Melbourne, Australia
October 13, 2011
We are witnessing the largest wave of urban growth in history with more than 50 percent of the world’s population now living in cities. We have also witnessed the incredible power of nature during the 2011 Japan earthquake and tsunami; the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes in Christchurch, New Zealand; the 2010-2011 floods in Queensland, Austalia; and the 2009 Black Saturday bushfires in Melbourne. The intersection of major disasters and large-scale natural or man-made events, with increased population density and the interconnectedness of our businesses and economies, is leading to a requirement for communities, organisations, cities and countries to become more resilient.
The IBM Research Colloquium on Societal Resilience will explore our vulnerability, preparedness and response to large-scale events, and what opportunities exist to improve societal resiliency.
Agenda:
- 9:00 — Arrive, Register, Coffee
- 9:30 — Welcome & Introduction from Glenn Wightwick
Director, IBM Research & Development - Australia - 10:00 — Craig Lapsley
Fire Services Commissioner Victoria - 11:00 — Roz Wheatley
Manager of Group Emergency Response at Qantas - 12:00 — Lunch
- 13:00 — Prof. Hiroshi Maruyama
Vice Director-General and Professor at
The Institute of Statistical Mathematics, Tokyo - 14:00 — “Building social and community resilience: influences, understandings, considerations and big ideas!”
Prof. Elizabeth Waters & Dr. Lisa Gibbs
Melbourne School of Population Health, University of Melbourne - 15:00 — Break
- 15:30 — Andrew MacLeod
Chief Executive Officer, Committee for Melbourne. - 16:30 — Summary from Robert Morris
VP Services Research and Global Labs, IBM Research - 17:00 — Close