Book Reviews

von Kotze, Astrid; Holloway, Alisa Reducing Risk: Participatory Learning Activities for Disaster Mitigation in Southern Africa Welford, Richard Environmental Strategy and Sustainable Development — The Corporate Challenge for the 21st Century Richards, Paul Fighting for the Rain Forest: War, Youth and Resources in Sierra Leone Blaikie, Piers; Cannon, Terry; Davis, Ian; Wisner, Ben At Risk: Natural Hazards, People's Vulnerability and Disasters Buchanan-Smith, M.; Davies, S. Famine Early Warning and Response — The Missing Link     

Mapping the public first‐aid training landscape: uptake,knowledge, confidence and willingness to deliver first aid in disasters/emergencies—a scoping review

The above article from Disasters, published online on 24 June 2019 in Wiley Online Library ( http://wileyonlinelibrary.com ) has been withdrawn by agreement among the authors, the Journal editors and John Wiley & Sons Inc. on behalf of ODI. The withdrawal has been agreed because this is a duplicate of an article that has been published in Disasters Volume 44 Issue 1.     

Book Reviews

Books reviewed: John Twigg and Mihir R. Bhatt, eds, Understanding Vulnerability Joachim von Braun, Tesfaye Teklu and Patrick Webb, Famine in Africa: Causes, Responses, and Prevention C. Emdad Haque, Hazrads in a Fickle Environment: Bangladesh Walter Gillis Peacock, Betty Hearn Morrow and Hugh Gladwin, eds, Population and Food: Global Trends and Future Prospects Roy Gutman and David Rieff, eds, Crimes of War: What the Public Should Know     

BOOK REVIEWS

Book reviewed in this article:
Rwanda: Which Way Now? , by David Waller
Humanitarian Aid to Somalia , by the Operations Review Unit, Netherlands Development Corporation, The Hague
The State of the World's Refugees 1995. In Search of Solutions , by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Mercy Under Fire: War and the Global Humanitarian Community , by Larry Minear and Thomas G. Weiss
The Politics of Humanitarian Intervention , edited by John Harriss
'The Conscience of the World', The Influence of Non-Governmental Organisations in the UN System , edited by P. Willetts
Nutrition Matters: People, Food and Famine , by Helen Young and Susanne Jaspars
Nutrition Guidelines , by Médecins Sans Frontieres
Who Will Feed China: Wake-up Call for a Small Planet , by Lester Brown
Urban Disaster Mitigation: The Role of Engineering and Technology , edited by F.Y. Cheng and M.-S. Sheu
Learning from Failure – The System Approach , by Joyce Fortune and Geoff Peters, John Wiley and Sons, Chichester
Landslides Hazard Mitigation with Particular Reference to Developing Countries: Proceedings of a Conference Held at the Royal Society, November 1993 , The Royal Academy of Engineering
Crisis and Opportunity. Environment and Development in Africa , by François Falloux and Lee M. Talbot
Megacities: Reducing Vulnerability to Natural Disasters , by the Institution of Civil Engineers     

Book Reviews

Book reviewed in this article:
THE BENEFITS OF FLOOD ALLEVIA TION A MANUAL OF ASSESSMENT TECHNIQUES:by Edmund C. Penning Rowsell and John B. Chatterton
NATURAL HAZARDS and DISASTERS: A SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY OF BEHA VIOURAL LITERA TURE:by John R. Gold     

Mental and social health in disasters: the Sphere standards and post‐tsunami psychosocial interventions in Asia

The primary objective of this paper is to examine and inform the mental health and psychosocial support standards of the 2011 edition of the Sphere Project's Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Response. This is done through a qualitative analysis of internal evaluation documents, reflecting four long‐term humanitarian psychosocial programmes in different countries in post‐tsunami Asia. The analysis yielded three overall conclusions. First, the Sphere standards on mental health and psychosocial support generally are highly relevant to long‐term psychosocial interventions after disasters such as the Indian Ocean tsunami of 26 December 2004, and their application in such settings may improve the quality of the response. Second, some of the standards in the current Sphere handbook may lack sufficient guidance to ensure the quality of humanitarian response required. Third, the long‐term intervention approach poses specific challenges to programming, a problem that could be addressed by including additional guidance in the publication.     

