Resilience Of Rural Communities Research Articles

Organic prodution in Minas Gerais: analysis of the cooperation circle controlled by certifiers

The present essay aims to identify, analyze, and propose diagnoses regarding cooperation circles, theorized by geographer Milton Santos, in the production of organic food, focusing on municipalities in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. It aims to highlight the main interactions and connections between organizations associated with and linked to the Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) and various educational institutions, which influence the production process towards a model of organic, participatory, and solidarity-based agriculture. The work also explores how these interactions manifest concretely in the formation of circles linked to PGS entities, such as Participatory Conformity Assessment Bodies (PCABs) and Social Control Organizations (SCOs). As results, the research presents cartographic products related to these agents, through an analysis of their activities at municipal and state levels, emphasizing how these connections can challenge the conventional certification process associated with predominant productive circles. Furthermore, a heterogeneous distribution of these circles is observed in the municipalities of Minas Gerais, where each presents its own scale of representativeness, focusing on different levels of production and interconnection. This typology of dynamics is evident in several municipalities of the state, underscoring the diversity of approaches, along with the importance of decentralizing the agroproductive model, promoting an organic, sustainable, and inclusive agriculture that meets local and regional needs and fosters the resilience of rural communities.

Agricultural cooperative and members’ resilience in Kita and Yanfolila cercles of Mali

The study examined the role of agricultural cooperatives in strengthening the resilience and social fabric of rural communities in the Kita and Yanfolila regions of Mali. Using a mix of quantitative and qualitative methods, data was collected from 149 participants, including cooperative members and non-members, through structured surveys and focus group discussions. It explored the challenges faced by farmers, the benefits of cooperative membership, the dynamics of social cohesion within these cooperatives, the nuances of inclusion, and conducted a comparative analysis between cooperative members and non-members. The communities in Kita and Yanfolila faced multiple adversities that significantly affected their resilience, livelihoods and overall well-being. Drought emerged as the most serious problem, affecting the entire population and underscoring its profound impact on agriculture and welfare. Flooding was also a significant threat, exacerbating food insecurity. While terrorist activities and COVID-19 seemed less pressing due to their limited occurrence or awareness at the time, vigilance and awareness remained key. The study highlighted the myriad benefits of cooperative membership and how it empowered members through agricultural training, access to resources and financial stability. In particular, cooperatives have been instrumental in addressing water scarcity and ensuring sustainable access through initiatives such as boreholes and pumping equipment, thereby increasing agricultural productivity and food security. The study also highlighted the key role of cooperatives in fostering social cohesion, promoting conflict resolution and serving as networking platforms. Members praised cooperatives for providing emotional and material support in times of need, disseminating conflict management techniques and promoting transparent, collective decision-making processes. However, there was a noticeable gap in perceptions between cooperative members and non-members regarding the role of cooperatives in conflict resolution. Non-members were less confident, possibly due to a lack of exposure or understanding of cooperative mechanisms. Inclusivity emerged as a key issue, with discussions highlighting the challenge of extending benefits to non-members, which could lead to feelings of exclusion. Income disparities between members and non-members further exacerbated issues of social cohesion. The study also highlighted the profound impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, revealing disrupted supply chains, reduced incomes, increased unemployment and heightened food insecurity in rural communities. Despite this, agricultural cooperatives stepped up by disseminating information, distributing essential supplies and promoting hygiene practices. Key words: Agricultural cooperative, resilience, peacebuilding, social cohesion, COVID-19, Mali

How rural community resilience evolves after a disaster? A case study of the eastern Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, China

