Disaster-affected Communities Research Articles

Rural Natural Disaster Stress: A Survey of Community Resource Use and Effect.

This study identified rural community experiences and preferences related to available resources and their effects on stress following tornadoes and floods. The Rural Natural Disaster Stress and Recovery survey was distributed from December 2021 to February 2022 in rural disaster-affected communities. Within the analysis sample (N = 159) of self-selected participants representing both agricultural and non-agricultural occupations, 125 responded to the Resource Use and Effect survey component that evaluated the effects of 22 resources on post-disaster stress. Additional qualitative questions provided further data. The most frequently used resources post-disaster were found to be talking about the event (98.3%), friends and neighbors (97.6%) and family (97.6%). Using a derived Impact per Use score, groups from the neighboring community and personal faith activities most often reduced stress. Resources that increased stress were identified as FEMA or other government organizations; repairing, replacing, or rebuilding property; and following news or social media. Participants reported help from their community (35.8%) or things they did for themselves (31.2%) most effectively decreased disaster stress. Family, friends, faith, neighbors, and community were top choices to decrease stress in a future disaster. Rural residents identified available resources for reducing disaster stress, but some common post-disaster activities were found to increase stress. Rural emergency management should adapt response and recovery plans and activities to leverage readily accessible people, groups, and activities to mitigate negative mental and emotional health effects.

Context-Driven Creative Workshop: Celebrating Locality in Disaster-Affected Communities

Context-Driven Creative Workshop: Celebrating Locality in Disaster-Affected Communities

Exploring Resilience: A Virtual Tour of Disaster-Affected Communities through Digital Photo Stories

This study analyzes and explores disaster village tourism and life situation communication, clarifies the form and virtual scenarios, determines building blocks, and suggests sufficient functional requirements to develop virtual tourism scenarios. The questionnaire survey method is direct and effective for identifying questions; the case analysis method surveys the situation of the disaster village tourist attraction; and the theoretical analysis method discusses theories related to Digital Photo Book. The results indicate that tourists are interested in using Digital Photo Book as an information guide. Digital Photo Book's contribution to tourist information is more significant than conventional information, with 77% of tourists believing that the information provided greatly influenced their interest in the future. 70% of respondents stated that the impact of the information provided reached a satisfactory level. Digital Photo Book is more easily accepted and appreciated by tourists and is more suitable to be applied globally in the aspect of tourism, especially in areas with limited access.

Islamic faith-based organisations and their role in building social capital for post-disaster recovery in Indonesia.

This paper investigates the role of Islamic faith-based organisations (FBOs) in Indonesia and examines the way in which their disaster recovery aid can be successful or less successful depending on social capital formation in communities affected by a disaster. The paper argues that Islamic FBOs play a prominent role in disaster-affected communities by building new social capital or strengthening existing social capital. Failure to do so may affect a community's recovery and its long-term resilience. Applying a framework that considers three types of social capital-bonding, bridging, and linking-from a comparative perspective, the paper discusses two cases of disaster recovery: one following the earthquake that struck Aceh in 2013; and the other after the Mount Kelud volcanic eruptions in East Java in 2014. In both instances, the findings highlight the importance of the village facilitator, cultural sensitivity, and understanding of local indigenous and religious practices for successful disaster recovery.

A Community Mental Health Integrated Disaster Preparedness Intervention for Bushfire Recovery in Rural Australian Communities: Protocol for a Multimethods Feasibility and Acceptability Pilot Study.

