A girl cries during a commemorative gathering for students who were killed when their school collapsed during the earthquake in Sichuan Province, China.
© UNICEF/ HQ08-0551/Dea

NEW YORK, USA, 25 June 2008 – With an estimated 10,000 child fatalities from school collapses in the Sichuan earthquake in China, safe school construction has become a central issue for parents, governments and the international development community.

Are such catastrophes easily preventable? Why do some schools collapse and not others? Is it simply a matter of better construction?

Earthquake experts, architects and humanitarian aid workers have been working to set higher building standards – especially where children are concerned. What more can they do to ensure communities that their children will be safe at school?

About this Podcast

Discussion on natural disasters and school construction, with a focus on the recent earthquake in China and the experience of the 2004 Asian tsunami, featuring these guests:
Kate Stohr, co-founder of Architecture for Humanity and co-editor of the book, ‘Design Like you Give a Damn’; Dr. Brian Tucker, founder and President of GeoHazards International; and Dr. Gianfranco Rotigliano, UNICEF’s Representative in Indonesia.

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Natural Disasters and School Construction – Podcast 8

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