Frequent occurrence of natural disasters has become one of the most serious challenges to human society. As rural communities are the forefront of disasters, enhancing the resilience of rural community is crucial to mitigate the impact of natural disasters and seek rapid recovery. This paper provides an analytical framework for changing trajectories of the resilience of rural communities after disasters. Taking the disaster area affected by the catastrophic debris flow in China as an example, we analyze the changing trajectories of rural community resilience after disaster in three villages with different damage levels from 2010 to 2020 based on the data from key person interviews, the disaster situation and development reports, village work records and farmers’ questionnaires. We found that the changes of community resilience after disaster show obvious stages due to the difference in the intensity of effects of government intervention and community self-organization ability during disaster relief reconstruction period and self-recovery period. The resilience of communities with different disaster losses showed an increasing trend. However, during the disaster relief and reconstruction period, the resilience of the severely affected community was improved faster, followed by the most severely affected community, while the resilience of generally affected community was improved more slowly. During the self-recovery period, the resilience of the affected general community was improved faster than that of the other two communities. The evolution process of community resilience reflects the increasing role of self-organizational capacity in post-disaster community development, aligning with the overall global trend in rural community governance. In addition, there is a significant sequence in the improvement speed of different dimensions of community resilience at different stages after disasters. During the disaster relief and reconstruction period, the resilience of community management was improved faster and the resilience of environment was slower. During the self-recovery period, the economic resilience of community was improved faster and the social resilience was improved slower. Finally, some suggestions were put forward to strengthen natural disasters prevention and community resilience in disaster-prone areas.

Dynamics of Fertilizer Subsidy Implementation: A Case Study of Agricultural Policy in Indonesia

This study explores the dynamics of fertilizer subsidy implementation in Indonesia, focusing on its impact on agricultural policy and practice. With the critical role of subsidies in supporting the agricultural sector, this research aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of their implementation and effectiveness. Utilizing a systematic literature review methodology, the study synthesizes data from a wide range of academic journals, government reports, and policy analyses. The findings highlight the complexities involved in the implementation process, including issues related to policy design, distribution mechanisms, and the actual impact on farmers' productivity and sustainability practices. The study identifies key challenges such as bureaucratic inefficiencies, misallocation of resources, and unintended consequences on smallholder farmers. Additionally, it examines the implications of these subsidies for sustainable agricultural development and the economic resilience of rural communities in Indonesia. The conclusion offers critical reflections on policy recommendations and future directions for optimizing the effectiveness of fertilizer subsidies in enhancing sustainable agricultural growth.

How forcing community resilience in rural communities harms sustainable development

Community resilience is critical to managing the effects of climate change and in achieving the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Resilient communities are able to manage stressors and recover from them, such as in instances of energy service outages. Instances like these can lead to communities that feel forced to exhibit individual characteristics of resilience, such as neighbors relying on each other in times of need because history has shown them that they cannot rely on outside institutions for help. Communities may adopt factors of individual psychological resilience in the face of energy service outages because they lack structural support to exhibit community resilience or to pursue resilient energy systems. This lack of access to support and resources is in conflict with principles of procedural justice and energy sovereignty while reinforcing institutional mistrust within affected communities and contributing to social vulnerability. This article contemplates and expounds on the idea of coerced resilience in the face of energy service outages and severe weather within a rural, remote community in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (UP). The UP is located at the tail end of electricity infrastructure, putting its residents at increased risk of experiencing energy service outages that are further complicated by its isolation and severe winter weather. We examine the idea of coerced resilience, its relation to social vulnerability, and how it conflicts with concepts of energy justice and the UN’s SDG. We further go on to highlight how certain populations and youth can minimize instances of coerced resilience and contribute to sustainable development making it an important consideration to achieve sustainable development goals.

Role of Information and Communication Technologies in Promoting Financial Inclusion in Rural African Communities in Rwanda

Purpose: The aim of the study was to investigate role of information and communication technologies in promoting financial inclusion in rural African Communities
 Methodology: This study adopted a desk methodology. A desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. This is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. Our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries.
 Findings: This transformation has led to increased savings, facilitated seamless payments, and expanded access to credit, contributing to economic growth, poverty reduction, and enhanced financial resilience in rural communities. Nonetheless, persistent challenges such as limited infrastructure and digital literacy gaps underscore the need for ongoing efforts to fully harness the potential of ICTs, making them a crucial driver of rural development and inclusive growth in Rwanda.
 Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: Diffusion of Innovation Theory, Social Capital Theory & Resource-Based Theory may be used to anchor future studies on role of information and communication technologies in promoting financial inclusion in rural African Communities. Collaborate with technology providers to develop and deploy ICT solutions tailored to the specific needs and preferences of rural African communities. Policymakers should ensure that regulations support innovation, competition, and consumer protection.

