Public policy papers Inventory of Disaster Management Education in Major Canadian Universities L. Falkiner March 2003 ICLR Research Paper Series – No. 30
Abstract
Over the next decades, an increasingly volatile climate, changing risk from natural and human-induced hazards and shifting employment demographics will contribute to a greater demand for emergency and disaster professionals in Canada. Education must be a key component in a strategy to meet this demand. In this study, the author conducted an audit of course descriptions within six social science disciplines at thirty-eight Canadian universities to assess the availability of disaster management education in Canada. The results of the audit indicate that disaster-related courses are rare and are poorly distributed among the six disciplines. Recommendations to address this shortfall include: · Greater emphasis on hazards and disaster management within the identified disciplines; · Creation of targeted disaster education modules, to be integrated into existing curriculum; · Further research into the availability of disaster-related courses in the natural sciences and remaining social science disciplines.