Community-based Risk Communication Management

Abstract

This book project has been an opportunity to share the plight of the flood-vulnerable communities of Davao City, Philippines. Aside from being a requirement to graduate under the PhD Development Studies program, the major objective is to find ways how the academe can help in alleviating the risks of flooding as a recurring disaster in these areas. As extensive literature on disaster studies examined risk communication and disaster risk management, it has been found to be discussed as separate concerns. These studies emphasize the significant role of risk communication and management at the level of the communities to enhance community preparedness and reduce the risks triggered by disasters like flooding. However, no literature has been found specifically in the area of risk communication management. The study, therefore, aimed to focus on this gap in the literature which integrates risk communication with disaster risk management towards a more integrative approach to risk reduction. Using a convergent parallel mixed method design, the study was conducted utilizing both the qualitative and quantitative approaches in the data collection and analysis guided by the integrated frameworks of the disaster risk management and the social amplification of risk (SARF). The merging of both results in the analysis and interpretation helped identify the convergence or divergence of the findings. Results of the study revealed that the risk reduction strategies can be further enhanced through a risk communication management using a localized and participatory approach in the proper knowledge transfer of flood risk communication among the stakeholders involved, placing the community as the central actor for amplification. This book highlights the proposed community-based flood-risk communication management (CBFRCM) framework as a modification of the SARF labeled as the Flood Risk Amplification Communication Theory (FRACT) as an alternative framework. The application of the theory necessitates the enhancement of risk communication management towards the resilience of the flood-vulnerable communities, specifically in the context of Davao City, Philippines. The authors wish to share these findings and encourage that the proposed theory be used in other contexts and optimize the role of risk communication as part of the risk reduction approaches of risk managers and policy makers on disaster management.