Elton Cunha,

Professor, Consultant, and Speaker on Disaster Risk Management, Brazil

Elton has extensive experience in people management, having served as an armoured rifleman in the Brazilian Army Infantry for six years and also worked as a logistics analyst in the private sector.

He holds a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Centro Universitário FAVENI, Brazil, and a bachelor's degree in logistics from Universidade do Vale do Itajaí, Brazil, with a focus on logistics tools for humanitarian action in the field of humanitarian logistics. This was the first time the university addressed this area in academic papers in 2011.

Elton joined the City Hall of Barra Velha, Santa Catarina, Brazil, in early 2011 and was tasked with creating the Municipal Civil Defense Agency. His efforts culminated in legislation creating the Municipal Civil Defense Co-ordination on December 14, 2011. This organisation is responsible for managing disaster emergencies, creating protocols and contingency plans, mapping risk areas, and operationalising disaster prevention, preparedness, and response actions. He served as director of civil defence until 2023.

In October 2013, Barra Velha Civil Defense joined Unisdr's international Building Resilient Cities programme, and in May 2014, it became the 18th Brazilian city and the first in the state of Santa Catarina to complete the second cycle of the programme, well ahead of many other larger cities, including the state capital.

From 2017 to 2018, Elton was co-ordinator of the Regional Civil Defense Board of Amvali, part of the Itapocu Valley Municipalities Association, covering seven municipalities. In 2021, he was elected president of the State Civil Defense Board of the Federation of Consortiums, Municipalities Associations, and Municipalities of Santa Catarina (Fecam), covering 295 municipalities.

He received the state's 90th Military Firefighters Medal for his contributions to the institution and the population. In 2018 and 2019, he was awarded the 'Eternal Combatants Medal' and the 'FEB Health Service Medal', respectively, by the Brazilian Federation of Former Combatants, for services rendered to the population and for honouring the memory of Brazilian soldiers in World War II. In 2019, he received the 'PMSC Aviation Merit Medal' from the Santa Catarina State Military Police (PMSC) in recognition of his outstanding services to the cause of public security aviation and civil defence in the state of Santa Catarina.

In 2020, he was awarded the 'Military House Merit Medal', and in 2021, he received the 'Paraná Civil Defense Merit Medal', both from the state of Paraná, for outstanding services to risk and disaster management. In 2023, he received the 'Medal of Appreciation' from the Santa Catarina Federal Institute for his educational support in civil defence. For the relevant services provided to the municipality of Barra Velha for 12 years, in 2024, Elton received the '1st Class Municipal Civil Defense Medal', as well as the 'Medal of Merit of the Civil Defense Board of FECAM', for the services provided in favour of the development of risk management and resilience at the state level.

Elton has completed over 2,000 hours of continuing education courses in risk reduction and disaster management, focusing on geology, hydrology, and administrative foundations in risk management.

Elton has also completed three postgraduate programmes: one in civil protection and defence, one in compliance and risk management, and another in disaster emergency management. In 2024, he completed his professional master's degree in disaster management from the Federal University of Santa Catarina, Brazil.

Currently, he is a consultant, professor, and speaker and a member and co-ordinator of the 1st Civil Defense Sector Chamber at the Regional Administrative Council of Santa Catarina (CRA-SC) in Brazil. Finally, he is a collector, amateur historian, and bagpiper in his spare time.