Human vulnerability, dislocation and resettlement: adaptation processes of river-bank erosion-induced displacees in Bangladesh

The purpose of this research was to identify and analyse patterns of economic and social adaptation among river-bank erosion-induced displacees in Bangladesh. It was hypothesised that the role of social demographic and socio-economic variables in determining the coping ability and recovery of the river-bank erosion-induced displacees is quite significant. The findings of the research reveal that displacees experience substantial socio-economic impoverishment and marginalisation as a consequence of involuntary migration. This in part is a socially constructed process, reflecting inequitable access to land and other resources. Vulnerability to disasters is further heightened by a number of identifiable social and demographic factors including gender, education and age, although extreme poverty and marginalisation create complexity to isolate the relative influence of these variables. The need to integrate hazard analysis and mitigation with the broader economic and social context is discussed. It is argued that the capacity of people to respond to environmental threats is a function of not only the physical forces which affect them, but also of underlying economic and social relationships which increase human vulnerability to risk. Hazard analysis and mitigation can be more effective when it takes into account such social and demographic and socio-economic dimensions of disasters.     

International NGOs and the role of network centrality in humanitarian aid operations: a case study of coordination during the 2000 Mozambique floods

In February 2000, Mozambique suffered its worst flooding in almost 50 years: 699 people died and hundreds of thousands were displaced. Over 49 countries and 30 international non-governmental organisations provided humanitarian assistance. Coordination of disaster assistance is critical for effective humanitarian aid operations, but limited attention has been directed toward evaluating the system-wide structure of inter-organisational coordination during humanitarian operations. Network analysis methods were used to examine the structure of inter-organisational relations among 65 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) involved in the flood operations in Mozambique. Centrality scores were used to estimate NGO-specific potential for aid coordination and tested against NGO beneficiary numbers. The average number of relief- and recovery-period beneficiaries was significantly greater for NGOs with high relative to low centrality scores (p < 0.05). This report addresses the significance of these findings in the context of the Mozambican 2000 floods and the type of data required to evaluate system-wide coordination.     

Adapting to climate change in the coastal regions of Bangladesh: proposal for the formation of community-based adaptation committees

The paper outlines a concept and proposal for the formation of ‘community based adaptation committees’ (CBACs) at the micro-level, and it explains how such local committees would act with respect to the existing organisation of disaster management in Bangladesh. It examines how the CBACs would be sustained locally without colliding with the present system of government. The main objective of this is to identify how the CBACs could act independently as per local demands, without any conflict with the existing system, in order to ensure sustainable adaptation in future. To achieve these objectives the author conducted interviews with key informants at both local and national levels, and also conducted eight participatory rapid appraisal sessions at eight coastal communities. The author finds that severe corruption is impeding the existing system of relief and rehabilitation at community levels. The paper emphasises that the government of Bangladesh urgently needs to formulate a national adaptation policy, and that within that policy the concept of CBACs at community level should be prioritised. This would provide the government with guidelines for the use, at community level, of adaptation funds from developed countries in order to reduce future vulnerability in Bangladesh.     

Post-Sidr public housing assistance in Bangladesh: a case study

Housing is not only a structure, but also a process tied up with social, cultural, psychological and economic attributes. Following Cyclone Sidr, the Government of Bangladesh has been using ‘build back better’ as a colloquial slogan to push forward the idea of resilience in post-disaster interventions, especially with regard to rebuilding houses. This paper examines how and whether the idea is reflected through the government's post-Sidr housing project at Gabtola. It problematizes the slogan from the accounts of community participation, local practicalities, culture, weather and potential future risks. Based on eight months of ethnographic fieldwork at Gabtola, this research found that the basic attributes of the ‘build back better’ slogan are absent with regard to the housing scheme's cost efficiency, management, livelihoods, public health aspects and tolerance against a super-cyclone. These findings will provide valuable insights into the problems associated with the implementation of post-cyclone public housing programmes in Bangladesh. Such insights can assist public authorities and other relevant organizations and donor agencies in revising and improving their post-disaster housing programmes in the wake of future disasters.     

