Disaster Management Education through Higher Education –
Industry Collaboration in the Built Environment
Abstract
Effectively responding to the current and dynamic construction labour market requirements is a major responsibility of higher
education institutions (HEIs). HEIs aim to reduce the mismatch between what they deliver and what is required by the industry.
Built environment professionals require continuous update of knowledge and education in order to effectively contribute to
disaster management. However, the complex and multidisciplinary nature of disaster management education pose a challenge to
the higher education institutions to make them more responsive to the industrial needs and to prepare the students for careers in
disaster resilience. Adopting a lifelong learning approach would be appropriate for HEIs to maintain a through-life studentship
and to provide disaster related knowledge and education on a continuous basis to respond to the labour market requirements.
However, incorporating lifelong learning approach within the system of higher education is not easy and straightforward for
HEIs. This is mainly because of the formal and bureaucratic nature of HEIs that acts as a barrier for providing effective lifelong
learning education. In resolving this issue, HEIs are increasingly relying on the benefits associated with fostering close
collaboration with external organisations such as industries, professional bodies and communities. In this context, this paper
discusses the role of HEIs in providing disaster management education, the challenges associated with it, and the way of
addressing the challenges through the higher education industry collaboration.