Voluntary participation in disaster management

Abstract

The recent regulation of disaster management puts a strong emphasis on the widespread involvement of the population, thereby enhancing the role of voluntary and charitable organizations. The question arises how organizations developing in varying manners and degrees, with different histories and traditions of the voluntary movement and, last but not least, possessing various levels of expertise and preparedness can be involved in different phases of defence. The author attempts to answer these questions by presenting the Hungarian results in addition to offering an overview of the legal and organisational system.