Reflections on 40 years of Disasters, 1977–2017

This reflection, based on a keynote address to celebrate the fortieth anniversary of Disasters on 14 September 2017, begins by considering some of the prevailing assumptions that existed at the time of the journal's creation. Next is a summary of significant milestones during the past 40 years, covering major global trends, changing disaster impacts, and key developments in disaster risk management. Contrasting approaches in the first and fourth decade of the journal's history are then followed by examples of changes in terminology in the disaster field as an indication of shifting values. The paper goes on to explore the context of 2017, with observations of problem areas such as the loss of knowledge, failures to tackle the root causes of disasters, shortfalls in international assistance, and some negative attitudes. It closes by evaluating some current positive occurrences, including a reduction in casualties, sharing of experience, technological advances, and dramatic improvements in disaster warning.     

BOOK REVIEWS

Book reviewed in this article:
Disaster and Development by Frederick C. Cuny.
Nutritional Surveillance by John B. Mason, Jean-Pierre Habicht, H. Tabatabai, V. Valverde.
Terremoto e Società (Earthquake and Society) by R. Solbiati and A. Marcellini.
Journal of Diarrhoeal Disease Research .     

Continue to blame it on the rain? Conceptualization of drought and failure of food systems in the Greater Horn of Africa

Food insecurity continues to be prevalent in parts of Africa. In December 2015, there were approximately 21.6 million food insecure people in the Horn and East Africa. Climate change is likely to exacerbate current volatility of agricultural production and lead to further food insecurity. Whilst the academic literature has acknowledged the complexity of food insecurity and systems, it is not clear to what extent this has been translated into practice. We argue that there is a tendency to explain complex failures of food systems as ‘droughts’, with insufficient attention paid to other drivers. We analyse humanitarian documents and climate outlook statements in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia and assess how these are reflected in the humanitarian responses to food insecurity in the region by analysing the financing of humanitarian operations. Our findings indicate that the continued evolution in understanding the complex causes of food insecurity and attempts to move away from emergency relief to a more sophisticated approach has not translated into an observable change in humanitarian responses. The reasons behind this persistence of short-term relief, which is being justified with reference to climatic factors, mainly drought, would warrant further research into the decision-making process that triggers humanitarian responses.

List of abbreviations: ACF: Action Contre le Faim; DCM: Drought Cycle Management; DEC: Disaster Emergency Committee; ECHO: European Commission Humanitarian Office; EU: European Union; EWS: Early Warning System; FAO: Food and Agricultural Organization; FEWSNET: Famine Early Warning System Network; FSNAU: Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit; FTS: Financial Tracking Service; GHACOF: Greater Horn of Africa Climate Outlook Forum; GIEWS: Global Information and Early Warning System; IASC: Inter Agency Standing Committee; ICPAC: IGAD Climate Application and Prediction Centre; IFRC: International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies; IGAD: Inter-Governmental Authority on Development; IPCC: International Panel for Climate Change; LEWS: Livestock Early Warning System; ODI: Overseas Development Initiative; PASDEP: Plan for Accelerated and Sustained Development to Eradicate Poverty; PSNP: Productive Safety Net Programme; UNDRO: United Nations Disaster Relief Office; UNISDR: United Nations International; UN OCHA: United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs; USAID: United States Agency for International Development; WFP: World Food Programme     

Book Reviews

Book reviewed in this article:
RED CROSS DISASTER RELIEF HANDBOOK, League of Red Cross Societies, 1976.
THE LICE EARTHQUAKE IN SOUTH-EASTERN TURKEY: A GEOGRAPHY OF THE DISASTER Captain William A. Mitchell
CATASTROPHIC FAILURES by Victor Bignell, Geoff Peters and Christopher Pym
HUMAN ASPECTS OF MAN-MADE SYSTEMS-READINGS ON: CONCEPTUAL MODELS, PRACTICAL STRATEGIES, DESIGN SITU A TIONS edited by Stephen C. Brown and John N. T. Martin
BUSHFIREDISASTER: ANA USTRALIAN COMMUNITY IN CRISIS R. L. Wettenhall     

