Sustainable Natural Hazard Management in Alpine Environments
Sustainable Natural Hazard Management in Alpine Environments

Author: Eric Veulliet

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2009-10-03

Total Pages: 410

ISBN-13: 364203229X

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In the recent past a marked increase of the damages caused by natural hazard processes has been documented, for example by the Munich Re-Insurance. On a regional scale, a similar development can be observed in mountain regions such as the Alps, where it is particularly a rise in flood events that has caused the maximum amount of economic damage. Three major aspects may help to explain this phenomenon: The changing frequency-magnitude relationship of the natural hazard processes, the multiplication of the damage potential due to the socio-economic change, and the non-adequate way of coping with the changing risk by the official authorities. As a consequence, this book tries to address key questions related to these developments and to give answers to these problems. Question 1: How can the strategies for coping with the rise in extreme flooding be improved? Question 2: How can the damage potential and other socio-economic aspects be quantified? Question 3: How can new computer based technologies contribute to minimizing the risks related to alpine natural hazards? An initial chapter gives an overview of the global change aspects of natural hazards and their related risks. While three chapters outline answers to question 1, four chapters discuss question 2. Five chapters give examples of new technologies.

Natural Disasters and Sustainable Development
Natural Disasters and Sustainable Development

Author: Riccardo Casale

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2013-06-29

Total Pages: 428

ISBN-13: 366208905X

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Natural disasters are a clear example of people living in conflict with the environment. Disasters cause human, social and environmental losses and, sometimes, even threaten geopolitical stability, as in many less developed countries. They are also a problem of global concern, even when damage is local: the mechanisms are often dependent on global meteoro-climatic circulation. Losses frequently affect several countries, as could be seen in the floods in central Europe in 2002. It is obvious that there is a clear need for a new approach, capable of incorporating the prevention of natural disasters, whilst mitigating strategies within the cycle of sustainable development. There are no thematic disciplines or political boundaries limitating initiatives: the integration of data providers, data users/information providers and information users, in a global and holistic manner, is the desired outcome of the new frontier. This book falls into this new category: multidisciplinary interventions and socio-economic point of views are the basic inputs for a changing science, implementing sustainable development for the benefit of citizens and society. It is comprised of studies and investigations which explain natural processes and modelling, as well as assessing hazards and risks and is rounded of with suggestions for sustainable development. Thus reflecting the best results of research on this topic funded by the European Commission.

Sustainability in the Twenty-First Century
Sustainability in the Twenty-First Century

Author: Mohan Munasinghe

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2019-05-23

Total Pages: 689

ISBN-13: 1108404154

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Provides a rigorous analysis of sustainable development that includes practical, policy-relevant, global case studies, explained concisely and clearly.

Climate Change and Natural Disasters
Climate Change and Natural Disasters

Author: Vinod Thomas

Publisher: Transaction Publishers

Published: 2017-01-31

Total Pages: 187

ISBN-13: 1412864526

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The start of the new millennium will be remembered for deadly climate-related disasters—the great floods in Thailand in 2011, Super Storm Sandy in the United States in 2012, and Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines in 2013, to name a few. In 2014, 17.5 million people were displaced by climate-related disasters, ten times more than the 1.7 million displaced by geophysical hazards. What is causing the increase in natural disasters and what effect does it have on the economy? Climate Change and Natural Disasters sends three messages: human-made factors exert a growing influence on climate-related disasters; because of the link to anthropogenic factors, there is a pressing need for climate mitigation; and prevention, including climate adaptation, ought not to be viewed as a cost to economic growth but as an investment. Ultimately, attention to climate-related disasters, arguably the most tangible manifestation of global warming, may help mobilize broader climate action. It can also be instrumental in transitioning to a path of low-carbon, green growth, improving disaster resilience, improving natural resource use, and caring for the urban environment. Vinod Thomas proposes that economic growth will become sustainable only if governments, political actors, and local communities combine natural disaster prevention and controlling climate change into national growth strategies. When considering all types of capital, particularly human capital, climate action can drive economic growth, rather than hinder it.

Sustainable Development and Disaster Risk Reduction
Sustainable Development and Disaster Risk Reduction

Author: Juha I. Uitto

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2015-11-05

Total Pages: 289

ISBN-13: 443155078X

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This book focuses on exploring the linkages between natural disasters and sustainable development at the global, regional, and national levels. Disasters and development are closely related, yet the disciplinary silos prevail and there is little communication and cooperation between the disaster management, environment, and development communities. One catastrophic event, such as an earthquake, tsunami, or cyclone, can destroy infrastructure, people’s lives and livelihoods, and set back development. Similarly, slow onset disasters—often associated with global climate change—pose threats to development, livelihoods, food security, and long-term sustainable development. This book is uniquely aimed at bridging the gaps between the environmental, development, and disaster management communities. It traces the evolution of concepts and practice and highlights the linkages between natural disasters and sustainable development in key sectors, including food security, health, and water. The book includes case studies from the field highlighting the complex issues that challenge sustainable development and disaster risk management in practice. It draws policy conclusions for the global community based on state-of-the art knowledge from research and practice. The primary target groups for the book are researchers, including graduate students, in the fields of environment and sustainable development, geography, disaster risk reduction, and climate change studies. The second target group comprises practitioners and policymakers working in national and international organizations, the private sector, and civil society.