About bridges and bonds: community responses to the 2000 floods in Mabalane district, Mozambique

Massive floods hit Mozambique in 2000.1 Many of the affected regions benefited from external aid. This paper investigates how the floods impacted on two communities in the interior of the Limpopo Valley, which did not receive significant assistance during the event and in the immediate aftermath. Drawing on the livelihood approach, it focuses on the role of two types of local resources: knowledge and social capital. The paper shows that the scale of the 2000 floods surpassed the response capacity of these resources and looks at how wealth and gender influenced access by households to the local support mechanisms that enhance survival and recovery. It appears that the floods mainly affected wealthier households, as these more frequently lost houses and cattle. The paper points to the importance of ploughs and cattle for local support mechanisms, which, in turn, most likely reduced the capacities of communities to recover from the disaster.     

Migration as an adaptive strategy to climate variability: a study of the Tonga‐speaking people of Southern Zambia

There is increasing consensus that the effects of extreme weather conditions in the form of drought, flooding and extreme temperature will have increasingly devastating impacts on those who depend on climate‐sensitive resources and ecosystems for their livelihoods. The most affected will be the poor in developing countries who have a low adaptive capacity to climate change due to high poverty levels. Despite these projections, there are, to date, insufficient empirical studies linking the relationship between climate change and migration, particularly in the context of southern Africa. Using field‐based data collected from two study locations in Zambia, this paper examines the complex relationship between extreme weather events and population movement. It is envisaged that the findings presented in this paper will contribute to current discussions on the complex relationship between extreme weather conditions and population movement specifically in the context of sub‐Saharan Africa and other developing countries.     

Emergency drills for agricultural drought response: a case study in Guatemala

Drills are an important element of disaster management, helping to increase preparedness and reduce the risk of real‐time failure. Yet, they are not applied systematically to slow‐onset disasters such as a drought, which causes damage that is not instantly apparent and thus does not solicit immediate action. This case study evaluates how drills inform institutional responses to slow‐onset disasters. It spotlights Guatemala, a country where drought has severe impacts on livelihoods and the food security of small farmers. By implementing part of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food's institutional response plan for drought, it explores how drills can help to detect issues in emergency response and to foster an institutional focus on improvements in preparedness. The results reveal that drills alone do not trigger institutional improvements if unsupported by a wider strategy that seeks to enhance capacities and protocols. These findings are valuable, however, in making problems transparent and in creating the space for discussion.     

中国未来极端降水事件的变化——基于气候变化预估结果的分析

利用区域气候模式PRECIS单向嵌套Hadley气候中心海-气耦合模式HadCM3高分辨率的大气部分HadAM3P,分别进行了气候基准时段(1961—1990年)和2080 s时段(2071—2100年)中国区域各30年时间长度的模拟试验,以分析PRECIS对当代中国区域极端降水事件的模拟能力和SRES B2情景下2080s时段相对于气候基准时段中国区域极端降水事件的可能变化趋势。气候基准时段模拟结果与观测值的对比分析表明:PRECIS能够较好地模拟出中国区域年平均极端降水事件的空间分布特征,但模式模拟的大雨事件和湿日数高值区范围较观测值偏大,对华南地区暴雨事件和日最大降水事件的模拟结果较观测值偏低。SRES B2情景下,2080s时段年平均大雨事件除东北和华南地区外,全国均呈增多趋势。暴雨事件在西部地区以减少为主,而东部地区主要呈增加趋势。年平均日最大降水事件的分布型与大雨事件基本一致。湿日数除华北、西北和青藏高原部分地区外均呈减少趋势。未来长江流域洪涝灾害事件发生的频率将可能增大。     

Effects of the 2008 flood on economic performance and food security in Yemen: a simulation analysis

Extreme weather events such as floods and droughts can have devastating consequences for individual well being and economic development, in particular in poor societies with limited availability of coping mechanisms. Combining a dynamic computable general equilibrium model of the Yemeni economy with a household‐level calorie consumption simulation model, this paper assesses the economy‐wide, agricultural and food security effects of the 2008 tropical storm and flash flood that hit the Hadramout and Al‐Mahrah governorates. The estimation results suggest that agricultural value added, farm household incomes and rural food security deteriorated long term in the flood‐affected areas. Due to economic spillover effects, significant income losses and increases in food insecurity also occurred in areas that were unaffected by flooding. This finding suggests that while most relief efforts are typically concentrated in directly affected areas, future efforts should also consider surrounding areas and indirectly affected people.     

