Beyond the community: integrating local and scientific knowledge in the formal development approval process in Jamaica

Community-based disaster risk management methods routinely include capture of local knowledge which is used to inform community-level risk reduction programmes and development plans. In Jamaica, development planning at the national level has relied historically on scientific knowledge, usually to the exclusion of local knowledge. However, community disaster risk management plans reviewed for this paper show that communities have very clear ideas on the threat posed by hazards, resources at risk from the hazards and ways of reducing the risk. Communities also appreciate the value of cultural and historical sites and are willing to sacrifice development in order to protect and preserve these sites. Such knowledge is valuable for informing risk-sensitive development planning, and should be captured within the formal development approval system. A model is proposed in which community and scientific knowledge can be integrated into the formal development approval process at the national level. The model includes integrating community representatives in technical committee reviews, capturing local knowledge through community consultations and subjecting community knowledge to validation prior to its use. Successful implementation of this model should result in more accurate field assessments for risk-sensitive development planning as local knowledge provides current, site-specific information. Better risk-sensitive development planning will ultimately lead to reduced exposure to hazards and reduction in losses from the impact of hazards for Jamaica.     

The potential for combining indigenous and western knowledge in reducing vulnerability to environmental hazards in small island developing states

The benefits of indigenous knowledge within disaster risk reduction are gradually being acknowledged and identified. However, despite this acknowledgement there continues to be a gap in reaching the right people with the correct strategies for disaster risk reduction.This paper identifies the need for a specific framework identifying how indigenous and western knowledge may be combined to mitigate against the intrinsic effects of environmental processes and therefore reduce the vulnerability of rural indigenous communities in small island developing states (SIDS) to environmental hazards. This involves a review of the impacts of environmental processes and their intrinsic effects upon rural indigenous communities in SIDS and how indigenous knowledge has contributed to their coping capacity. The paper concludes that the vulnerability of indigenous communities in SIDS to environmental hazards can only be addressed through the utilisation of both indigenous and Western knowledge in a culturally compatible and sustainable manner.     

The potential for combining indigenous and western knowledge in reducing vulnerability to environmental hazards in small island developing states

The benefits of indigenous knowledge within disaster risk reduction are gradually being acknowledged and identified. However, despite this acknowledgement there continues to be a gap in reaching the right people with the correct strategies for disaster risk reduction.

This paper identifies the need for a specific framework identifying how indigenous and western knowledge may be combined to mitigate against the intrinsic effects of environmental processes and therefore reduce the vulnerability of rural indigenous communities in small island developing states (SIDS) to environmental hazards. This involves a review of the impacts of environmental processes and their intrinsic effects upon rural indigenous communities in SIDS and how indigenous knowledge has contributed to their coping capacity. The paper concludes that the vulnerability of indigenous communities in SIDS to environmental hazards can only be addressed through the utilisation of both indigenous and Western knowledge in a culturally compatible and sustainable manner.     

Then and now: A 30-year journey from the ‘leading edge’

A fledgling disaster management organization in 1984, Jamaica's Office of Disaster Preparedness (ODP) hosted the pioneering international disaster mitigation conference to share information and to contemplate how vulnerability to disasters from natural hazards could be reduced. Over the period 1979–2009, the overall focus of the agency was response, given the plethora of extreme events, and the priority of the Government of Jamaica. The organization was associated with several efforts at disaster mitigation, but the need for building the agency's capacity to lead national efforts to integrate mitigation planning into development did not seem to gain traction among the policy makers. Growing losses since 2004, the evidence of climate change and the need for adaptation, and the regional and international disaster risk management agenda have brought attention to the need for review and development of Jamaica's disaster risk management capacity. This paper examines highlights of the 30-year journey of disaster management in Jamaica, and highlights proposals for strengthening the national framework and the organizational structure of ODPEM.     

探索发展与减灾协调之路——从2006年达沃斯国际减灾会议看中国发展与减灾协调对策

介绍了于2006年8月28日至9月1日在瑞士达沃斯举行的国际减灾会议的主要内容。在阅读本次会议有关论文扩展摘要集内容。以及会议上散发的大量文件、研究报告的基础上,综述了当前国际减灾研究与实践工作中,学术界、政界与企业界等在探索协调发展与减灾进程中的主要进展和发展趋向。国际减灾界当前关注的主要领域为：建立灾害与风险科学,善待与重建生态系统,关注全球环境变化与灾害的密切关系,重视利用金融、保险和再保险手段转移风险,关注女性在灾害风险管理中的作用,关注恐怖主义对社会风险的强化作用,发展灾害风险管理的信息支撑平台,重视建设高风险地区综合减灾范式。在此基础上,针对中国可持续发展战略实施过程中存在的主要问题,提出中国协调发展与减灾对策为：建立国家协调发展与减轻灾害风险的管理体制与运行机制,加强控制综合灾害风险水平的生态系统等减灾基础设施建设,发挥女性在农村地区综合灾害风险管理中的作用,建立区域综合灾害风险管理与减灾范式和加强区域综合灾害风险防范关键技术的开发,促进灾害与风险学科体系的形成。     

Progress in natural hazard risk reduction: What hath development wrought?

