isaster risk reduction often comes to our attention after a catastrophe has occurred. What if we began addressing disaster risk before the disaster struck? The International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction, observed every year on October 13, offers a critical reminder to shift from disaster response to disaster prevention.

As we reflect on this day, especially in a country so frequently hit by natural calamities, we must concur that disaster risk reduction requires a multi-faceted approach, one that goes beyond the aftermath of disasters to a more pre-emptive, resilient future.

In Pakistan, where floods, GLOFs and earthquakes are part of the ground reality, one realises the profound need to rethink how we handle disasters. The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, adopted in 2015, encourages nations to shift their focus from managing disasters to preventing them. But policies like these often remain distant, almost academic. They’re crafted in global conferences and discussed by experts. To be effective, they need to resonate with the ordinary people.

As a policy analyst, one finds oneself grappling with this gap. How do we translate the Sendai Framework into something tangible; something that speaks to a farmer in the Punjab or a school child in........

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