Natural hazards are increasing in frequency and intensity due to climate change. Many of these natural disasters cannot be prevented; what may be reduced is the extent of the risk and negative impact on people and property. Research indicates that the 2019-2020 bushfires in Australia (also known as the "Black Summer Bushfires") resulted in significant psychological distress among Australians both directly and indirectly exposed to the fires. Previous intervention research suggests that communities impacted by natural hazards (eg, earthquakes, hurricanes, and floods) can benefit from interventions that integrate mental health and social support components within disaster preparedness frameworks. Research suggests that disaster-affected communities often prefer the support of community leaders, local services, and preexisting relationships over external supports, highlighting that community-based interventions, where knowledge stays within the local community, are highly beneficial. The Community-Based Disaster Mental Health Intervention (CBDMHI) is an evidence-based approach that aims to increase disaster preparedness, resilience, social cohesion, and social support (disaster-related help-seeking), and decrease mental health symptoms, such as depression and anxiety. This research aims to gain insight into rural Australian's recovery needs post natural hazards, and to enhance community resilience in advance of future fires. Specifically, this research aims to adapt the CBDMHI for the rural Australian context and for bushfires and second, to assess the acceptability and feasibility of the adapted CBDMHI in a rural Australian community. Phase 1 consists of qualitative interviews (individual or dyads) with members of the target bushfire-affected rural community. Analysis of these data will include identifying themes related to disaster preparedness, social cohesion, and mental health, which will inform the adaptation. An initial consultation phase is a key component of the adaptation process and, therefore, phase 2 will involve additional discussion with key stakeholders and members of the community to further guide adaptation of the CBDMHI to specific community needs, building on phase 1 inputs. Phase 3 includes identifying and training local community leaders in the adapted intervention. Following this, leaders will co-deliver the intervention. The acceptability and feasibility of the adapted CBDMHI within the community will be evaluated by questionnaires and semistructured interviews. Effectiveness will be evaluated by quantifying psychological distress, resilience, community cohesion, psychological preparedness, and help-seeking intentions. This study has received institutional review board approval and commenced phase 1 recruitment in October 2022. The study will identify if the adapted CBDMHI is viable and acceptable within a village in the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia. These findings will inform future scale-up in the broader rural Australian context. If this intervention is well received, the CBDMHI may be valuable for future disaster recovery and preparedness efforts in rural Australia. These findings may inform future scale-up in the broader rural Australian context. DERR1-10.2196/53454.

Natural disaster resilience and the creative arts: A case study from rural Australia

Given the increased frequency and severity of extreme climate events such as bushfires, innovative approaches to support community resilience are urgently needed. Amongst the variety of ways that communities and service providers are responding to natural disasters, creative arts interventions represent an inclusive and effective approach to supporting community resilience. Analysing a case study from rural Queensland, Australia, this article delineates the features of arts and creativity that support resilience-building in communities. It identifies three transferrable principles and arts-based processes which may be embedded into future projects to support disaster-affected communities to creatively nurture and articulate resilience.

Social capital of disaster-affected communities in post-disaster conditions: A case study of the Cianjur Earthquake, West Java, Indonesia, 2022

This study explores the conditions of social capital on the survivors of the 2022 earthquake in Cianjur, Indonesia. Cibulakan Village, Cugenang Sub-district, Cianjur was chosen for this study because it was one of the most severely affected villages by the earthquake with the highest number of fatalities in Cianjur Regency. This study discusses three forms of social capital: bonding, bridging and linking and their conditions in Cibulakan Village after the earthquake. The research used a qualitative approach and method. The data analysis process uses an interactive analysis model by Miles which divides the steps of data analysis into several parts: data collection, data condensation through open coding, axial coding and selective coding, data display and conclusion. The results showed that the earthquake triggered changes in bonding, bridging and linking social capital in both positive and negative directions. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to the condition and role of social capital in post-disaster communities, given that some forms of social capital lead to positive post-disaster and can be utilized after a disaster. The government and other stakeholders should consider the role of social capital in disaster-affected communities during the emergency response and recovery process to support more sustainable recovery in communities.

