Disasters最新文献

Disasters and conflicts are both widely recognised as ‘drivers’ of internal displacement. Yet, despite a growing body of research and policy, there has been little consideration to date of how the different features of each ‘context’ shape the micro-level dynamics of internal displacement. Where and why are these dynamics similar across the two contexts and how do they differ? This paper draws on general concepts from the disaster field to develop a comparative analytical model of internal displacement dynamics in the disaster and conflict contexts. Based on inferences from the patchy extant data across the two contexts, it identifies and explains points of convergence and divergence between internal displacement dynamics in both the disaster and conflict contexts. This ‘contextual’ model of the micro-level dynamics of internal displacement has implications for academic debates, as well as for policy and practice, in the disaster, conflict, peace, climate change, and forced migration/displacement fields.

Space is a feature of all disasters, and it is through decisions on how space is developed, used, and reproduced that disasters manifest themselves. Critical urban theory sees urban space—cities—as an arena of contestation expressed through the relationship between people, power, and the built environment. Cities allow for an unpacking of this process of contestation through the interpretation of various temporal, spatial, social, and physical elements that together create complex issues and ‘wicked problems’. In these urban spaces in all their complexity, disasters reveal both the worst injustices and inequalities present in a society. By drawing on three well-known cases—Hurricane Katrina in 2010; the Haiti earthquake in 2010; and the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami in 2011—this paper not only explores the opportunities that critical urban theory presents for gaining a deeper understanding of disaster risk creation, but also it encourages disaster scholars to engage with it.

A large-scale exchange of information between media across national borders is frequently observed when a worldwide public health emergency occurs. This study investigated the global news citation network in the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic by analysing the network structure at different levels to identify important nodes and the relationships among news organisations. The results show that COVID-19-related international news flow had a complex and unequal pattern, with a few countries and media outlets occupying a prominent place in the network and three media groups played key but different roles in disseminating the news. It was jointly influenced by national traits, the relatedness between countries, and the pandemic emergency with public health risks. From a global perspective, the media of the United States, mainland China, and the United Kingdom played the most important parts in collaboration within the world media system in the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As rural areas in developing countries are generally more vulnerable to disasters triggered by natural hazards than urban areas, it has become critical to strengthen rural community disaster resilience (CDR) to reduce the risks. Using follow-up interviews, surveys, and secondary data, this study reviewed the Safe Rural Community (SRC) programme implemented by the One Foundation, a Chinese civilian non-governmental organisation (NGO), after the 2013 Lushan earthquake in China. The study focused on five key resilience aspects: networks; infrastructure; institutions; capacity; and culture. It found that the SRC programme successfully developed five standardised, systematic, interrelated, and practical elements: localised volunteer rescue teams; adequate emergency supplies; practical disaster reduction training; community emergency plans; and regular emergency rescue drills. Third-party evaluations and a 2022 Lushan earthquake test revealed that this NGO-led, community-based, and team-oriented initiative had been effective. Consequently, the study provides some guidance for the development of effective CDR programmes in rural communities in developing countries.

Disaster corruption is a vexing problem, damaging state legitimacy and exacerbating human suffering. Mexico has a history of both major disasters and persistently high levels of corruption. A magnitude 7.1 earthquake in 2017 provided an opportunity to study change over time in expectations and tolerance of corruption in disaster relief. Twenty years earlier, Mexico City residents expected, on average, essentially three out of 10 hypothetical trucks loaded with humanitarian assistance to be lost to corruption but expressed near zero tolerance of such conduct. By 2018–19, Mexico City residents expected more than one-half of all relief, six out of 10 trucks, to be stolen, and could tolerate three out of 10 trucks being pilfered. Similar results were found at the national level. Hence, Mexicans appear to be giving up on the state. Addressing corruption in disaster risk reduction and humanitarian relief specifically might provide a template for improving public trust across other state institutions.