The development-disaster risk management agenda has been shaped over the last 25 years by development policies and practices that have isolated lesser developed countries' development agenda from dealing with risk to natural hazards, by intentional actions to create a theory and practice of disaster risk management alongside other cross-cutting issues, by attempting to nurture emergency management in the context of disaster risk management and by fostering competition for resources. Sovereign states, multilateral development banks and the international development community should collaborate in shifting paradigms to: consider all development actions as initiatives to reduce risk; separate emergency management policy and practice from disaster risk management; fold disaster risk management and climate change adaptation into development planning and lending processes so as to address risk to natural hazards; promote hazard, vulnerability and risk information as a public good; and insist on accountability and responsibility to natural hazard risk all along the development continuum.     

From fatalism to resilience: reducing disaster impacts through systematic investments

This paper describes a method for reducing the economic risks associated with predictable natural hazards by enhancing the resilience of national infrastructure systems. The three-step generalised framework is described along with examples. Step one establishes economic baseline growth without the disaster impact. Step two characterises economic growth constrained by a disaster. Step three assesses the economy's resilience to the disaster event when it is buffered by alternative resiliency investments. The successful outcome of step three is a disaster-resistant core of infrastructure systems and social capacity more able to maintain the national economy and development post disaster. In addition, the paper considers ways to achieve this goal in data-limited environments. The method provides a methodology to address this challenge via the integration of physical and social data of different spatial scales into macroeconomic models. This supports the disaster risk reduction objectives of governments, donor agencies, and the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction.     

The changing emphasis of disasters in Bangladesh NGOs

Bangladesh is one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world, affected by cyclones and floods, as well as chronic hazards such as arsenic poisoning. NGOs have played a major role in bringing concerns related to risk management on to the national agenda and promoting a shift of focus from mere relief response to disaster mitigation and preparedness. The government has, after earlier scepticism, now accepted NGOs as major partners in these tasks. Innovative approaches, such as the use of microfinance, have been applied; many of which are related to preserving the gains of development efforts as part of rehabilitation. NGOs have pressured for better coordination with government. Improved structures are now approved, but it is still too early to judge their impact. Despite progress, neither NGOs nor governmental agencies have clearly defined roles in the effort to link disaster management priorities. This will ensure that longer-term development efforts build on local capacities and reduce vulnerabilities.     

中国城市综合灾害风险管理现状与对策

世界性城市灾害的加剧已成为城市化进程中的一大障碍，它也是城市化过程的产物。如何协调城市化过程与城市综合灾害风险管理，已成为当今世界、特别是像中国这样的发展中国家可持续发展的一大难题。在综述了中国城市灾害及其风险管理现状的基础上，通过对其薄弱环节的综合分析，依据作者提出的综合灾害风险管理模式，就中国城市综合灾害风险管理对策提出了3条政策建议：即完善城市灾害风险管理的信息保障机制，特别是灾害预警体系、信息共享体系和信息公开机制；加强城市综合减灾能力的建设，特别是明确城市建设中减灾工程与非工程设施投入的固定比例，完善减灾教育宣传体系和综合灾害应急响应的科技平台体系；建立城市综合灾害风险管理范式，特别是高度重视城市规划中综合减灾规划的改进和完善，加快拓展城市企业灾害保险与再保险和发展适应城市灾害风险的“安全社区”范式。     

An assessment of Disaster Risk and its Management in Thailand

Historically, Thailand has been a disaster-free country, suffering only minor losses from natural hazards through the years. Emerging as a newly industrialised nation, the kingdom now faces an increased risk of economic and public damage from man-made disasters associated with rapid development. A risk assessment was carried out on the level of disaster management. That assessment was preceded by an analysis of the traditional definitions of disaster risk, resulting in a redefinition to fit the needs of this study. This holds that the risk of disaster is the product of hazards, vulnerability and the level of management exercised over both the hazard and the vulnerable elements.
The results of the risk assessment, conducted through analysis of those three components, are discussed along with impediments which may hinder good disaster or accident management. Floods, in both natural and man-made manifestations, were identified as the highest risk factor, followed by major accidents and explosions, both man-made hazards. Major recommendations arising from the study included the consolidation of disaster management responsibilities currently held by several agencies into a central co-ordinating committee, the review and restructure of related law and regulations, the conduct of provincial and country-wide hazard assessments and the creation of a 'culture of safety' in Thailand     

Resilience to natural hazards: How useful is this concept?