Examining the link between marginality and differential climate resilience among disaster-affected communities in southwestern Bangladesh

ABSTRACT This article uses a case study of one of Bangladesh’s most disaster-prone subdistricts to examine the role of marginality in determining differential climate resilience. It used a quantitative research design and a household questionnaire survey to acquire data. In order to determine the contributing factors and quantify the magnitude of the influence, ordinal logistic regression is utilized in conjunction with principal component analysis (PCA). The AHP-based indexing approach was used to quantify the degree of resilience and marginality. Results revealed a complex link between marginality and resilience in disaster-affected areas of Southwest Bangladesh. They exhibit four distinct connections, which is impressive because it demonstrates how resilient marginalized households can be and how the opposite is true. It also identifies a lack of access to the formal institutional network and support, restricted access to social support networks, exclusion from housing and public services, restricted freedom of choice networks, and lack of access to financial assets) that have a significant impact on differential resilience. Local governments or policymakers can implement several recommendations by emphasizing the factors that affect various levels of resilience, such as boosting institutional and monetary support, fortifying social networks, improving essential services, and creating livelihood opportunities.

The publicness of voluntary action during crisis: From resilience mechanisms to resistance tactics

ABSTRACT Although the volunteerism approach is regarded as a helpful strategy, critical concerns arise regarding the dynamics of vulnerability and the publicness of disaster-affected communities’ collective action. This study aims to examine the publicness meaning of public interest and its function in enhancing resilience capacity through voluntary action. Using a hermeneutic approach, this study investigates the collective action of “Canthelan” food sharing within the environmental structure of the Special Region of Yogyakarta, Indonesia, during the COVID-19 outbreak. The findings indicate that voluntary action in the context of “Canthelan” is a response to crises accumulated by the pandemic’s socioeconomic threat, the emergence of societal vulnerabilities, and the failure of social protection policies. Voluntary action functions as an alternative resilience mechanism for vulnerable and disadvantaged communities by providing access to and control over food resources in an egalitarian interaction space. Simultaneously, the constructed mechanisms become structurally aggregated knowledge narratives and manifestations of contestation concerning the development of resilience. Voluntary action mechanisms contribute to the development of social resilience through the mediation process, which is a process of mutual support and interaction to face and adapt to threats. However, the deterministic view of power authority hinders the transformative capacity of voluntary action.

Significance of critical infrastructure development in post-disaster resettlement in Sri Lanka

Post-Disaster Resettlement (PDR) is one of the most important, time and cost-consuming disaster management activity following a catastrophic event. Restoration of human lifestyle while safeguarding the victims by providing permanent houses and integrating them with critical infrastructures are essential in the PDR context. The better accessibility to critical infrastructures enhances the living conditions of disaster-affected community and influences the success of PDR projects. However, the success of PDR projects in Sri Lanka, is not at a sufficient level due to lack of concentration provided on the critical infrastructure needs of the resettled community. Thus, the study is focused on emphasizing the significance of critical infrastructure to enhance the success of PDR projects in Sri Lanka. The need of developing critical infrastructure was broadly investigated through the literature review. Subsequently, survey and case study research strategies were adopted to proceed with the research following the qualitative research approach. Empirical evidence was gathered in two phases. Preliminary expert interviews under Phase I and key-informant interviews under Phase II (case studies) were used as the data collection methods. Interviews in both phases were conducted in a semi-structured format. The data analysis was carried out through manual content analysis. The outcomes of the study revealed that provision of both physical and social critical infrastructure have an equal importance for the physical function and mental well-being of the disaster-affected community, respectively. However, to achieve the success in PDR projects, critical infrastructure development must be carried out considering the factors such as proper site selection criteria, previous livelihood of the people and their requirements, resilient features, and threshold levels.