Identifying Emerging Issues in Disaster Risk Reduction, Migration, Climate Change and Sustainable Development
Identifying Emerging Issues in Disaster Risk Reduction, Migration, Climate Change and Sustainable Development

Author: Karen Sudmeier-Rieux

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2016-08-29

Total Pages: 293

ISBN-13: 3319338803

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The goal of this book is to explore disaster risk reduction (DRR), migration, climate change adaptation (CCA) and sustainable development linkages from a number of different geographical, social and natural science angles. Well-known scientists and practitioners present different perspectives regarding these inter-linkages from around the world, with theoretical discussions as well as field observations. This publication contributes in particular to the discussion on the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR) 2015-2030 and the debate about how to improve DRR, including CCA, policies and practices, taking into account migration processes from a large perspective where both natural and social factors are crucial and mutually “alloyed”. Some authors see the SFDRR as a positive step forward in terms of embracing a multitude of issues, others doubting that the agreement will lead to much concrete action toward real action on the ground. This book is a timely contribution for researchers, students and policy makers in the fields of environment, human geography, migration, disaster and climate change studies who seek a more comprehensive grasp of contemporary development issues.

Ecosystem-Based Disaster Risk Reduction and Adaptation in Practice
Ecosystem-Based Disaster Risk Reduction and Adaptation in Practice

Author: Fabrice G. Renaud

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2016-08-19

Total Pages: 605

ISBN-13: 3319436333

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This book is a compilation of recent developments in the field of ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction and climate change adaption (Eco-DRR/CCA) globally. It provides further evidence that ecosystem-based approaches make economic sense, and showcases how research has progressively filled knowledge gaps about translating this concept into practice. It presents a number of methods, and tools that illustrate how Eco-DRR/CCA has been applied for various ecosystems and hazard contexts around the world. It also discusses how innovative institutional arrangements and policies are shaping the field of Eco-DRR/CCA. The book is of relevance to scientists, practitioners, policy-makers and students in the field of ecosystem management for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation.

Geomorphological Hazards and Disaster Prevention
Geomorphological Hazards and Disaster Prevention

Author: Irasema Alcántara

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2010-03-04

Total Pages: 305

ISBN-13: 0521769256

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A state-of-the-art assessment of how geomorphology contributes to the comprehension, mapping and modelling of hazardous Earth surface processes.

Measuring Vulnerability to Natural Hazards
Measuring Vulnerability to Natural Hazards

Author: Birkmann

Publisher: The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI)

Published: 2007-01-01

Total Pages: 582

ISBN-13: 9788179931226

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Measuring Vulnerability to Natural Hazards presents a broad range of current approaches to measuring vulnerability. It provides a comprehensive overview of different concepts at the global, regional, national, and local levels, and explores various schools of thought. More than 40 distinguished academics and practitioners analyse quantitative and qualitative approaches, and examine their strengths and limitations. This book contains concrete experiences and examples from Africa, Asia, the Americas and Europe to illustrate the theoretical analyses.The authors provide answers to some of the key questions on how to measure vulnerability and they draw attention to issues with insufficient coverage, such as the environmental and institutional dimensions of vulnerability and methods to combine different methodologies.This book is a unique compilation of state-of-the-art vulnerability assessment and is essential reading for academics, students, policy makers, practitioners, and anybody else interested in understanding the fundamentals of measuring vulnerability. It is a critical review that provides important conclusions which can serve as an orientation for future research towards more disaster resilient communities.

At Risk
At Risk

Author: Piers Blaikie

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2014-01-21

Total Pages: 492

ISBN-13: 1134528612

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The term 'natural disaster' is often used to refer to natural events such as earthquakes, hurricanes or floods. However, the phrase 'natural disaster' suggests an uncritical acceptance of a deeply engrained ideological and cultural myth. At Risk questions this myth and argues that extreme natural events are not disasters until a vulnerable group of people is exposed. The updated new edition confronts a further ten years of ever more expensive and deadly disasters and discusses disaster not as an aberration, but as a signal failure of mainstream 'development'. Two analytical models are provided as tools for understanding vulnerability. One links remote and distant 'root causes' to 'unsafe conditions' in a 'progression of vulnerability'. The other uses the concepts of 'access' and 'livelihood' to understand why some households are more vulnerable than others. Examining key natural events and incorporating strategies to create a safer world, this revised edition is an important resource for those involved in the fields of environment and development studies.