A System Dynamics Approach to Rural Community Resilience: Learnings from the COVID-19 Pandemic

A System Dynamics Approach to Rural Community Resilience: Learnings from the COVID-19 Pandemic

Building rural community resilience: The case of gem extraction in flood-affected areas of Sri Lanka

Sri Lankan gem mining and extractive industry communities experience enormous amounts of devastation from mass flooding events. Despite the pressing importance of understanding Gem Mining Community Resilience (GMCR) vis-à-vis community flood disaster management, the topic remains under researched. In order to address this gap in the extant literature, this study investigates the resilience of Sri Lankan gem mining communities’ social support network legacies (mitigation and adaptation) in response to a 2017 mass flooding event. Survey data were collected from 167 flood-affected gem mining households (GMHs) in fifteen local administrative units (GNDs) located in two Sri Lankan divisional secretariat divisions (DSDs). Social Network Analysis (SNA) is deployed to investigate the changing contours of social support network centralities before, during, and after the flooding event. Results suggest that the social support network legacies of the surveyed communities evolved over different flood-inundation phases in different geographical settings, thus improving GMCR. Flood inundation depth impacted network activities as well. Multi-actor social support networks working in concert with social capital legacies have shaped the processes of resource mobilization and flood victim livelihood revivification. These mitigation and adaptation practices, along with a GMCR framework developed in the study, may impart lessons for local and national policy, as well as for gem mining communities in other developing countries.

Can Agroforestry Contribute to Food and Livelihood Security for Indonesia’s Smallholders in the Climate Change Era?

In Indonesia, smallholders have historically practiced agroforestry, which warrants examination in terms of food and livelihood security within sustainable community forest frameworks. Based on a literature review, we analyzed these two forms of security related to smallholder agroforestry practices. Findings indicate diverse agroforestry systems, with 88% focusing on non-timber forest products (NTFPs) and 12% on timber. While 42% prioritize direct food supply, 58% emphasize income generation through product sales. However, agroforestry that does not produce food for direct consumption by smallholders generates revenue for purchasing food necessities. Agroforestry supports both food needs (46–61%) and income (51–54%) for smallholders, surpassing traditional agriculture (13%). Semi-commercial agroforestry (57%) is a predominant livelihood prospect. The remaining 27% are purely subsistence, and 15% are purely commercial. However, the commercialization of agroforestry that focuses only on high-value commodities results in a negative impact on biodiversity. There is a concomitant decrease in environmental services for climate change mitigation and adaptation. Biodiversity remains crucial for climate resilience, health care, and food security in rural communities. Semi-commercial agroforestry is a midpoint for achieving multifunctional agriculture (biodiversity, soil and water conservation, food security, and income) in the climate change era. The research directly related to food security and ecosystem services quantification remains limited, necessitating further investigation. Policy support and incentives are essential for smallholders practicing complex agroforestry for climate adaptation and mitigation.

The impact of adaptive management on community resilience in arid rural areas facing environmental change: An integrated analytical framework

Environmental variability poses a major risk to rural communities and farmers, particularly in dryland regions. Effective adaptive strategies must be implemented to promote the transformation, adaptation, and sustainable development of rural areas located in arid regions worldwide. The adaptive management of rural transformation can influence community resilience by changing the elemental structures of social–ecological systems. However, few studies have reported an assessment framework between system resilience and adaptive management. We developed an integrated analytical framework to fully estimate the impact of adaptation strategy implementation on different levels of community resilience, considering the differences between spatial geographic units and measuring changes in different temporal scales. We applied this framework to a case study of China’s Minqin Oasis, assessing the community resilience of rural areas facing environmental change. We found that (1) rural community resilience in Minqin Oasis has obvious spatial and temporal evolution characteristics, with the overall rural community resilience showing a decreasing trend over the past 30 years, while the spatial distribution of community resilience tended to be balanced for the period 2011–2017; (2) the main obstacles to the improvement of rural community resilience include wind and sand control, ecological water resources, economic levels, and the adjustment of the agricultural economic structure; and (3) Adaptation strategies based on the priority of ecological restoration and government-led mandatory policy are not conducive to the improvement of community resilience. This study provides a clear framework for linking adaptive management and community resilience assessment in the context of climate change or environmental risk. It also offers an effective means for policymakers to direct strategic resources to the geographic spaces where they are most required. Case-based research results provide an evaluation reference for the adaptive management of arid rural areas in the face of environmental change worldwide.

