DANAS Project is a 2-year DOST-GIA project that aims to harness the laypeople’s experiential knowledge of past disaster events using in-depth interviews conducted in their local languages. This project intends to gather and study the relationships of lived experiences of disaster as motivating factors for people to take pre-event preparedness measures and syn-event decision-making. 

This culturally inclusive and multi-disciplinary research underscores the significance of science communication by emphasizing the use of local languages to convey scientific and warning information, thereby enhancing understanding and resilience in disaster-prone regions. By bridging the gap in science communication, particularly in Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM), the project’s findings will contribute to establishing a stronger foundation for disaster resilience.

The project compiles descriptions of earthquake, tsunami, and volcano events of eyewitnesses in local languages alongside scientific terminologies into sourcebooks, facilitating science communication and aiding DRRM practitioners in educating the public about geological processes.

The DANAS Project is implemented by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (DOST-PHIVOLCS) and monitored by the Philippine Council for Industry, Energy, and Emerging Technology Research and Development (DOST-PCIEERD), in collaboration with the College of Management of the University of the Philippines Visayas (UPV) and the College of Arts and Sciences (Language Department) of Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University (DMMMSU).

DANAS is composed of a multi-disciplinary team of geologists, seismologists, communication experts, and social science researchers. The Project is structured into components, each assigned to document various experiences related to earthquakes and volcanoes in six local languages.