Extreme weather events are increasing in frequency and severity owing to climate change. Individual-level behavioural responses—notably, disaster preparedness and community helping actions (such as donating and volunteering)—supplement government efforts to respond to such phenomena, but rarely have they been explored together. Using data from a survey administered soon after the 2020 Oregon wildfires, this paper compares a range of socio-demographic, experiential, attitudinal, and communication-related factors associated with these two individual-level behavioural responses. Findings indicate that respondents who reported experiencing a higher degree of harm and heightened concern about climate change after the wildfires were more likely to report disaster preparedness and community helping actions. Those who reported more frequent informal discussions about the wildfires, consulting more sources to seek information on them, and higher percentages of friends, neighbours, and community members taking actions to prepare for future wildfires also reported more disaster preparedness and community helping actions. Disaster preparedness actions were also positively associated with seeking information from formal/official sources.

Refugee integration is one of the main global challenges of the present, at a time when the corporate sector is regarded as a key actor in multi-stakeholder partnerships through the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This paper examines its role as a partner of the state in addressing the movement of refugees into Germany from 2015 onwards. Based on interview data and informal conversations with members of Wir Zusammen, an integration initiative, and supplemented by a review of business reports and media documentation, it discusses the multifaceted engagements by parts of the corporate sector in Germany with refugee integration. These are analysed as ‘thin’ and ‘thick’, and as following different institutional logics. The paper adds to understanding of the political dimensions of corporate responses, their potential to challenge the status quo, and their pitfalls. Ultimately, it argues that corporate involvement with humanitarian and development challenges works best when embedded locally and is context specific.

Violence against humanitarians is a commonplace phenomenon in contemporary armed conflict. This paper examines how the manipulation of international legal principles for political or military purposes, a practice known as ‘lawfare’, impacts humanitarian security in conflict-affected areas. Drawing on a case study of the Syrian conflict (2011–), it finds that lawfare has been used to legitimate systematic civilian targeting by pro-government forces and to delegitimise the delivery of aid to opposition-held areas of the country. Efforts to use legal measures to promote civilian welfare—by way of sanctions or demands for cross-border humanitarian access—have been taken as evidence of Western attempts to politicise humanitarian considerations and international law. In practice, this has meant increased security risks for aid workers and impunity for those implicated in the violence. The paper concludes by calling for more critical research on lawfare and politicisation of international law as part and parcel of civilian protection in conflict-affected areas.

This paper examines, both theoretically and empirically, the relationship between rapid-onset disasters and women's economic freedom. Rapid-onset disasters create difficulties for all involved, but without proper discussion of and changes to women's economic status in society, they will continue to suffer disproportionately. The study answers the following question: ‘how do disasters impact women's economic empowerment?‘. It argues that there are underlying factors contributing to unequal economic opportunities that are exacerbated by disasters. Current literature discusses how disasters affect women's economic and political rights, but often it does not account for variables that may not have been captured in contemporary indices. The paper assesses women's burden of care, restrictions on mobility, formal economic employment, and access to recovery resources with respect to their economic empowerment. And it analyses 180 countries and territories that experienced disasters between 1981 and 2019 to uncover their effects on women's economic freedom. This research could facilitate and help to alter the overall narrative on women's empowerment.

Amartya Sen, the economist and philosopher, defines entitlement as command over resources that permits a household to have access to essential goods and services to sustain life within legal and established social norms and practices. Entitlement failure occurs when a household's command over all available combinations of resources does not ensure sufficient provisions of food to avoid starvation. This paper provides an overview of the literature on causal relations between civil war and household entitlements. It suggests a conceptual framework for empirically analysing the ramifications of armed political conflict on household entitlements. In addition, it develops a composite index as a tool to investigate the effect of civil war on household entitlements and to guide policy in the context of conflict-related international humanitarian interventions. The paper's key contribution is to suggest an empirical framework for quantitative measurement of the impact of civil war on household entitlements and to improve targeting criteria in post-conflict rehabilitation efforts.