Emergency Architecture Towards Temporary Educational Facilities for Children of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Northern Syria

Internal displacement, often triggered by conflict or natural disasters, has left millions worldwide seeking refuge in temporary settlements. These camps, while providing essential necessities, face design challenges in balancing longevity and the freedom of movement for displaced individuals. Prolonged displacement, particularly for children, raises concerns about educational continuity and social cohesion. This paper explores the concept of fast-deployable shelters for IDPs using recycled maritime containers. The research stems from the observation of a large number of refugee children in all age groups requiring adequate spaces for learning, working, and social interaction. Inspired by the work of the Molham volunteer team, which aids disaster-affected communities, the study aims to propose an affordable and sustainable solution for IDP housing and social spaces. The research employs a mixed-methods approach, combining analysis of case studies and qualitative feedback from IDPs in northern Syria. This approach enables comprehensive insights into the design requirements and social needs of IDPs. The paper proposes a prototype boarding school unit constructed from recycled shipping containers. This design offers several advantages: Fast deployment allows for rapid construction, minimizing disruption to education. Provide an environmentally friendly and cost-effective solution. The modular design allows for flexibility in layout and expansion, catering to varying needs and site conditions. The design incorporates communal spaces to foster social cohesion and promote a sense of normalcy among IDPs. The proposed prototype demonstrates the potential of recycled maritime containers to provide fast-deployable, sustainable, and socially inclusive shelters for IDPs, particularly children.

Pandemic impacts and experiences after disaster in Australia: qualitative study of compound impacts following the Black Summer bushfires.

The first cases of the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia were recorded in January 2020, which was during the 'Black Summer' bushfires of 2019-20 and prior to additional disasters in some regions. Few studies have considered the compound impact of disasters and the pandemic. To improve understanding of the impact on mental health and well-being of the pandemic in disaster-affected communities. We conducted semi-structured interviews (n = 18) with community members and online focus groups (n = 31) with help providers from three regions of rural Australia affected by bushfires and the pandemic. Six themes were produced: (a) 'Pulling together, pulling apart', describing experiences after bushfires and prior to impacts of the pandemic; (b) 'Disruption of the 'normal response', encompassing changes to post-disaster recovery processes attributed to the pandemic; (c) 'Escalating tensions and division in the community', describing impacts on relationships; (d) 'Everywhere you turn you get a slap in the face', acknowledging impacts of bureaucratic 'red tape'; (e) 'There are layers of trauma', highlighting intersecting traumas and pre-existing vulnerabilities; and (f) 'Where does the help come from when we can't do it?', encompassing difficulties accessing services and impacts on the helping workforce. This study furthers our understanding of compound disasters and situates pandemic impacts in relation to processes of adjustment and recovery from bushfires. It highlights the need for long-term approaches to resilience and recovery, investment in social infrastructure, multi-component approaches to workforce issues, and strategies to increase mental health support and pathways across services.

Boosting Entrepreneurial Motivation Through Community Service Programs for Disaster-Affected Communities In Pasigala

Disasters only bring impacts, particularly on the economic aspects of communities. All aspects, both directly and indirectly, ultimately lead to the loss of income potential for the community as a livelihood. Therefore, one of the efforts to address these issues, especially for household economies, is to cultivate entrepreneurial spirit through community engagement activities in the form of Islamic entrepreneurship education. This activity aims to increase entrepreneurial interest among disaster-affected communities. The activity was carried out at Huntap Duyu with 50 participants in an offline session at the Huntap Duyu Mosque. The method used was through presentations and discussions with the participants. The activity's outcome is the community's increased interest in entrepreneurship to enhance household economic self-reliance.

Sharia Fintech Education for Disaster-Affected Communities in Palu City

Amidst the rampant development of conventional fintech technology, Islamic fintech has emerged as an innovation combining Islamic finance principles with technological advancements. Islamic fintech is a financial solution that enables Muslims to conduct their daily economic activities following Sharia law, which prohibits usury (interest) and transactions that are not in line with principles of justice. This initiative is carried out to increase public interest in using Islamic fintech by educating communities affected by disasters in Huntap Duyu. The process involves stages of preparation, observation, discussion for activity determination, activity implementation, and evaluation. The activity results show positive outcomes in enhancing the community's understanding of Islamic fintech.

