På denne  underskide kan du på dette link læse et referat fra mødet , som var arrangeret i fællesskab af Ingeniører uden Grænser, Arkitekter uden grænser og IDA Global Development. Du kan også se fotos fra mødet på dette link.  

Endvidere kan du se præsentationer fra følgende oplægsholdere:  

• Stine Skøtt Thomsen: “How Ebola affects education”  
• Morten Sodemann, professor of global health på ‘Center of Global Health’ (Syddansk Universitet): “Hunting black swans in Global health”   
• Presentation: “EBOLA and the Rainforest, the Connection?”  
• Presentation: “Consequences of Ebola”  
• Presentation: “Learning Center – Ebola and Development”  
• Presentation: “Learning Center – Projectprocess”  

På mødet var der bla. er oplæg fra:  

• Stine Skøtt Thomsen, IBIS made a presentation on “How Ebola affects education” the presentation was on the effects of Ebola on school attendance in Liberia with a point of departure in IBIS’ educational programs. (See presentation)

• Bauke van Weringh, Engineers Without Borders made a presentation on “How Ebola affects EWB projects” the presentation focused on how Ebola has shaped development efforts in Sierra Leone. (See Presentation)

• Patrick Kogler, Architects Without Borders made a presentation on “The Environmental Learning Centre” – the presentation was on how the center is designed and built to raise awareness about sustainable building and landscaping, problems with deforestation, sand mining, gold mining, and clean water, became non-functional due to the Ebola crisis.

The Ebola outbreak in West Africa has had an unprecedented magnitude, duration and spatial spread. Most attention has been to treat and contain. Time is now to look at the causes of the causes and how such outbreaks of Ebola and similar diseases might be prevented. A meeting co-organized by IDA Global Development, Engineers without Borders and Architects without Borders.

For more than a year, the Ebola outbreak in West Africa has attracted international media, donor and relief organizations’ attention. The primary focus has been on containment and treatment. This is somehow understandable as the disease is highly infectious and fatal. About half of those infected will develop the disease and die shortly after being infected. It is estimated that more than 10,000 have died until now in what is considered an unprecedented outbreak in terms of magnitude, duration and spatial spread. However, now that the epidemic appears to level off, it might be time to ask some questions, including:

Why did it attract such international attention, when the number of death after all is relatively small compared, e.g., to the about 6,500 children dying every day from vaccine-preventable diseases?

Why now and why there? What is the ‘natural’ evolution of an epidemic? What are the possible social, economic, ecological and environmental drivers underlying the Ebola epidemic experienced in West Africa?

Given these factors, what are the lessons learned from the outbreak and how might future threats from Ebola across the complex urban and rural landscapes that now define modern Africa be managed?

A meeting on the 27th of May, co-organized by IDA Global Development, Engineers without Borders and Architects without Borders will seek to throw light on and answer these questions.