Revisiting the dimensions of rural resilience: The CoVid-19 pandemic

Understanding the factors that improve the resilience of rural communities is an important area of academic research and focus for policymakers. In this context, the COVID-19 pandemic provides an important opportunity to study the dynamics of different aspects of rural resilience in a crisis period. In this paper, we adopt a mixed methods approach to explore three issues in the context of a rural community – the West Highlands of Scotland. We frame our discussion through the lens of economic, social and environmental resilience. We 1) examine the role of businesses in supporting rural resilience within a crisis period; 2) evidence tensions that emerge across different components of rural resilience; and 3) explore, in turn, the importance of the economic, social and environmental rural context for the resilience of rural businesses. We find support that businesses can be key to supporting rural resilience, but that the resilience of rural communities is also essential to the resilience of businesses. We evidence several tensions that emerge between economic, social and environmental dimensions of resilience as it relates to business activity in rural communities. Our findings have important implications for policy with the conclusion that during times of crisis local, and community-based, solutions are crucial as is local leadership capacity.

Institutional support for building resilience within rural communities characterised by multifunctional land use

Rural landscapes around the world are increasingly transitioning towards multifunctional land uses that mix traditional agricultural production with amenity consumption and environmental protection. Better understanding is needed about how to promote resilience of rural communities in areas of increasingly contested land use. This research examined changes in land use in the rural hinterland of the Noosa Biosphere Reserve in sub-tropical Australia. Data collection included an online survey of Noosa hinterland landholders and a series of workshops in the Biosphere’s rural communities, featuring interactive digital mapping to address geospatial land use classification and data gaps. Our study found the area had transitioned to multifunctional land uses of agriculture with lifestyle residents interested in sustainable land management, niche agricultural, and consumptive eco- and health-based tourism livelihoods. We also identified an ongoing need for support for collaborative social learning consistent with UNESCO Biosphere Reserves’ mandate as learning hubs. The study’s findings indicate that complementary local government planning policy plays a role in providing institutional support for resilient rural communities in multifunctional settings.

Rural resiliency through peer-to-peer accommodations

The rural service sector’s entrepreneurial venture into peer-to-peer accommodations (P2PAs) has gained momentum in rural US communities through platforms such as Airbnb with recent success attributed to a heightened urban-rural migration amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. P2PAs provide benefits such as regional economic development, small business and destination word of mouth marketing, and conservation of natural resources. Increasing P2PA activity in rural communities necessitates a theoretical anchor for P2PA management strategies that comprehensively examines potential P2PA impacts in rural communities and future rural destination trajectories that might be influenced by P2PA development. Thus, this study builds upon a previous theoretical framing of P2PA impacts which utilized both socio-ecological systems theory and tourism development models through its application in a rural destination. Even more, this study’s superimposition Actor-Network Theory (ANT) on this existing theoretical framework provides deeper insight into the iterative relationship between P2PAs and the communities that host them. This study counters a binary positioning of P2PAs as either solely positive or negative disruptions in a tourism system. Instead, it explores the complex network of internal and external “agents” in rural communities potentially impeding or compounding the effects of P2PAs on rural community resilience to inform development of P2PA management strategies.

Improving local adaptive capacity to mitigate the negative impact of climate change: A case study of Tram Kak District, Takeo Province

Climate change is a long-term change in temperature and weather patterns. Drought is one of the two major natural disasters in Cambodia. The study aims to better understand the negative impact of climate change on the rice production of small-scale farmers in two communes in Tram Kak district, Takeo province, by focusing on droughts or water shortages. It was found that (i) the small-scale farmers of Sraeronorng commune mostly cultivated late-cycle rice, and the harvest was completed later than small-scale farmers in the Nhaenghorng commune, and (ii) the impact of drought over a decade affected small-scale farmers in the Nhaenghorng commune more than the Sraeronorng commune, except in 2021 when the impact on rice production in the two communes was similarly high. If a drought or water shortage came, most small-scale farmers would have a dispute over access to water from canals or community ponds to irrigate their rice fields. However, (iii) the small-scale farmers were found to have a high adaptive capacity to droughts or water shortages. The study also found that most small-scale farmers tried to construct their water sources to supply their agricultural cultivation, such as digging their ponds. However, these water sources can only provide small amounts of irrigation to reduce rice damage in the event of a long-term drought or water shortage. In addition, it was very important that all key stakeholders, both at the national and local levels, take more action to ensure the resilience of rural communities. These actions should focus on developing high-quality irrigation systems, training on agricultural techniques, selling drought-resistant rice seeds at a low price, and strengthening small-scale farmers’ capacity to produce their quality seeds. Local development projects must include planning and participation of community members.

