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Article
Publication date: 1 March 2011

Sining C. Cuevas

This research aims to develop a model that may be used to determine the effective adaptive measures to implement in a system affected by climate change.

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Abstract

Purpose

This research aims to develop a model that may be used to determine the effective adaptive measures to implement in a system affected by climate change.

Design/methodology/approach

The three primary dimensions of the model were individually investigated and then the linkages among them were developed. Specifically, the nature of climate change was examined and the issues emerging from the changes were analyzed. Next, an intensive study of system vulnerabilities was conducted, and the third factor in the model, risk, is then explored. Afterwards, the conceptual framework, which is the foundation of the climate change vulnerability risk model, was devised and the model created.

Findings

The model is a three‐dimensional matrix with the nature of climate change, vulnerabilities, and risks as its chief dimensions. It identifies the four natures of climate change, namely: variability, intensity, frequency, and quantity and the vulnerability types to be socio‐economic, biophysical, technological, and institutional. Meanwhile, risks are classified as income, biodiversity, health, mortality, and infrastructure risks.

Research limitations/implications

The research is the first phase of a three‐stage study on the linkages among climate change, vulnerability, and risks. It is the development stage of the framework that exemplifies the interrelationships among these variables and is the basis of the statistical and econometric analyses in the later stages.

Originality/value

The climate change vulnerability risk model was developed to act as an analytical guide in understanding the effects of climate change to systems. The model may be used to determine the effective adaptive measures to apply in the system, through a comparative analysis of the variables in the matrix.

Details

International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management, vol. 3 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1756-8692

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 6 September 2023

Verena Tandrayen-Ragoobur

Climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic are complex and have multifaceted effects on countries in an unpredictable and unprecedented manner. While both COVID-19 and the climate…

Abstract

Climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic are complex and have multifaceted effects on countries in an unpredictable and unprecedented manner. While both COVID-19 and the climate crisis share similarities, they also have some notable differences. Being both systemic in nature with knock-on and cascading effects that propagate due to high connectedness of countries, COVID-19, however, presents imminent and directly visible dangers, while the risks from climate change are gradual, cumulative and often distributed dangers. Climate change has more significant medium and long-term impacts which are likely to worsen over time. There is no vaccine for climate change compared to COVID-19. In addition, those most affected by extreme climatic conditions have usually contributed the least to the root causes of the crisis. This is in fact the case of island economies. The chapter thus investigates into the vulnerability and resilience of 38 Small Islands Developing States (SIDs) to both shocks. Adopting a comprehensive conceptual framework and data on various indices from the literature and global databases, we assess the COVID-19 and climate change vulnerabilities of SIDs on multiple fronts. The results first reveal a higher vulnerability across all dimensions for the Pacific islands compared to the other islands in the sample. There is also evidence of a weak correlation between climate change risk and the COVID-19 pandemic confirming our premise that there are marked differences between these two shocks and their impacts on island communities.

Details

Achieving Net Zero
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83753-803-4

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 4 December 2017

Ari Paloviita, Teea Kortetmäki, Antti Puupponen and Tiina Silvasti

The purpose of this paper is to consider the concepts of exposure, coping capacity and adaptive capacity as a multiple structure of vulnerability in order to distinguish and…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to consider the concepts of exposure, coping capacity and adaptive capacity as a multiple structure of vulnerability in order to distinguish and interpret short-term coping responses and long-term strategic responses to food system vulnerability.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper applies an abductive approach for qualitative analysis of data, which were collected through 18 semi-structured interviews among Finnish food system actors.

Findings

The findings suggest that coping capacity and adaptive capacity are indeed two different concepts, which both need to be addressed in the examination of food system vulnerability. Public and private food system governance and related decision-making processes seem to focus on building short-term coping capacity rather than strategic adaptive capacity. In fact, conservative and protective policies can be counterproductive in terms of building genuine adaptive capacity in the food system, highlighting institutional and policy failures as limiting adaptive capacity and affecting future vulnerability.

Originality/value

This paper is the first to provide evidence on the multiple structure of food system vulnerability. It simultaneously considers the external aspect (vulnerability drivers) and internal factors, including short term coping capacity and more strategic adaptive capacity, as key determinants of vulnerability.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 119 no. 12
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 24 May 2021

Musabber Ali Chisty, Syeda Erena Alam Dola, Nesar Ahmed Khan and Md Mostafizur Rahman

The objective of this study was to assess the relationship among intersectionality, vulnerability and resilience with evidence. The conceptual framework developed by the study…

Abstract

Purpose

The objective of this study was to assess the relationship among intersectionality, vulnerability and resilience with evidence. The conceptual framework developed by the study believed that intersectionality and vulnerabilities intersect and reduce the level of disaster resilience.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative approach was followed with relevant support from both primary and secondary data to conduct the study. The study focused on flood as a specific natural hazard to assess the relationship among the indicators of the objective. Focus group discussions (FGDs) were performed in two different flood-prone areas of Bangladesh. FGDs included young men, young women, men and women with disabilities and older people. Also, secondary literature helped to support ground-level data.

Findings

In the face of a flood, results showed that people with intersectional characteristics become more vulnerable within the at-risk groups. There are differences in people's level of vulnerabilities among the people of vulnerable groups. The results support the discussion that intersectionality exaggerates vulnerabilities, thus reducing the level of disaster resilience. The study summarizes that intersectionality needs to be addressed while supporting groups at risk to achieve a resilient community.