The Role of Social Capital in the Response and Recovery Process of Post-Disaster Affected Communities

Many studies highlight human and physical capital’s role in the emergency response and post-disaster recovery phases. Even though social capital also plays a major role in emergency response and disaster recovery. Social capital can reduce disaster risk at the community level, especially for those who live in disaster areas. For this reason, the role of social capital in the emergency response and recovery phase is important, and its utilization must be developed. This study is expected to provide an overview of the role and influence of social capital in emergency response and post-disaster recovery in two different settings, both geographically and in the type of disaster that occurred. The research was conducted using a qualitative approach with a systematic literature review method, data collection was carried out by collecting literature, studies, articles, journals, reports, and previous research related to the role of social capital in post-disaster recovery process. The cases in this study are the eruption in Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland and the earthquake in Gili Trawangan, Indonesia. This review focuses on three forms of social capital, bonding, bridging, and linking, available in disaster-affected communities and how these forms of social capital affect the recovery process of communities affected by disasters. The results show that in both areas, bonding social capital plays the strongest role, but there are differences in the impact of disasters on the condition of social capital in both area.

Disaster education: empowering resilience and mitigating PTSD in disaster-prone areas of China

The people of disaster-affected communities are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to the adverse effects of natural disasters. Education about disasters has become a possible strategy for fostering resilience and easing PTSD symptoms. This study intends to investigate the moderating roles of social support and disaster experiences on the relationships between disaster education, psychological resilience, and PTSD in disaster-prone regions of Southwest China. This study used Disaster Education Evaluation Scale, Psychological Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), Social Support Rating Scale (SRSS), event intensity Scale and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Self-Rating Scale (PTSD-SS), surveyed 712 residents in Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan and other areas where natural disasters frequently occur in Southwest China. The research findings indicate that there is a negative association between disaster education and PTSD. The association is influenced by the presence of improved psychological resilience, which acts as a mediator. Additionally, it was discovered that disaster events positively moderated the relationship between psychological resilience and PTSD while social support negatively moderated it. Resilience has a noteworthy role as a substantial mediator, highlighting its crucial function in mitigating the detrimental consequences of catastrophes and amplifying the beneficial outcomes of disaster education. These results imply that building psychological resilience, which might reduce PTSD symptoms in people living in disaster-prone regions, is a critical part of disaster education. The strength of the catastrophic event and social support are other factors that affect how psychological resilience and PTSD are related. The research argues that disaster education is crucial for strengthening community resilience and reducing PTSD symptoms in at-risk areas. To increase psychological resilience and lessen PTSD in high-risk locations, policymakers and disaster management organizations should emphasize disaster education initiatives and strengthen social support network.

Building Back Better After Disasters: Enhancing Community Resilience Through In-City Resettlement in Valenzuela City, Philippines

Build Back Better (BBB) is a recovery process that aims to make disaster-affected communities more resilient. This study analyzed the resilience of disaster-affected individuals relocated in an in-city resettlement project using the community resilience framework of the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC) in the context of BBB. It contributes to understanding BBB in view of limited case studies of in-city resettlement. Employing mixed methods research design, data were gathered through key informant interviews, household surveys, documents, and observation. Results show that relocation significantly improved community resilience in terms of knowledge, health, infrastructure and services, connectedness, organization, and economic opportunities. Psychological support is lacking and mechanisms to manage the community’s natural assets need to be devised in view of spatial limitations. Good practices conforming to BBB principles include structural design improvement, hazard-based land-use planning, participatory approaches, provision of various services, adoption of a multi-partnership model, economic regeneration, and proper implementation through stakeholder management and disaster management legislation. Results indicate positive contributions of local government-managed in-city resettlement to community resilience when BBB principles are considered. Stakeholders in disaster governance can learn from the good practices identified towards better post-disaster recovery in line with SDG 11 on sustainable cities and communities.

