Dear participants,

　
With bilateral efforts between the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI), USA, and Institute of Social Safety Science (ISSS), Japan, the 1st International Conference on Urban Disaster Reduction was successfully held on January 18th to 20th, 2005, in Kobe, Japan. Due to the growth of human activities, the conflicts between natural passage and man-made infrastructures are increasing. Policy, technology, and experience sharing among countries on disaster mitigation are very important. Hence, the 2nd International Conference on Urban Disaster Reduction (2nd ICUDR) will be held in Taiwan on November 27th to 29th, 2007.

This conference will be focusing on the management of large-scale natural and man-made disasters. The conference encourages casual and productive interactions among participants in various research fields of disaster reduction. With its multidisciplinary scope, the 2nd ICUDR offers an excellent forum in which a wide range of topics will be covered on mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery for urban disasters. This conference will consist of keynote speech, plenary session, group session, poster session, and booth exhibition.

On behalf of the Conference Committee of the 2nd ICUDR, I would like to extend my sincerely invitation to all participants to joint the conference and exchange innovative ideas. Your active participation will lead to a successful and fruitful conference. The 2nd ICUDR will offer you a rich experience and foster the friendship with each other. I look forward to seeing you in the 2nd International Conference on Urban Disaster Reduction in Taipei, Taiwan.

Sincerely yours,


Chin-Hsiung Loh
Chair, Conference Committee of the 2nd ICUDR