Bam 2003 earthquake disaster: On the earthquake risk perception, resilience and earthquake culture – Cultural beliefs and cultural landscape of Qanats, gardens of Khorma trees and Argh-e Bam

Abstract

This paper investigates how the cultural landscape and cultural beliefs impacted communities’ earthquake risk perception and resilience in Bam, Iran, prior to the large earthquake disaster in 2003. Three cultural elements of the Bam’s cultural landscape particularly emerged through the survivors’ narratives: Qanats, gardens of Khorma trees and Arg-e Bam. The cultural landscape of Bam and the associated cultural beliefs had a negative impact on local communities’ earthquake risk perception and earthquake disaster preparedness. This was added to a low estimated seismic risk, no earthquake disaster mitigation measures and no disaster management before the Bam 2003 earthquake. But, Bam’s cultural landscape and cultural beliefs had also their positive contributions to the local communities’ resilience – before and after the 2003 earthquake – by supporting the existence of a culture of coping and adaptation to disasters or a “culture of resilience” to disasters. Moreover, the potential value of the cultural landscape and cultural beliefs towards building an “earthquake culture” needs to be valued and integrated within the efforts for the disaster risk reduction. These findings together with few practical recommendations are added to the earthquake disasters risk reduction’s lessons, community-based approach earthquake disaster risk reduction and to the sustainable efforts to enhance the earthquake disaster resilience in Iran.