Natural disasters are becoming increasingly frequent and complex in nature due to the intersection between variables including, but not limited to, increased population centres, the influence of climate change, and growing economic or social disparities. Their impacts are not only measured in immediate physical damage, loss of life and economic loss, but also in long-term disruptions to communities, infrastructure, and the day to day lives of those affected, sometimes for years afterwards. In 2024 alone, countries such as Spain and the USA requested record totals of funding numbering billions of dollars to combat natural disasters and their myriad effects.
Many geographical areas have been dealing with natural disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes and tsunamis for centuries and have long-entrenched policies for mitigation and management. However, more modern considerations such as ensuring adequate aid for people with physical or mental disadvantages and catering for issues such as economic disparity have added extra layers of complexity to existing strategies. Additionally, the changing weather patterns and extreme weather events instigated by climate change are now seeing previously untroubled territories having to invest vast amount of resources to develop and instigate new policy and contingencies in order to meet the demands of increasingly frequent events such as heatwaves, floods and violent weather.
This Collection seeks research that examines how societies anticipate, prepare for, and respond to disasters, and how governmental policies shape – and are shaped by – existing or outdated strategies, new threats, and health, gender or racial inequalities.
Original research and reviews are invited on a range of themes, including but not limited to:
- Knowledge and improvement of existing disaster preparedness frameworks
- Suggestions for new strategies for mitigation and management of emerging at-risk areas
- Indigenous knowledge and community-led preparedness
- Financial considerations and resource allocation, including improper usage and corruption
- Policy analysis of national and international disaster management strategies
- Communication, early warning systems and influencing public perception of disaster risk
- Gender, race, disability and class in disaster vulnerability and planning
- Short term and long term recovery policies
Submissions that examine a specific example of a natural disaster without focusing on mitigation or management policy will be considered to be out of scope for this Collection.
Editors
This Collection supports and amplifies research related to SDG 10 – Reduced Inequalities and SDG 13 – Climate Action.
For more details refer here