Оценка жизнестойкости сельских сообществ Севера России (на примере поселений Архангельской области)

The purpose of this study is to enhance the empirical and theoretical understanding of the local aspects of resilience, which makes it possible to assess resilience levels in rural communities in the Russian North under new economic conditions. The study shows that during the Soviet era, the state provided economic support to sustain the viability of northern villages. As a result of the market reforms of the past century, most collective and state farms fell into decline, which led to labor migration. Despite negative demographic trends, the difficult economic situation, and limited transportation access, there is still a permanent resident population in northern villages. Based on the theory of resilience, methodological approaches to its assessment,and the results of field studies conducted in villages located on the island and coastal territories of the Primorsky district in the Arkhangelsk region between 2017 and 2022, the authors identify factors that determine the resilience of rural communities in the new economic conditions. These include location, local economy, and social capital. Indicators were established for each of the factors to propose a methodology for their assessment. As a result, an integrated resilience index was calculated for rural communities in the island and coastal territories of the Primorsky district in the Arkhangelsk region. It is concluded that the assessment of resilience levels of rural communities can provide information about society’s preparedness to face external challenges and identify which resources (economic, social, or natural) are robust or vulnerable. The novelty of the research lies in considering resilience as a new research paradigm for studying social systems and validating a methodology for its assessment based on qualitative indicators. The results of the study can be used to develop new strategies for the social and economic progress of rural areas and specific plans to facilitate the adaptation of rural residents in the Russian North to emerging economic challenges.

Public Water System Governance in Rural Montana, USA: A ‘Slow drip’ on Community Resilience

Recent waves of U.S. federal waterworks investments aim to repair material as well as socioeconomic deficits. Yet a growing recognition of the central role of local capacity in successful water resources and infrastructure governance raises questions about the extent to which such investments will engender more resilient rural communities. Synthesizing resilience theory with the drinking water governance literature, we use qualitative methods to assess the social, economic, and environmental dimensions of public water system governance in a case study of six small towns in an agricultural region. We find that shortfalls in local social and economic capital constrain localities from adapting to environmental vulnerabilities, and that the current policy environment exacerbates—rather than ameliorates—tradeoffs between community capitals. In addition to funding increases for rural infrastructure deficits, this study implies that process reform in water quality compliance and financial assistance program delivery will also be needed to bolster rural community resilience.

Spatial distribution of socio-demographic and housing-based factors in relation to flash and slow-rise flooding hazards in the U.S

Previous studies have drawn attention to racial and socioeconomic disparities in exposures associated with flood events at varying spatial scales, but most of these studies have not differentiated flood risk. Assessing flood risk without differentiating floods by their characteristics (e.g. duration and intensity of precipitation leading to flooding) may lead to less accurate estimates of the most vulnerable locations and populations. In this study, we compare the spatial patterning of social vulnerability, types of housing, and housing tenure (i.e. rented vs. owned) between two specific flood types used operationally by the National Weather Service—flash floods and slow-rise floods—in the floodplains across the Contiguous United States (CONUS). We synthesized several datasets, including established distributions of flood hazards and flooding characteristics, indicators of socioeconomic status, social vulnerability, and housing characteristics, and used generalized estimating equations to examine the proportion of socially vulnerable populations and housing types and tenure residing in the flash and slow-rise flood extents. Our statistical findings show that the proportion of the slow-rise flooded area in the floodplains is significantly greater in tracts characterized by higher percentages of socially vulnerable. However, the results could not confirm the hypothesis that they are exposed considerably more than less vulnerable in the flash flooded floodplains. Considering housing-occupancy vulnerability, the percentage of renter-occupancies are greater in the flash flood floodplains compared to slow-rise, especially in areas with high rainfall accumulation producing storms (e.g. in the Southeast). This assessment contributes insights into how specific flood types could impact different populations and housing tenure across the CONUS and informs strategies to support urban and rural community resilience and planning at local and state levels.

