The role of faith-based institutions in urban disaster risk reduction for immigrant communities

Abstract

Drawing on interviews with Cambodian and Thai communities in Auckland, New Zealand, this paper examines the role of Buddhist temples in disaster preparedness, response and recovery and the hindrances to optimising this role. We find that among the communities, Buddhist temples are identified as sites of community organisation and information dissemination and would likely serve as important sites for seeking assistance during a major crisis. We thus argue that Buddhist temples have a role to assist their members to prepare for, respond to and recover from a major disaster. This is possible because these institutions are faith-bonded centres for regular congregations, reciprocity, charity and cultural attachment. However, their bridging and linking social capital, which is pivotal for performing this role, may be impeded by language barriers, generational divides, member exclusivity, personal conflicts and political divisions. We conclude that the role of faith-based institutions in disaster risk reduction in urban immigrant communities in the Global North should be examined in a more nuanced manner, particularly regarding their internal and external ruptures. A good understanding of these complexities would enable interventions to manoeuvre through the tensions and cater for diverse interests and values of affected communities.