Resilience is widely seen as a desirable system property in environmental management. This paper explores the concept of resilience to natural hazards, using weather-related hazards in coastal megacities as an example. The paper draws on the wide literature on megacities, coastal hazards, hazard risk reduction strategies, and resilience within environmental management. Some analysts define resilience as a system attribute, whilst others use it as an umbrella concept for a range of system attributes deemed desirable. These umbrella concepts have not been made operational to support planning or management. It is recommended that resilience only be used in a restricted sense to describe specific system attributes concerning (i) the amount of disturbance a system can absorb and still remain within the same state or domain of attraction and (ii) the degree to which the system is capable of self-organisation. The concept of adaptive capacity, which has emerged in the context of climate change, can then be adopted as the umbrella concept, where resilience will be one factor influencing adaptive capacity. This improvement to conceptual clarity would foster much-needed communication between the natural hazards and the climate change communities and, more importantly, offers greater potential in application, especially when attempting to move away from disaster recovery to hazard prediction, disaster prevention, and preparedness.     

加强综合灾害风险研究,提高迎对灾害风险能力——从第6届国际综合灾害风险管理论坛看我国的综合减灾

综述了第6届国际IIASA-DPRI综合灾害风险管理论坛的主要内容，并就中国综合灾害风险管理对策提出了具体的建议。本届论坛的主题是：风险与商业和产经界面临的挑战。论坛除主题报告外，共设置了16个分会场，就综合灾害风险信息共享平台（DRH）的建设、产经界如何迎对灾害风险、地震与洪水灾害风险的综合管理、灾害风险教育与减灾意识的养成、综合灾害风险管理的理论与方法论探讨，以及土耳其国家综合灾害风险管理的经验与教训等进行了深人的研讨。针对上述进展，从我国减灾工作现状，提出从三个方面加强我国综合减灾与灾害风险管理工作，即：各级政府在加强应急管理工作的同时，要高度重视从综合的角度完善减灾战略、规划和能力建设；全面改进产经界迎对灾害风险的能力，特别是非国有中小企业防御灾害风险的能力，以及大型国有企业灾害自保或参保机制的完善；加强综合灾害风险管理研究。     

Addressing challenges for future strategic‐level emergency management: reframing,networking, and capacity‐building

The mounting frequency and intensity of natural hazards, alongside growing interdependencies between social‐technical and ecological systems, are placing increased pressure on emergency management. This is particularly true at the strategic level of emergency management, which involves planning for and managing non‐routine, high‐consequence events. Drawing on the literature, a survey, and interviews and workshops with Australia's senior emergency managers, this paper presents an analysis of five core challenges that these pressures are creating for strategic‐level emergency management. It argues that emphasising ‘emergency management’ as a primary adaptation strategy is a retrograde step that ignores the importance of addressing socio‐political drivers of vulnerabilities. Three key suggestions are presented that could assist the country's strategic‐level emergency management in tackling these challenges: (i) reframe emergency management as a component of disaster risk reduction rather than them being one and the same; (ii) adopt a network governance approach; and (iii) further develop the capacities of strategic‐level emergency managers.     

城市灾害风险的基本构成要素

对城市灾害风险管理以及城市灾害和城市灾害风险的构成要素进行了分析研究,从构成要素角度解析了城市灾害的形成和城市灾害风险的形成。     

Towards guidelines for post‐disaster vulnerability reduction in informal settlements

Although the development community has long recognised that securing land tenure and improving housing design can benefit significantly informal settlement residents, there is little research on these issues in communities exposed to natural disasters and hazards. Informal settlements often are located on land left vacant because of inherent risks, such as floodplains, and there is a long history worldwide of disasters affecting informal settlements. This research tackles the following questions: how can informal settlement vulnerabilities be reduced in a post‐disaster setting?; and what are the key issues to address in post‐disaster reconstruction? The main purpose of the paper is to develop a set of initial guidelines for post‐disaster risk reduction in informal settlements, stressing connections to tenure and housing/community design in the reconstruction process. The paper examines disaster and reconstruction responses in two disaster‐affected regions—Jimani, Dominican Republic, and Vargas State, Venezuela—where informal settlements have been hit particularly hard.     

