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National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Exploring Lessons Learned from a Century of Outbreaks: Readiness for 2030: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/25391.

Abstract:

In November 2018, an ad hoc planning committee at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine planned two sister workshops held in Washington, DC, to examine the lessons from influenza pandemics and other major outbreaks, understand the extent to which the lessons have been learned, and discuss how they could be applied further to ensure that countries are sufficiently ready for future pandemics. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussions from both workshops.

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Sunday, 30 June 2019 11:40

Hallegatte et al (2019). Lifelines

Hallegatte, S., Rentschler, J. & Rozenberg, J. (2019). Lifelines : The Resilient Infrastructure Opportunity. Sustainable Infrastructure;. Washington, DC: World Bank. © World Bank

Abstract:

Infrastructure—electricity, telecommunications, roads, water, and sanitation—are central to people’s lives. Without it, they cannot make a living, stay healthy, and maintain a good quality of life. Access to basic infrastructure is also a key driver of economic development. This report lays out a framework for understanding infrastructure resilience - the ability of infrastructure systems to function and meet users’ needs during and after a natural hazard. It focuses on four infrastructure systems that are essential to economic activity and people’s well-being: power systems, including the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity; water and sanitation—especially water utilities; transport systems—multiple modes such as road, rail, waterway, and airports, and multiple scales, including urban transit and rural access; and telecommunications, including telephone and Internet connections.

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Aitsi-Selmi, A., Blanchard, K., Al-Khudhairy, D., Ammann, W., Basabe, P., Johnston, D., ... & Roth, C. (2015). UNISDR STAG 2015 Report: Science is used for disaster risk reduction. Geneva, Switzerland: UNISDR.

Abstract:

Science and technology have shown that we can reduce or prevent the impact from disasters, and it is therefore the responsibility of Member States to work together with national and international policy and science and technology communities to work together in an effort to reduce disaster risk and prevent disasters where possible.
The UNISDR Scientiic and Technical Advisory Group (STAG) and partners have been working to embed a broader approach to disasters which includes prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery. It is no longer suficient to react oncea disaster has occurred, because even if disasters are well managed, the mental and physical impacts on the survivors, broader society and the economy can be devastating and felt over the long term. With disasters increasing in frequency andseverity, the International Panel on Climate Change Assessment Report 5 (2014) recognised the urgent need to focus on sustainable development.

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Sunday, 04 August 2019 08:58

National Academies of Sciences (2019)

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National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2019). Exploring Lessons Learned from a Century of Outbreaks: Readiness for 2030: Proceedings of a Workshop.

https://doi.org/10.17226/25391.

Abstract:

In November 2018, an ad hoc planning committee at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine planned two sister workshops held in Washington, DC, to examine the lessons from influenza pandemics and other major outbreaks, understand the extent to which the lessons have been learned, and discuss how they could be applied further to ensure that countries are sufficiently ready for future pandemics. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussions from both workshops.

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Tiernan, A., Drennan, L., Nalau, J., Onyango, E., Morrissey, L., & Mackey, B. (2019). A review of themes in disaster resilience literature and international practice since 2012. Policy Design and Practice2(1), 53-74.

Abstract:

This paper reviews the practice and research trends in disaster resilience and disaster risk reduction literature since 2012. It applies the rapid appraisal methodology to explore developments in the field and to identify key themes in research and practice. In particular, the paper examines how the emerging themes of disaster risk reduction from the Sendai Framework are being integrated into health risk management and disaster governance paradigms. The research findings identify three important emerging themes: socialization of responsibility for resilience; ongoing interest in risk management with an emphasis on public private partnerships as enabling mechanisms; and a nuanced exploration of the concept of adaptive resilience.

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Aitsi-Selmi, A., Murray, V., Wannous, C., Dickinson, C., Johnston, D., Kawasaki, A., ... & Yeung, T. (2016). Reflections on a science and technology agenda for 21st century disaster risk reduction. International Journal of Disaster Risk Science7(1), 1-29.

Abstract:

The first international conference for the post-2015 United Nations landmark agreements (Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, Sustainable Development Goals, and Paris Agreement on Climate Change) was held in January 2016 to discuss the role of science and technology in implementing the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030. The UNISDR Science and Technology Conference on the Implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 aimed to discuss and endorse plans that maximize science’s contribution to reducing disaster risks and losses in the coming 15 years and bring together the diversity of stakeholders producing and using disaster risk reduction (DRR) science and technology. This article describes the evolution of the role of science and technology in the policy process building up to the Sendai Framework adoption that resulted in an unprecedented emphasis on science in the text agreed on by 187 United Nations member states in March 2015 and endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly in June 2015. Contributions assembled by the Conference Organizing Committee and teams including the conference concept notes and the conference discussions that involved a broad range of scientists and decision makers are summarized in this article. The conference emphasized how partnerships and networks can advance multidisciplinary research and bring  together science, policy, and practice; how disaster risk is understood, and how risks are assessed and early warning systems are designed; what data, standards, and innovative practices would be needed to measure and report on risk reduction; what research and capacity gaps exist and how difficulties in creating and using science for effective DRR can be overcome. The Science and Technology Conference achieved two main outcomes: (1) initiating the UNISDR Science and Technology Partnership for the implementation of the Sendai Framework; and (2) generating discussion and agreement regarding the content and endorsement process of the UNISDR Science and Technology Road Map to 2030.

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Depietri, Y., & Orenstein, D. E. (2019). Fire-regulating services and disservices with an application to the Haifa-Carmel region in Israel. Frontiers in Environmental Science7, 107.

