Rumana Kabir invites Ian Davis to look back at his 50-year long career in the field of disaster risk reduction and recovery. Rumana and Ian have one thing in common, that is the 1970s cyclone in Bangladesh (then East Pakistan) that drew them to similar career paths. Ian first volunteered to help his friends to produce awareness raising materials titled 'Just Another Disaster' on the 70's cyclone, for a newly established charity Tear Fund. And Rumana was moved by the story that her grand-dad told her. Let's find out more on Ian's childhood memory of his house being bombed during World War II, his lifelong dedication in disaster risk reduction and his passion to cherish culture, community spirit and architecture. Professor Ian Davis, started as practicing architect for twelve years, then spent twenty years lecturing in the School of Architecture in Oxford Brookes University (formerly Oxford Polytechnic). From the early 1970's he embarked on a new career studying and advising the UN and Governments on Shelter following Disasters and Disaster Risk Management, involving travel to over 45 countries. Ian became a member of the UK's National Committee for Risk Reduction throughout the 1990s. In 1996 he received the UN Sasakawa Award for his work on disaster prevention. Ian is an accomplished watercolour artist, writing and lecturing about Oxford and the UKs rich historical architecture and landscape. Ian continues to spread his wisdom as a visiting professor in several universities around the world. Ian's notable books include: Shelter After Disaster, Ian Davis, 1978; Building For Safety Compendium: An annotated bibliography and information directory for safe building programmes in disaster-prone areas, Andrew Clayton, Ian Davis, 1994; Developing Building for Safety Programmes , by Yasemin Aysan, Andrew Clayton, Alistair Cory, Ian Davis, 1994; At Risk : Natural Hazards, People's Vulnerability and Disasters, by Piers Blaikie, Terry Cannon, Ben Wisner and Ian Davis, 2014; Recovery from Disaster, Ian Davis and David Alexander, 2018; Experiencing Oxford, 2020. To know more: https://mymarsmantra.com. Email us at: [email protected] to share your stories and to take part. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/my-mars-mantra/message