Department of Geology, Faculty of Engineering UGM, received an award for the World Center of Excellence for Community-based Landslide Disaster Risk Reduction. The award was given by the International Program on Landslide and United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction. The award was presented during a landslide disaster conference which was attended by 80 countries on October 3, 2011 at FAO Headquarters in Rome.
A member of faculty of Geology Engineering UGM, Prof. Ir. Dwikorita Karnawati, M.Sc., Ph.D., said that the Department of Geology UGM successfully competed with 42 researches in landslide from 30 countries worldwide. On the occasion the best three were elected, namely UGM, United States Geological Survey (USGS), in collaboration with Canadian Geological State and Norwegian Geotechnical Institute. "At that time there were 44 researches on landslide competing from 30 countries worldwide. After being evaluated, finally our two researches in early detection of landslide hazards and KKN PPM Landslide Hazard Mitigation were selected as World Center of Excellence for Community-based Landslide Disaster Risk Reduction. Our research is considered excellent because it is visionary by involving the community and the younger generation in the landslide detection and mitigation," she explained on Thursday (13/10) to reporters at UGM.
Dwikorita said that regularly every year the Department reports research activities in landslide disaster risk reduction in Indonesia. The results are reported to the International Consortium on Landslide Management. "Starting in 2009, we regularly send research reports on landslide disaster risk reduction in Indonesia to the International Consortium on Landslide Management," the Professor of Geology UGM said.
Furthermore, Dwikorita said that with the award they obtained, Department of Geology UGM became coordinator of other countries in the world in efforts to detect and reduce landslide disaster risks. "Some countries, such as China, India, Korea, Nepal, and Mexico, have expressed interest to learn from UGM on landslide disaster risk reduction," she said.
UGM has developed an early detection tool for landslide hazard (extensometer) that can read data a few hours before the landslide. Extensometer will ring when the soil has cracked by around 5 cm in size. "Landslide hazard early detection tool is designed in such a way that allows people to apply them in the field and recognizes the danger of landslides," Dwikorita concluded.