Book Reviews

Book reviewed in this article:
LANDUSEAND DEVELOPMENT, AFRICAN ENVIROMENT SPECIAL REPOR T 5 edited by Phil O'Keefe and Ben Wisner
THE BENEFITS OF FLOOD ALLEVIA TION - A MANUAL OF ASSESSMENT TECHNIQUES by Edmund C. Penning-Rowsell and John B. Chatterton
THE ORGAMSA TIONAL and INTERORGANISA TIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF DISASTERS B. A. Turner
RESPONSE TO SOCIAL CRISIS and DISASTER E. L. Quarantelli and R. R. Dynes
ANOTHER DEVELOPMENT: APPROACHES and STRATEGIES edited by Marc Nerfin
UNDRO - DISASTER PREVENTION and MITIGATION A COMPENDIUM OF CURRENT KNOWLEDGE
ESCAP/WMO/LRCS - GUIDELINES FOR DISASTER PREVENTION and PREPAREDNESS IN TROPICAL CYCLONE AREAS
DISASTERS, VOLUME II, Nos. 2 and 3 SHELTER AFTER DISASTER by Ian Davis
DELIVERY OF MENTAL HEAL TH SER VICES IN DISASTERS THE XENIA TORNADO and SOME IMPLICA TIONS by V.A. Taylor C.A. Ross and E. L. Quarantelli.
INFLUENZA: THE LAST GREAT PLAGUE by W.I.B. Beveridge     

基于Ap/Vp的双薄壁高墩刚构桥抗震性能研究

为了研究地震频谱特性对柔性桥梁抗震性能的影响,以正弦波为例推导了地震动能量与A_p/V_p的关系,基于能力需求比提出了桥梁抗震性能评估方法及计算公式。以某典型高墩连续刚构桥为工程背景,采用地震动参数A_p=0.4g的22条正弦波和7条实际地震记录,对比研究了桥梁纵、横向抗震性能随A_p/V_p的变化规律。结果表明:在地震动参数A_p相同的情况下,桥梁关键截面抗震能力需求比在纵、横桥向均随A_p/V_p的增大而呈现增长的规律,最大增幅超过12.92倍(正弦波)和2.31倍(实际波);按正弦波得到能力需求比普遍大于实际波,且随A_p/V_p增大而增大的规律更明显。研究发现将地震动参数A_p作为单一的抗震设计指标会导致桥梁抗震性能离散性很大,A_p/V_p可作为柔性桥梁抗震设计的补充指标。     

BOOK REVIEWS

Book reviewed in this article:
New Perspectives on Uncertainty and Risk edited by John Handmer, Bevis Dutton, Bernard Guerin and Michael Smithson.
Why People Grow Drugs: Narcotics and Development in the Third World by Michael L. Smith et al.
The Energy Industry and Global Warming: New Roles for International Aid by Dennis Anderson.
Earthquake Protection by Andrew Coburn and Robin Spence.
AIDS in Africa: Its Present and Future Impact by Tony Barnett and Piers Blaikie     

Participation,political economy and protection: food aid governance in Darfur,Sudan

Humanitarian food assistance aims to meet short‐term emergency needs, yet often it is sustained over many years and develops its own systems and infrastructure that interact with local governance and local communities. This paper explores the links between participation and local governance, as well as the implications for exclusion of certain groups, the dignity of those involved, and protection issues. The paper proposes a framework for reviewing the governance functions and capacities of local Food Relief Committees, based on the following criteria: accountability; gender equity; legitimacy and authority; representativeness; responsiveness; and transparency. A case study of the Darfur region reviews how local governance evolves as a result of both the wider conflict and of adapting to the international humanitarian system, itself a form of governance. The paper concludes by proposing three strategies for enhancing participation and applying lessons learned: improved analysis of participation; linking programming strategies and protection; and taking account of governance functions and capacities.     