Socio-Economic Importance and Potential of Wild Ayurvedic Medicinal Plants of the Western Himalayas, India

India's Ayurvedic medicine system is becoming popular worldwide because these medicines are based on natural herbal products and have no side effects on health; somewhat, it improves and strengthens the body's immunity. Today people’s awareness is increasing about health, the side effects of allopathy medicines on health, and their inclination and faith toward Ayurvedic treatments are railing with time. Ayurvedic medicine system is based on traditional herbal knowledge, identification of herbs in natural habitats, and formulations. The present study involves the survey and analysis of local healers of Shivalik hill in the Western Himalayas to discover the most used herbs and their economic potential from national and international market perspectives. Therefore, a survey and analysis were conducted in randomly selected 37 villages of six development blocks. The survey interviewed 195 local healers and people based on the scientifically designed questionnaire. During the 2019-2022, the thirty-one wild medicinal plant species were identified with, highlighting ten highly valued plants. These plants have high demand from local healers, vendors, or the pharma industry. Further analysis of the importance and value of each part of the plant shows this: leaves (15%), flowers (13%), roots (21%), seeds (27%), oil (2%), wood (4%), juice (11%), tuber (4%) and whole plant (4%). Study shows that local healers can. This study also emphasizes the cultivation of these herbal plants on a large scale and can potentially raise the financial status of local people and healers. The study highlights the potential of these herbal plants found in the study area to enhance rural livelihood and community resilience and calls for the integration of medicinal plants in conservation and development strategies.

Strengthening climate resilience of rural communities by co-producing landscape-specific integrated farming systems in Cambodia

ABSTRACT Climate change poses a major threat to the livelihoods of rural smallholder farmers in Cambodia. Adaptation measures through sustainable land management (SLM) and farming practices can help farmers to increase their resilience to climate change and secure their livelihoods. This paper presents a novel approach for promoting landscape-specific integrated farming systems (IFS) through multi-stakeholder engagement, knowledge-based decision-making and improved land use planning. It presents a stepwise participatory approach, applied under an IFAD-funded project, to define context-specific IFS models. Through co-production processes with multiple stakeholders, three landscape units and seven landscape-specific IFS models consisting of different SLM technologies were defined and demonstrated on 1,500 farms in two case study sites. The process included training and awareness raising to enhance local stakeholder engagement in developing integrated farm plans. This paper provides insights into how such a novel approach can be embedded in rural development projects to enhance smallholders’ resilience and livelihoods.

Endogenous causes, risks perception and policy responses to the Fukushima disaster–political ecology comments

On Friday, March 11, 2011, a magnitude 9 earthquake produced a 46 feet high tsunami that hit and flooded the northeast part of Japan's main island. Being damaged, the cooling system of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant failed to avoid the cores of three nuclear reactors to melt down, which led to three hydrogen explosions releasing radioactive particles over the Pacific Ocean, with disastrous human and biodiversity consequences. In each aspect of a cataclysm intervene complex processes of power relationships, historical dynamics, and political forces, framing the way societies represent, absorb, and respond to a shock. In this paper, we take those events as illustrative cases and conduct a stepwise political ecology analysis. First, we assess the fundamental causes of the Tōhoku earthquake and underline why qualifying it as natural, random, and exogenous makes it apolitical, and dilutes some responsibilities into the civil society. Then, we show how the belief in technological solutionism may have partially fuelled a myth of nuclear safety, widely shared in Fukushima, and disguised other less obvious vulnerability evidence. Along with power dynamics illustrations, we shed light on the political discourses that undermined the nuclear risks perception of the population which set the conditions of an insufficient society's preparedness to a nuclear incident. Next, the disaster’ impacts and their unequal distribution across social lines are assessed, highlighting how the most vulnerable groups could have been ex-ante identified. Furthermore, we document how government responses, embedded into a larger technical pattern, may have disregarded some political and social contexts, or narratives. Inversely, we argue that the immediate public intervention tended to deepen the ruts of social differences, while fueling household's conflicts around socially constructed notions of gender that weakened the resilience of rural communities. Overall, we suggest that the waste management strategy opted by the authority, along with its maintained ambitious nuclear agenda, not only failed to internalize the lessons from this disaster but planted the seeds of new potential environmental justice issues.