A Mixed-Methods Approach to the Development of a Disaster Food Security Framework

BackgroundLimited research on food systems and food insecurity (FI) following disasters finds contextual differences in post-disaster food systems that shape dimensions of FI. Measurement limitations make it difficult to address FI and develop effective practices for disaster-affected communities. ObjectiveTo develop, validate, and test a Disaster Food Security Framework (DFSF). DesignMixed-methods approach was used, including in-depth interviews to understand lived experiences during disasters; expert panel input to validate DFSF designed using responses from in-depth interviews; and quantitative testing of robustness of DFSF using the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic as a disaster example. Participants and settingThe in-depth interviews included participants from Vermont (n = 5), North Carolina (n = 3), and Oklahoma (n = 2) who had been living in those states during Hurricane Irene (2011), Hurricane Florence (2018), the Moore tornadoes (2013), and coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic (2020). The expert panel consisted of researchers and practitioners from different US geographical regions and food-related disciplines (n = 18). For the quantitative testing survey, data from 4 US states (New York, New Mexico, Vermont, and Maryland; n = 3,228) from the National Food Access and COVID Research Team was used. Main outcome measuresThe outcomes from the in-depth interviews were dimensions of disaster FI, those from the expert panel was a content validity ratio, and those from the quantitative testing was the number of items and components to be included. Analyses performedInductive and deductive reasoning were using when reporting on the in-depth interviews and expert panel results, including frequencies. The quantitative testing was conducted using multiple correspondence analysis. ResultsThe in-depth interviews revealed four dimensions of FI: availability (supply and donation), accessibility (economic, physical, and social), acceptability (preference and health), and agency (infrastructure and self-efficacy). The panel of experts reported high content validity for the DFSF and its dimensions (content validity ratio >0.42), thus giving higher credibility to the DFSF. Multiple correspondence analysis performed on 25 food-related variables identified one component with 13 indicators representing three of the four dimensions: availability, acceptability, and accessibility, but not agency.

Forest therapy as a trauma-informed approach to disaster recovery: Insights from a wildfire-affected community

A trauma-informed approach to disaster recovery recognizes the potential impacts of trauma, promotes resilience to protect against retraumatization, and can support catering the needs of disaster survivors in affected communities. A growing body of evidence demonstrates that interaction with nature is associated with a number of physical and mental health benefits, though literature surrounding nature-based therapy and disaster survivors is limited. Through key informant interviews with forest therapy guides from a program in wildfire affected Butte County, CA, this exploratory study investigates if and how “Forest Therapy ’’ can serve as a trauma-informed approach to promote wellbeing in the face of climate change and associated disasters. We find that community-based forest therapy programs offer a promising, flexible approach to community-based trauma-informed mental health servicest in disaster-affected communities. Findings also identify opportunities to tailor implementation of future programs to better reach populations most impacted by disasters, including through targeted outreach and diverse guide recruitment. Future research should investigate the impacts of forest therapy on the mental health and wellbeing of participants, as well as the scalability of forest therapy programs in disaster-affected communities.

Building a community of resilience and response—development of disaster response and training programmes

The increasing impact of catastrophic disasters has inspired a strong network of cooperative disaster resiliency programmes focussing on protection and response for heritage collections and sites around the world. A dedicated community of professionals has developed successful partnership organisations that form a collaboration of institutions, first responders, local community groups and volunteers. At the core in the United States is a consortium of governmental and private organisations. Advocating for and safeguarding cultural heritage against risks draws on conventions, policy frameworks and guidance, becoming an imperative part of effective collection and site management. This article outlines the history, missions, interrelationship and expanded programming of this resolute, primarily volunteer community. The evolution of strategic disaster resilience in North America is non-linear, as are the histories of the organisations and individuals who have contributed to the nascent specialty. Key people and agencies are dedicated to protecting cultural assets and progressively improving and professionalising disaster resilience and recovery. The strategic, physical and psychological needs of disaster-affected communities are now standard management protocols for cultural heritage collections. Tangible documentation of these changes and interconnections are spread between professional repositories and personal archives, with minimal finding aids and dependence on individual memories. This information is gathered, regularly shared and updated as part of experiential training but seldom published in historical or scholarly articles. This article is intended to bridge the gap between a literature review and a record of experiences that have moved the profession of cultural heritage responder and their support organisations forward in time.