BOOK REVIEWS

Book reviewed in this article:
Earthquake Mitigation Policy: The Experience of Two States
Shelter After Disaster
Appropriate Technology for Water Supply and Sanitation: Meeting the Needs of the Poor for Water Supply and Waste Disposal
1. Survival Strategies For and By Camp Refugees
2. Sustaining Afghan Refugees in Pakistan
3. Afghan Refugees in Pakistan: From Emergency Towards Self Reliance
International Humanitarian Assistance - Disaster Relief Actions in International Law and Organization
Warning and Response to the Mount St. Helen's Eruption     

The impact of heat waves on daily mortality in Belgrade (Serbia) during summer

In this paper, we are dealing with two extreme events in temperature and population – heat wave and mortality. Our aim is to assess the relation between high temperatures and daily mortality counts during the summer months in the period 2000–2010 in Belgrade (Serbia). In order to establish this connection, we used Poisson regression and two different measures of heat wave: Warm Spell Duration Index (WSDI) and apparent temperature (T _app). As mean daily temperature increases over 90th, 95th and 99th percentiles, average number of deaths increases for 15.3% (p?<?.01), 22.4% (p?<?.05) and 32.0% (insignificant for p?<?.1). We tested three different thresholds (90th, 95th, 99th) for WSDI and T _app in order to separate the hottest heat-wave episodes. On average, mortality is higher than expected for 13.4%, 16.7% and 28.3% (90th, 95th and 99th percentiles for WSDI) and 16.1%, 17.3% and 32.5% (90th, 95th and 99th percentiles for T _app). Estimated mortality excess with heat-wave indices is in accordance with regression output, meaning that WSDI and T _app are good tools for heat-wave identification. During the most severe episode in July 2007, absolute temperature maximum (43.6°C) and daily maximum mortality counts (94 dead) were recorded in the same day (24 July 2007).     

Mortality,violence and lack of access to healthcare in the Democratic Republic of Congo

The people of the Democratic Republic of Congo for decades have been living in a situation of chronic crisis. Violence, population displacement and the destruction of infrastructure and health services have devastated the health of the population. In 2001, Médicins Sans Frontières conducted a survey in five areas of western and central DRC to assess mortality, access to health-care, vaccination coverage and exposure to violence. High mortality rates were found in front-line zones, mainly due to malnutrition and infectious diseases. In Basankusu approximately 10 per cent of the total population and 25 per cent of the under-five population had perished in the year before the survey. Humanitarian needs remain acute across the country, particularly near the front line. Infectious-disease control and treatment are a priority, as is increasing access to health-care. Humanitarian assistance must be increased considerably, especially in rural areas and zones that have been affected directly by conflict.     

Aid in the midst of plenty: oil wealth, misery and advocacy in Angola

This paper examines advocacy initiatives by humanitarian and human rights organisations to address problems of governance in resource-rich and conflict-affected countries, focussing on the case of Angola. Humanitarian principles preclude the use of indiscriminate conditionality and point towards a cautious approach to advocacy aimed at assisting vulnerable populations. Furthermore, the relatively insignificant amount of aid supplied to resource-rich local authorities means that individual agencies have precious little leverage, especially when commercial interests rather than humanitarian or 'good governance' principles influence the priorities of bilateral donors. A context of resource wealth calls for: high levels of coordination and cooperation between human rights groups, aid agencies and donors; balanced use of conditionality, based on the drawing, by donors, of a clear distinction between emergency and development-oriented assistance; and a sustained effort to highlight the responsibilities of local authorities, foreign governments and businesses in meeting humanitarian and development objectives.     

Book Reviews

Yasemin Aysan, Andrew Clayton, Alistair Cory, Ian Davis and David Sanderson. Developing Building for Safety Programmes: Guidelines for Organizing Safe Building Improvement Programmes in Disaster-prone Areas
Y. Danieli, N.S. Rodley and L. Weisaeth. . International Responses to Traumatic Stress. Humanitarian, Human Rights, Justice, Peace and Development Contributions, Collaborative Actions and Future Initiatives
Sharon Hutchinson. Nuer Dilemmas: Coping with Money, War and the State
Michael Edwards and David Hulme. Non-Governmental Organisations Performance and Accountability: Beyond the Magic Bullet
Thomas E. Drabek. Disaster Evacuation Behavior: Tourists and Other Transients.
Jeremy Armon and Andy Carl. Accord–An International Review of Peace Initiatives: The Liberian Peace Process, 1990–1996
Peter J. May. Environmental Management and Governance: Intergovernmental Approaches to Hazards and Sustainability