information, products, and services;
- Creation of a "canoes and
paddles” conceptual framework
for interagency communication, coordination, and collaboration among
federal partners as well as other agencies, institutions, and organizations
as a means to address issues of local, national, and regional concern.
The framework will serve as the basis for development of a joint
regional action plan over the next 12 months;
- Formation of an interim
coordinating council composed of two members
from each hui and tasked with developing
a draft joint regional action plan and coordinating council policies
and procedures over the next 12 months;
- Creation of a Pacific Risk
Management ‘Ohana (PRiMO) e-mail
list and a set of individual hui e-mail lists as a means of facilitating
an ongoing post-meeting dialogue. Contact Russel.Jackson@noaa.gov if
you
are interested in joining the PRiMO e-mail list;
- Agreement to convene
again in 2005.
The Proceedings and Appendices
of the March 2004 Federal Hazard Mitigation Partners in the Pacific
Islands meeting are available
on-line (PDF, 1,061 and 286 kilobytes; requires a plug-in such as Adobe® Reader® ).
Contact Russel.Jackson@noaa.gov if you are interested in obtaining a CD-ROM
copy of the Proceedings that includes the presentations (in PowerPoint
format) made at the 2004 meeting.