                      

Abstract:

In the Mediterranean region, and in other fire-prone areas of the globe, human and economic losses due to forest fires have increased in the past decades, particularly at the urban-wildland interface. To counter this trend, economic and human resources are generally invested to combat and suppress wildfires, with much less invested to adapt through ecosystem-based management. Ecosystem services for fire regulation are rarely accounted for in the literature and are generally excluded from ecosystem service classifications. This gap causes fire-regulating services to be overlooked in socio-ecological assessments and in economic valuations, potentially further hampering the design and implementation of ecosystem-based approaches. We review the literature on fire risk reduction related to ecosystem management to define and characterize fire-regulating services and disservices. We then suggest indicators for the assessment of these services and disservices, and we propose a conceptual framework linking fire risk, ecosystem services, and ecosystem management practices. In the second part of the paper, we apply these concepts to the historical development of the social-ecological system of the Haifa-Mount Carmel region in Israel, including pre- and post-fire forest management practices. To inform the case study we investigate reports, relevant scientific articles, and policy documents, all corroborated with information from expert lectures on the topic. We conclude by suggesting that human capital should become an integral part of the description and definition of fire-regulating services and disservices, especially for highly modified urban and peri-urban environments.

 

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Depietri, Y., & Orenstein, D. E. (2018). Tradeoffs between regulating and cultural services as a sources of fire risk in Haifa. In Conference Proceedings–Long Paper (Barcelona).

                      

Abstract:

Urban areas are increasingly at risk of several natural hazards. In the Mediterranean area, the risk of forest fires at the wildland-urban interface are generating increasing losses.

However, green areas in and around the city have traditionally been considered as a source of fresh air, recreational, as well as for educational and aesthetic purposes. Tradeoffs can then arise between the desire to preserve nature around cities for cultural ecosystem services and the need to manage the forest to reduce the risk of fires. Most of the literature on ecosystem services’ tradeoffs has concentrates on provisioning versus cultural and regulating services. The potential tradeoffs arising from managing nature for recreational, spiritual, mental benefits and for hazard regulating functions in urban and peri-urban areas have rarely been explored. In this paper we assess cultural services and fires risk in the peri-urban forest of the city of Haifa (Israel) using participatory GIS mapping. We interviewed two groups regarding the spatial extent of these services and the management strategies to reduce risk: users of the green areas of Haifa and forest fire experts. We identified tradeoffs between cultural and regulating services for fire control in the green areas of the city. Green space users promoted the idea of a pristine nature and its conservation, mainly for recreational purposes, while experts suggested that improving fire regulating services would require intensive forest management with changes in the  landscape such as the removal of pine trees and the creation of buffers around the urban core. We conclude that the tradeoffs between cultural and regulating services can generate sources of risk and must be reconciled when considering addressing it.

 

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Shmueli, D., Ben Gal, M., Segal, E., Reichman, A., Feitelson, E. 2019. “Earthquake readiness in volatile regions: the case of Israel”, Natural Hazards 98(2), 405-423. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-019-03698-x

Abstract:

The Jordan Rift Valley is a high-risk low-occurrence zone for earthquakes, with documented incidences within the last millennium causing widespread destruction. This research examines the implications of the immediate risks for earthquake readiness. Due to data availability, we focus on Israel’s readiness for earthquakes and compare our findings with a cursory review of readiness in the proximate countries. Readiness refers to mitigation and preparedness (before), response (during) and recovery (after). The immediate and palpable threats in the region are wars and terrorism, and our hypothesis is that governance culture in this volatile region is geared toward capacities and expertise  which have been developed to address national security threats, characterized by emphasis on quick response. We expect to see a bias toward immediate response with regard to earthquake readiness as well, with attention also paid to preparedness. Accordingly, we hypothesize that other aspects of readiness, such as retrofitting of buildings and infrastructure in the mitigation category, lag behind in countries surrounding the Jordan Rift. To test this, we develop and apply a regulatory system scan and assessment methodology to the Israeli case. The methodology includes structured mapping and evaluation of the relevant regulatory system as well as actual policy outputs. The process includes inputs from policy makers, experts, and stakeholders. Findings show that the country’s earthquake readiness regime is indeed heavily biased toward immediate response which is continually advancing and improving, managed by security-related bodies. In contrast, mitigation efforts are deficient and little is being done to improve the situation. A survey of readiness efforts of other countries along the Jordan Rift points to a similar situation.

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Roth, F., & Prior, T. (2019). Volunteerism in Disaster Management: Opportunities, Challenges and Instruments for Improvement. ETH Zurich.

Abstract:

Collaborations of civic society and public administration play a key role for successful emergency and disaster management. However, factors including new technologies, large-scale disaster events, and a differently engaged population are combining to bring new, spontaneous or emergent forms of volunteerism to official disaster management activities. This report addresses the challenges and opportunities of integrating such volunteers in disaster management and civil protection. Further, it details 1) the relationships between state crisis management and the social environment in which these relationships take place; and 2) the instruments available to support volunteerism in the context of disaster management and civil protection.

Paper: https://css.ethz.ch/content/dam/ethz/special-interest/gess/cis/center-for-securities-studies/pdfs/RR-Report-Volunteers-In-Disaster-Management.pdf

Webpage: https://css.ethz.ch/content/specialinterest/gess/cis/center-for-securities-studies/en/think-tank/themes/risk-and-resilience/details.html?id=/v/o/l/u/volunteerism_in_disaster_management_oppo

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