TOWARDS A CULTURE OF RESILIENCE AND EARTHQUAKE DISASTER RISK REDUCTION IN IRAN – “LESSONS-LEARNED” FROM EARTHQUAKE DISASTERS

It is a common phenomenon that the next earthquake will test whether lessons from previous disasters became “Lessons-Learned” or they were simply ignored and forgotten. As a dramatic reality, repetition of lessons from earthquake disasters occurs in both time and space. To learn the lessons from two large earthquake disasters in Iran - Rudbar 1990 and Bam 2003 and also lessons from other six large earthquake disasters worldwide - requires a sustainable long-term framework, a culture of earthquake disaster risk reduction and a boost in the resilience of both rural and urban communities at risk. The Japanese model of such culture as an illustrative example and few practical suggestions for implementation are offered for the Iranian seismic space.