ASCENT aims to ensure that the targeted higher education institutions in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Thailand have the research and innovative capacities to tackle the challenges associated with developing societal resilience to disasters. 

Among many communities in the EU and beyond, disasters pose significant concerns and challenges, and are an issue that requires international cooperation and solutions. In the last three decades, records of natural disasters show that Asia experiences the most disasters. A major contributory factor to disaster risk is capacity. Capacity development is a widely recognised priority in the disaster resilience field, and research cooperation can provide significant opportunities for realising its benefits. Strengthening the capacity of countries in Asia to do and use research is widely viewed as vital for meeting long term innovation in creating disaster resilience societies. 

ASCENT will:

1. identify research and innovative capacity needs across partner country higher education institutions (HEIs) to tackle the development of societal resilience to disasters;
2. develop research infrastructure to support implementation of the project and provide sustainable capacity development within the partner HEIs ;
3. prepare researchers in the identified Asian countries to undertake advanced, world-class and innovative, multi- and inter-disciplinary research that will contribute to increased societal resilience to disasters;
4. increase international cooperation by partner HEIs on research programmes that tackle ways to increase societal resilience to disasters;
5. explore, promote and initiate opportunities for fruitful university / industry partnerships to increase societal resilience to disasters; and
6. publicise the project progress, successes and outcomes as far as possible, and raise awareness across the field of HE about capacity building for disaster resilience research