Household adjustment to flood risk: a survey of coastal residents in Texas and Florida,United States

Individual households have increasingly borne responsibility for reducing the adverse impacts of flooding on their property. Little observational research has been conducted, however, at the household level to examine the major factors contributing to the selection of a particular household adjustment. This study addresses the issue by evaluating statistically the factors influencing the adoption of various household flood hazard adjustments. The results indicate that respondents with higher‐value homes or longer housing tenure are more likely to adopt structural and expensive techniques. In addition, the information source and the Community Rating System (CRS) score for the jurisdiction where the household is located have a significant bearing on household adjustment. In contrast, proximity to risk zones and risk perception yield somewhat mixed results or behave counter to assumptions in the literature. The study findings provide insights that will be of value to governments and decision‐makers interested in encouraging homeowners to take protective action given increasing flood risk.     

The effectiveness of forecast-based humanitarian assistance in anticipation of extreme winters: a case study of vulnerable herders in Mongolia

This paper presents evidence relating to a forecast-based cash and non-food item distribution among vulnerable herder households during the 2017–18 dzud (extreme winter) season in Mongolia, and analyses the results of a quasi-experimental study evaluating its impacts. An innovative approach in disaster risk reduction, forecast-based financing (FbF) can have short- and long-term benefits to vulnerable households but remains understudied. The paper contributes information on a multimodal FbF programme offering one-off cash grants and in-kind veterinary kits. The data found significant effects of reduced mortality and increased offspring survival in some types of livestock, and that the timing of FbF assistance is crucial, as reported early assistance correlated to positive outcomes in terms of reduced animal mortality. These findings can be used to design more effective FbF interventions, to understand better the appropriateness of FbF designs, and to use early warnings and early actions to help people prepare and withstand disasters such as dzuds.     

Microfinance institutions and a coastal community's disaster risk reduction,response, and recovery process: a case study of Hatiya,Bangladesh

Several researchers have examined the role of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in poverty alleviation, but the part that they play in disaster risk reduction remains unaddressed. Through an empirical study of Hatiya Island, one of the most vulnerable coastal communities of Bangladesh, this research evaluates perceptions of MFI support for the disaster risk reduction, response, and recovery process. The findings reveal no change in relation to risk reduction and income and occupation aspects for more than one‐half of the clients of MFIs. In addition, only 26 per cent of them have witnessed less damage as a result of being members of MFIs. One can argue, though, that the longer the membership time period the better the disaster preparedness, response, and recovery process. The outcomes of this study could help to guide the current efforts of MFIs to enhance the ability of coastal communities to prepare for and to recover from disasters efficiently and effectively.     

An unforgettable event: a qualitative study of the 1997–98 El Niño in northern Peru

During the 1997–98 El Niño, Tumbes, Peru received 16 times the annual average rainfall. This study explores how Tumbes residents perceived the impact of the El Niño event on basic necessities, transport, health care, jobs and migration. Forty‐five individuals from five rural communities, some of which were isolated from the rest of Tumbes during the event, participated in five focus groups; six of these individuals constructed nutrition diaries. When asked about events in the past 20 years, participants identified the 1997–98 El Niño as a major negative event. The El Niño disaster situation induced a decrease in access to transport and health care and the rise in infectious diseases was swiftly contained. Residents needed more time to rebuild housing; recover agriculture, livestock and income stability; and return to eating sufficient animal protein. Although large‐scale assistance minimized effects of the disaster, residents needed more support. Residents' perspectives on their risk of flooding should be considered in generating effective assistance policies and programmes.     

Adaptation to coastal hazards: the livelihood struggles of a fishing community in Kerala,India

This case study examines the coastal hazard adaptation strategies of a fishing community in a village in Kerala, India. It shows that formal adaptation strategies are highly techno‐centric, costly, and do not take into account the vulnerabilities of the fishing community. Instead, they have contributed to ecological, livelihood, and knowledge uncertainties. The adaptation strategies of the fishing community are a response to these uncertainties. However, they may not lead to the fishing community's recovery from its vulnerability contexts. This case study is primarily qualitative in nature. Data were collected through in‐depth interviews. Insights reveal that when actors with diverse values, interests, knowledge, and power evolve or design their respective adaptation strategies, the resulting interface often aggravates existing uncertainties associated with hazards. Furthermore, the study demonstrates that local discourses on coastal hazards are livelihood‐centric and socially constructed within the struggle of the fishing community to access resources and to acquire the right to development.     

