Background
In times of more frequent and long-term disasters and crises, the project aims at improving disaster response capacities of European emergency and volunteer organisations by strengthening Psychological First Aid (PFA) and Psychosocial Support (PSS) competencies of staff and volunteers.
Aims and objectives
- Improve involvement and active participation of affected communities, families and groups in emergency response by training staff and volunteers and by developing community activation
- Improve coordination and support for new volunteer types such as convergent volunteers and spontaneous volunteers
- Improve experience exchange and networking regarding long lasting repeated and ongoing disasters, like earthquakes, flooding and the migrant crisis in Europe
Main outputs
- Desk research report compiling information on existing tools and recommendations for (1) Psychological First Aid, (2) community activation and participation and (3) volunteer and staff support including guidance for coordination and support for convergent and spontaneous volunteers.
- A ToT package will be developed through structured experience exchange and collecting best practice in the areas of flooding, migration crisis and earthquake. The objective of the training package, which will be tested within the project, is to provide trainers within disaster management organisations adaptable tools which shall be included in the training of all volunteers and staff member involved in emergency response.
Project consortium
- Austrian Red Cross – Austria (project lead)
- University of Innsbruck – Austria
- Croatian Red Cross – Croatia
- Italian Red Cross– Italy
- Macedonian Red Cross – FYR of Macedonia
- Red Cross of Serbia – Serbia
- SlovenianRed Cross – Slovenia
