Hurricane Sandy a Disaster? We’ve Seen Nothing Yet, Say Organizers of 23rd World Conference on Disaster Management

One of largest conferences of its kind to draw representatives from more than 35 countries to explore the question: “How prepared are we?”

Toronto, Ontario – After a year of extreme weather events, devastating storms, droughts, wildfires, flooding, and record-breaking hot and cold temperatures, the warnings of climate scientists around the world are becoming increasingly hard to ignore. With global experts now suggesting that the worst is yet to come, the new, more important question is: ‘How prepared are we?’

This is just one of the pressing areas to be explored at the upcoming 23rd World Conference on Disaster Management in Toronto, one of the largest and most extensive conferences of its kind in North America. Another major concern is the surge in frequency and severity of cyber attacks, such as recent attacks targeting Canada’s energy industry, assaults against major U.S. banks, and growing concern that a crippling cyber event on the scale of 9/11 is imminent.

“This past year, we saw firsthand the devastating effects that natural disasters alone can cause, from Hurricane Sandy and widescale droughts in the U.S., to earthquakes in Italy, the Philippines, Iran and Afghanistan, severe flooding worldwide, and more recently, record heat and wildfires in Australia” said Adrian Gordon, Conference Chair of the WCDM, noting that other important disaster management topics will include, community resilience, crisis communication, reputation management and leadership as more than 1,000 delegates representing more than 35 countries convene.

“Even more troubling is that this seeming rise in catastrophic events comes at a time when economic pressure is causing all levels of government and many private sector organizations to reduce their commitment to disaster mitigation and preparedness programs,” said Gordon. “There’s no doubt our comfortable existence is being challenged and we face tough questions ahead such as: What are we doing about it? Are we prepared? Can we afford not to prepare? What
are governments at all levels doing?”

WHAT: 23rd World Conference on Disaster Management (WCDM)

WHEN: June 23-26, 2013

WHERE: Metro Toronto Convention Centre, North Building
255 Front Street West, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

CONFERENCE
OVERVIEW: Top tier international roster of presenters featuring leading Canadian and international speakers in all areas of disaster management, and unprecedented industry networking opportunities. Through more than 70 educational workshops, plenary and concurrent sessions, delegates will gain insight into innovative solutions on how to improve plans for disaster preparedness, response and recovery, including tips on how businesses, communities and government can adapt to global and local threats, and sustain operations and communities at home and abroad during times of crisis.

SESSION
TOPICS: Conference will focus on four tracks: Business Continuity, Emergency Management, Crisis Communications, and Resilience and Risk Management. Topics will include the role of social media in emergencies, as well as a look at organizational, community and personal resilience.

ATTENDED BY: Disaster management professionals from more than 35 countries, including emergency management, business continuity management, risk management, emergency response (police, fire and EMS), public health, IT disaster recovery, emergency health, security, military, and government personnel.

EXHIBITION: Exhibit area will highlight the latest in emergency management and business continuity products, services, technologies, and programs.

CONTACT: For more information, or to register, please visit
www.wcdm.org or call
(905) 948-0470 ext. 2245/Toll free: (888) 443-6786 ext. 2245.

For exhibit and sponsorship opportunities, call (905) 948-0470 ext.
2202/Toll free: (888) 443-6786 ext. 2202.

URL: http://www.wcdm.org

For more information visit www.wcdm.org.

Media Information: Gail Bergman or Ashley Pergolas

Gail Bergman PR
Tel: (905) 886-1340 or (905) 886-3345
E-mail: info@gailbergmanpr.com