In the context of the intensification and diversification of natural risks worldwide, higher education institutions are increasingly consciously developing an institutional culture of safety and resilience. Universities can no longer be viewed simply as academic spaces isolated from social and climatic realities, but as exposed entities, responsible for protecting a significant number of people – students, teaching staff, auxiliary staff – from potentially catastrophic events, such as earthquakes, floods or fires.
These types of disasters have a significant impact on the physical and psychological integrity of individuals, as well as on institutional functioning, and require the development of coherent prevention, intervention, and recovery strategies.
Over the past two decades, the literature has devoted increasing interest to the concepts of institutional resilience and procedural literacy in the field of emergency management. Recent studies highlight the importance of integrating the educational, organisational and behavioural dimensions in efforts to reduce collective vulnerability1 . In this sense, universities are not only beneficiaries but also vectors of security culture, with the role of forming informed, responsible citizens capable of reacting effectively in critical situations.