This conference discussed the following points:
- What are the lessons of civil-military coordination from recent responses to natural disasters for instance in China or Burma, or in sudden onset disasters in South Asia, the Caribbean or Africa?
- How can well integrated military assets better assist national authorities to conduct their own response?
- What model of integration best assists national authorities lead their response?
- How can ‘neighbours help neighbours’ work in practice?
- What are the key lessons from different experiences of regional co-operation such as the Asian Pacific Military Assistance to Disaster Relief Operations (MADRO)?
- What are the obstacles to such neighbourhood support and how can they be overcome?
- What improvements are needed for civil-military co-ordination guidelines to ensure they are relevant on the ground?
