Celebrating innovation: ASEAN Youth Day for Early Warning and Anticipatory Action
South-East Asia is one of the world’s most disaster-prone regions and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has led many efforts to tackle the mounting risks. One example is the ASEAN Framework on Anticipatory Action in Disaster Management, which defines anticipatory action and its key building blocks, and sets out a plan of action for the adoption of this approach in the ASEAN region.
With their fresh perspectives and digital savvy, young people can be agents of change in the way we manage disasters. To engage young people more in anticipatory action, the ASEAN Committee on Disaster Management (ACDM) and the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Youth (SOMY), supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), launched the ASEAN Youth and Digital Innovation for Early Warning and Anticipatory Action contest in July 2024. This initiative sought to raise awareness of the importance of early warnings and anticipatory action, while providing a platform for young people to showcase their creative solutions.
“With their ability to grasp concepts quickly and generate innovative ideas, young people can play a pivotal role in disaster prevention, control and recovery, effectively aiding relevant agencies in disaster management.”
A platform for youth innovation
The contest attracted over 270 entries from all 10 ASEAN Member States, and the three best submissions from each category – (1) creative writing, (2) film and multimedia, (3) art and interactive, and (4) digital innovation – were selected, along with three 'spot prize' winners.
On 22 November 2024, the winners presented their winning ideas at ASEAN Youth Day for Early Warning and Anticipatory Action, an event hosted by ACDM and SOMY in Bangkok, Thailand. This event, which highlighted ASEAN’s commitment to empowering youth as champions of disaster resilience and innovation, was held to commemorate the ASEAN Youth in Climate Action and Disaster Resilience Day.
Why anticipatory action matters: youth voices in ASEAN
During this event, some of the winners were asked why anticipatory action is important in the ASEAN region and how youth can be better engaged. Two of them share their thoughts in these short videos.
“Action is better than reaction … anticipatory action and early warning are a needed method in ASEAN countries.”
Thien Nguyen Minh Dinh and An Nguyen Thi Hoai, Viet Nam, second place in the film and multimedia category.
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“Engaging youth in anticipatory action in important because, as a youth, we face and interact with digital technology. That’s influenced […] a new way of how to engage people and raise awareness about natural disaster[s].”
Yessy Liana Putri, Indonesia, spot prize winner.
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Images from the event
The first ASEAN Youth Day for Early Warning and Anticipatory Action was made possible thanks to funding from the Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operation and the German Federal Foreign Office. It was hosted by ACDM and SOMY. FAO, in collaboration with the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation under the Ministry of Interior of Thailand, and the Thai Network for Disaster Resilience, supported the organization of this event.
All photos © FAO