The overall aim of the UN4DRR project is to modernize the courses related to Disaster Risk Reduction and Management integrating GIS/RS applications as the significant part of the course content. The long-term effect will be to educate future experts for prevention and management of natural and human-induced disasters (e.g. fires) in the Indian Ocean Rim supporting national and EU policies. The project encourages the cooperation with national authorities, public and private sector offering joint DRRM initiatives and access to short courses for use of GIS/RS via online/offline mode. The project also motivates a more proactive cross-region dialogue in DRRM related educational program in the realization of capacity building and internationalization.It is expected that the course programs at IOR HEIs in GIS/RS will improve the competencies of the graduates of the Disaster’s Management Program, especially when they are capable of applying GIS/RS for disaster mitigation. These programs will enable multi-disciplinary skills whereby the graduates are motivated to apply many of their previous competences in coping with the disasters. The RS/GIS technologies are well-suited for integration of most of the students’ previous learned skills.Recently, the application of GIS/RS in disaster management is not only for faculties of sciences and engineering, but can also be applied when dealing with social and humanitarian issues. Therefore, it is considered that the implementation of GIS/RS in disaster mitigation is urgent, especially the disasters are so frequently occurred. GIS/RS is an important tool in disaster mitigation and this science is developing so fast and rapid that it requires frequent upgrading and provide new knowledge to academic staff as well as the students.To cope with the fast-changing technology of RS/GIS with applicative knowledge, skills and attitudes, the updated programes will also offer IORs HEIs the opportunity to increase academic and research output

Considering the challenges posed by the impacts of climate change on the small-island atoll nation, it is paramount that its higher education institutions prepare the climate leaders of tomorrow to reach their fullest potential on the national and international stage. Building the capacities of HEIs in Maldives and other small-island nations and countries of Asia-Pacific is critical to addressing the double injustice of climate change, i.e. its geographic and generational injustices. Regarding the former, the geopolitics of climate change are dominated by the interests and objectives of emitters in the Global North, even though it is the countries of the Global South that are hardest hit by the impacts of climate change. In terms of the latter, it is not the generations responsible for greenhouse gas emissions who will pay the price for global warming but the youth of today and tomorrow. CHILDREN has the ability to at least attempt to rectify these wrongs: its overarching aim is to build the capacity of the Maldives National University (MNU) and the Maldivian society at-large to tackle the pressing issue of climate change in the fields of climate diplomacy, leadership and resilience. In order to achieve this aim, CHILDREN pursues the following specific objectives:Improve and reinforce the teaching capacities of partner institutions in climate studiesFoster interdisciplinary academic cooperation and exchanges to strengthen the research capacities of partner institutionsImplement and develop joint activities, events, publications and projects pertaining to climate change diplomacy, leadership and resilience.In order to achieve these objectives, CHILDREN will partner MNU with the University of Liège, University of Paris, and and University of Economics in Bratislava, all of whom bring institutional expertise in various aspects of climate research, teaching, and international cooperation.

Because of globalization, standardization leading to accreditation of academic programs has become an increasingly dominant theme in higher education. In order to achieve it, there are various challenges faced by Asian partner country Higher Education Institutions, which resulted in creating the motivation towards undertaking this project. The partner countries face the challenge of strong competition with international institutions because of the easy and wide access to higher education abroad. The institutions can not delay any further to address it, otherwise they risk the severe issues of comparability of quality of education locally and abroad, and other issues relating to recognition of qualification. Moreover, the increased proportion of students entering university-level education has increased the complexity of higher education systems across the entire partner countries, thereby also giving rise to the need of standardization and accreditation. In spite of huge student population in Asia, unfortunately very few universities from Asia are seen in good positions in global world ranking of universities.

Progress in early warning to tackle the threat posed by increasing coastal hazards is uneven across Asia, with some high-risk, low-capacity countries falling behind. Many countries are calling for regional multi-hazard early warning (MHEW) systems as an effective means of sharing scientific knowledge and applications, sharing costs and addressing trans-boundary disasters.CABARET aimed to promote international cooperation at the regional level, between Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) in Asia and Europe, and among Asian HEIs themselves, to improve MHEW and increase resilience among coastal communities. CABARET brought together a partnership of fifteen HEIs from ten countries in Europe and Asia, in cooperation with the IOC-UNESCO Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning System (IOTWMS) and the Asian Disaster Preparedness Center. Five selected partner countries in Asia – Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Philippines and Sri Lanka – were the target for capacity building and included communities that are highly exposed and vulnerable to the threat posed by multiple coastal hazards. CABARET has achieved the goals by: Identifying intra and inter regional cooperation capacity needs across partner country HEIs for the development of more effective MHEW; Creating an innovation hub for resilient coastal communities, promoting scientific cooperation and knowledge transfer in Higher Education within Asia, and between Asia and Europe on MHEW; Developing a capacity building roadmap to address regional gaps and priorities; Exploring, promoting and initiating opportunities for fruitful university partnerships with socio-economic actors in coastal communities; Developing innovative multi-disciplinary training courses tailored for rapid skill (knowledge, qualifications,) acquisition for professional teams involved in multi-hazard early warning at the national and regional level; Publicising the capacity building progress, successes and outcomes as far as possible, and raising awareness across the field of HE about capacity building for MHEW and increased disaster resilience in coastal communities.Collectively, the partnership:•Organised 6 international meetings and four multi-disciplinary, capacity building workshops involving 319 participants•Supported a regional survey of tsunami capacity among twenty countries, in cooperation with the IOC-UNESCO IOTWMS•Published five national position papers and a regional position paper on MHEW preparedness•Published over fifty multi-institution, international and multi-disciplinary research papers on tsunami and multi-hazard early warning, and coastal resilience•Facilitated seven EU-ASIA and ASIA-ASIA exchanges involving thirty-five people from HEIs•Formed seven special interest groups that facilitated fourteen capacity building activities and provided a platform for further cooperation •Held a mentoring programme for early career researchers and developed six open educational resources on multi-hazard early warning•Organised special sessions on tsunami and multi-hazard early warning in six international conferences and events•Secured four externally funded spin-off projects and submitted numerous research proposalsThese activities have changed the understanding, awareness and attitudes among national and subnational actors on the critical areas of capacity for effective end to end tsunami early warning. CABARET has helped to enhance regional and trans-boundary cooperation for MHEW, and empower individuals and organisations with the skills, competencies and credentials needed to promote and sustain regional cooperation within Asia and Europe, and within Asia itself, aimed at reducing the likelihood and impact of disasters in coastal communities.

The project aims to support the modernisation, accessibility and internationalisation of higher education in Maldives, by improving the level of competencies and skills of university teachers by developing new and innovative education programme in the field of e-learning.The specific objectives are:- Co-creation and piloting of a new study programme for professional development focusing on the use of ICT in education. - Establishing institutional framework for e-learning at the Maldives National University by training of staff, improving e-infrastructure and (re)organisation of departments to provide support to e-learning;- Promotion of new forms of teaching and learning in Maldives, notably strategic use of open and flexible learning, lifelong learning, virtual mobility, open educational resources and better exploitation of the ICT potential by raising awareness, supporting leadership, engaging early adopters and developing a community of practice