The Disaster Education Promotion Office (DEPO) collaborated with ICIMOD (International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development) and partner organizations to strengthen disaster preparedness education in Dhankuta Municipality, Koshi Province.

The three-day programme designed for high-school teachers focused on enhancing practical understanding of disaster risk reduction (DRR) and early warning systems; through interactive learning, hands-on demonstrations, and classroom-ready teaching methods.

ICIMOD-led sessions on risk awareness

The first two days of the event were led by specialists from ICIMOD who were directly involved in developing local-level teaching materials on disaster preparedness for Dhankuta Municipality.

A total of 40 teachers participated, gaining insights into:

Local disaster risks A contextual curriculum framework Teaching approaches tailored for high-school learners Tools and materials developed specifically for municipal-level DRR education Use of early warning systems for weather related events through Prakop Alert App designed by ICIMOD, its function, usage and proper handling mechanism

These sessions laid a strong conceptual foundation for teachers to integrate DRR meaningfully within their school environment.

DEPO-led workshop on using creative approach to understand DRR was conducted using practical, activity-based DRR training that allowed teachers to experience the power of gamification in disaster education.

The hands-on activities included:

Disaster Drill Exercise

Disaster Learning Through Dodgeball

First Aid for Bleeding & Fractures Using Local Materials

Making Stretchers from Everyday Items

Safe Techniques for Carrying an Injured Person

Landslide Cause–Effect–Mitigation Chain

Musical Chair Game for Fire Safety

Emergency Kit Quiz & Bag Preparation

The reflections from teachers after the training highlighted the importance of experiential learning in disaster education and the effectiveness of DEPO’s activity-oriented approach borrowed from Plus Arts NPO, Kobe, Japan.

DEPO remains committed in expanding such programs in collaboration with organizations and municipalities that seek to foster a culture of preparedness.