Climate change implications for disaster risk management in Japan: A case study on perceptions of risk management personnel and communities in Saijo city

This paper reviews climate change impacts and the existing disaster risk management system in Japan and offers the results of a structured questionnaire survey of the community leaders and disaster risk management personnel of Saijo city of Japan that assesses their perceptions about dealing with the extreme disasters by the existing disaster risk management systems. This study was inspired by the record number of typhoon landfall that has surprised the local government and communities in 2004. While unearthing the hidden vulnerabilities in cities like Saijo, this event has loosened the confidence of local communities on the disaster risk management systems. From the study, we conclude that the existing disaster risk management systems need further fillip and that the proactive community involvement in disaster risk management is still in nascent stages. Associating with the scientific community, involving the local communities (including the elderly), enhancing the redundancy in disaster risk management systems, inculcating strategic thinking and micro-level planning, conducting vulnerability assessments by considering the special circumstances including resource constraints of small cities and better policy coordination across the administrative hierarchy are some important considerations for dealing with the uncertainty brought by the extreme events.     

Livelihoods,power, and food insecurity: adaptation of social capital portfolios in protracted crises—case study Burundi

The failure of food security and livelihood interventions to adapt to conflict settings remains a key challenge in humanitarian responses to protracted crises. This paper proposes a social capital analysis to address this policy gap, adding a political economy dimension on food security and conflict to the actor‐based livelihood framework. A case study of three hillsides in north Burundi provides an ethnographic basis for this hypothesis. While relying on a theoretical framework in which different combinations of social capital (bonding, bridging, and linking) account for a diverse range of outcomes, the findings offer empirical insights into how social capital portfolios adapt to a protracted crisis. It is argued that these social capital adaptations have the effect of changing livelihood policies, institutions, and processes (PIPs), and clarify the impact of the distribution of power and powerlessness on food security issues. In addition, they represent a solid way of integrating political economy concerns into the livelihood framework.     

Post-flooding disaster crop diversity recovery: a case study of Cowpea in Mozambique

To restore food security to a traditional African cropping system following a sudden loss of seed, genetic diversity must be re-established. This study examines the extent to which Cowpea diversity was reinstated two years after a flood disaster in Gaza Province, Mozambique. The contribution that seed from various sources made to the recovery was assessed using semi-structured interviews and morphological and molecular data. Data suggest that diversity had recovered to some extent yet there was evidence of a narrowing of the genetic base, with fewer rare alleles and differences in the distribution of allele frequencies. Although the main channels for accessing seed after the flood were seed relief and markets, these sources contributed to minimal and different diversity. It appears that diversity was regained primarily through social networking in the form of loans or gifts of seed from friends and relatives. The results of the study are discussed in relation to seed relief approaches.     

A minority group's response to a severe climatic event: a case study of rural Indo-Fijians after Tropical Cyclone Winston in 2016

This paper investigates the impacts of Tropical Cyclone Winston (2016) on rural Indo-Fijians and their response to the devastation. Studies have previously examined how rural communities in Pacific Island countries respond to severe climatic events, arguing that traditional knowledge of the climate, together with indigenous techniques, contribute substantially to recovery from a disaster. Strong communal bonds have also been identified as an influencing factor. Disaster risk reduction frameworks often assume the availability of such knowledge and capital. Yet, little research has been done on how minority groups with limited access to such knowledge and capital cope with disaster-related damage. The current study shows that rural Indo-Fijians responded to the consequences of Tropical Cyclone Winston differently to indigenous Fijians, owing to relatively limited access to traditional awareness of the climate, communal labour sharing, and intra- and/or inter-community networks. The findings point to the necessity to implement a more inclusive disaster risk reduction framework.     

The barriers to environmental sustainability in post‐disaster settings: a case study of transitional shelter implementation in Haiti

Disaster recovery operations that do not account for environmental sustainability (ES) risk exacerbating the impact of the disaster and hindering long‐term recovery efforts. Yet aid agencies do not always consider ES. This research is a case study of the recovery that followed the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. Using timber and concrete procurement as proxies for broader post‐disaster operations, research examined perceptions of ES as well as attempts at and barriers to incorporating it into programming. Identified barriers can be grouped into two categories: (1) prioritisations and perceptions within the disaster response sector that resulted in limited enthusiasm for incorporating ES into programming, and (2) structural and organisational barriers within the disaster response framework that impeded ES attempts and served as a further disincentive to incorporating ES into programming. As a result of those barriers, incorporation of ES was sporadic and inconsistent and often depended on the capacity and motivation of specific implementers.