An investigation into the socioeconomic aspects of two major earthquakes in Iran

An evaluation of the socioeconomic consequences of earthquakes is an essential part of the development of risk reduction and disaster management plans. However, these variables are not normally addressed sufficiently after strong earthquakes; researchers and relevant stakeholders focus primarily on the physical damage and casualties. The importance of the socioeconomic consequences of seismic events became clearer in Iran after the Bam earthquake on 26 December 2003, as demonstrated by the formulation and approval of various laws and ordinances. This paper reviews the country's regulatory framework in the light of the socioeconomic aspects of two major and destructive earthquakes: in Manjil–Rudbar in 1990, and in Bam in 2003. The results take the form of recommendations and practical strategies for incorporating the socioeconomic dimensions of earthquakes in disaster risk management planning. The results presented here can be applied in other countries with similar conditions to those of Iran in order to improve public preparedness and risk reduction.     

Disaster mitigation and preparedness on the Nicaraguan post-Mitch agenda

Nicaragua provides an example of how a major disaster, in this case Hurricane Mitch, can transform the national agenda for disaster mitigation and preparedness. Hurricane Mitch was a reminder of how extremely disaster prone Nicaragua is, and also how neoliberal reforms have weakened governmental response capacity. In the face of critiques of how governmental policies had affected preparedness and response, discussions of this transformation became a highly politicised process where the debate over alternative development models tended to overshadow the original calls to strengthen risk management. Progress can be seen in some areas, such as disaster mitigation through environmental management. This study of NGO roles, and their relations with other key actors, draws attention to the need to anchor improved risk management in local-level NGO-government collaboration. Structures are being put into place to achieve this aim, but dependence on donor financing raises questions regarding the longer-term sustainability of these efforts.     

Disaster risk,social vulnerability,and economic development

This paper examines the extent to which economic development decreases a country's risk of experiencing climate‐related disasters as well as the societal impacts of those events. The paper proceeds from the underlying assumption that disasters are not inherently natural, but arise from the intersection of naturally‐occurring hazards within fragile environments. It uses data from the International Disaster Database (EM‐DAT), 1 representing country‐year‐level observations over the period 1980–2007. The study finds that low‐income countries are significantly more at risk of climate‐related disasters, even after controlling for exposure to climate hazards and other factors that may confound disaster reporting. Following the occurrence of a disaster, higher income generally diminishes a country's social vulnerability to such happenings, resulting in lower levels of mortality and morbidity. This implies that continued economic development may be a powerful tool for lessening social vulnerability to climate change.     

A critical analysis of the South African Disaster Management Act and Policy Framework

The promulgation of the South African Disaster Management Act No. 57 of 2002 and the National Disaster Management Policy Framework of 2005 placed South Africa at the international forefront by integrating disaster risk reduction into all spheres of government through a decentralised approach. Yet, good policy and legislation do not necessarily translate into good practice. This paper provides a critical analysis of the Act and Policy Framework. Using qualitative research methods, it analyses the attitudes and perceptions of senior public officials on all levels of government, the private sector and academia. The study finds that one of the weakest aspects of the Act and Framework is the absence of clear guidance to local municipalities. The placement of the disaster risk management function on all tiers of government remains problematic, funding is inadequate and overall knowledge and capacities for disaster risk reduction are insufficient.     

A policymaking perspective on disaster risk reduction in Mozambique

Academics and practitioners alike emphasise that public policy plays a key role to support efforts to reduce disaster risks and to buffer the impacts of natural hazards when they occur. This involves developing public policies to promote disaster risk reduction (DRR). However, the public policy dimension has only recently begun to receive attention in empirical research on DRR. Processes of policy change are discussed, yet less often studied, and more empirical research is needed to advance the understanding of the conditions for DRR policy change. Combining insights from adaptation research and public policy theory, this study investigates the long-term development of DRR policy in Mozambique as perceived by multiple stakeholders. The study identifies barriers and enabling factors influencing the DRR policy process over time. Using data from 37 semi-structured interviews, the study finds six main enabling factors supporting DRR policy change. Among the most important enabling factors are past disasters and broad stakeholder involvement. The study also unveils several barriers to DRR policy change, including resource insufficiency and lack of coordination among stakeholders. The study concludes with suggestions for integrating DRR and policy process research and lessons for policymaking in support of DRR over time.