Research limitations/implications

The study is only based on qualitative and secondary data. For more generalized findings and implications, further research is needed. Also, this study will work as a guideline for future studies.

Originality/value

The study is one of the few works related to intersectionality. This study will open a new window to understand the importance of focusing on intersectional conditions while developing plans for disaster risk reduction (DRR).

Details

Continuity & Resilience Review, vol. 3 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2516-7502

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 7 August 2018

Javier Castro-Spila, Rosa Torres, Carolina Lorenzo and Alba Santa

The purpose of this paper is to devise an experimental lab like infrastructure in the higher education connecting social innovation with sustainable tourism.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to devise an experimental lab like infrastructure in the higher education connecting social innovation with sustainable tourism.

Design/methodology/approach

In order to model a laboratory of social innovation and sustainable tourism lab (SISTOUR-LAB), the method of agile research was employed. This method involves the creation of successive and accumulative prototypes of four kinds: conceptual, relational, functional and transferable. Thus, agile research enables the integration of different social perspectives into the same prototype in a recursive manner.

Findings

The SISTOUR-LAB is a work-based learning strategy that allows for the development of a mapping process on tourism vulnerabilities (linked to opportunities for social innovation); the development of experimental training in prototyping social innovations on sustainable tourism; the design of hybrid social innovation business models linked to sustainable tourism; and the development of a relational model of evaluation linking together social innovation competencies with processes of transition toward sustainable tourism.

Research limitations/implications

The SISTOUR-LAB is a prototypical lab that combines social innovation and sustainable tourism in an experimental setting. The SISTOUR-LAB has been modeled based on the agile research method, but it will be necessary to test it empirically to stabilize the model. Once stabilized, the model shall lead to a better understanding of the relationship between work-based learning, social innovation and sustainable tourism in the area of higher education.

Practical implications

The SISTOUR-LAB has four implications: teachers: the SISTOUR-LAB provides teachers with a setting for the development of experimental education models that connect the problems of conventional tourism with social innovation in order to foster new learning environments oriented toward sustainable tourism; students: the SISTOUR-LAB enhances the employability of students since it connects them with agents and demands of touristic transition, while also fostering entrepreneurial development by means of improving the acquisition of social entrepreneurship competences for sustainable tourism; organizations: the SISTOUR-LAB provides an experimental setting for the prototyping of social innovations so as to assist organizations in the formulation of models, prototypes and evaluations that facilitate the transition toward sustainable tourism; policymaking: the SISTOUR-LAB promotes the design of evidence-based public policies, which fosters inclusive models of innovation and the regional monitoring of transitions toward sustainable tourism.

Originality/value

There exist little reference to the link between social innovation and sustainable tourism in the academic and institutional literature. The SISTOUR-LAB is a work-based learning strategy that fosters the structuring of experimental relations between social innovation and sustainable tourism by integrating touristic organizations to the development of competencies in higher education. The SISTOUR-LAB has programmatic and prospective value. It can be considered as a guide for the development of generative competencies, i.e. competencies that generate social innovations that impact chain triggers transitions toward sustainable tourism.

Details

Higher Education, Skills and Work-Based Learning, vol. 8 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2042-3896

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 2 April 2021

Emanuele Padovani, Silvia Iacuzzi, Susana Jorge and Liliana Pimentel

This paper explores how global pandemic crises affect the financial vulnerability of municipalities.

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper explores how global pandemic crises affect the financial vulnerability of municipalities.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper is developed from the relevant literature an analytical framework to examine municipal financial vulnerability before a global pandemic crisis and in its immediate aftermath by mapping and systematizing its dimensions and sources. To illustrate how it can be used and evaluate its robustness and flexibility, such a tool was applied to Portugal and Italy, two countries that particularly suffered from the Covid-19 crisis.

Findings

The application of the analytical framework has shown how financially vulnerable municipalities are to global pandemic crises. Financial vulnerability relates to issues ranging from institutional design to internal financial conditions and the perception of the capacity to cope with a crisis. Results further reveal that vulnerability has an inherent contingent nature in time and space and can lead to paradoxical outcomes.

Research limitations/implications

This paper provides a tool that can be useful for both academic and public policy purposes, to further appreciate municipal financial vulnerability, especially during crises.

Practical implications

Municipalities can use the framework to better manage their financial vulnerability, strengthening their anticipatory and copying capacities, while oversight authorities can use it to help municipalities become less financially vulnerable or, at least, more aware of their financial vulnerability.

Originality/value

Municipal financial vulnerability to global shocks has not been explored extensively. Also, the Covid-19 pandemic is different from previous global crises as it affected society overnight with the implementation of lockdown and social distancing measures.

Details

Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management, vol. 33 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1096-3367

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 January 2006

Bob Alexander, Catherine Chan‐Halbrendt and Wilmar Salim

The purpose of this paper is to build on recent analysis of sustainable vulnerability reduction of the Government of Indonesia tsunami rehabilitation and reconstruction plan by…

5398

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to build on recent analysis of sustainable vulnerability reduction of the Government of Indonesia tsunami rehabilitation and reconstruction plan by applying a sustainable livelihood framework for disaster risk management (DRM) for improvement in understanding potential livelihood strategies for the specific context of vulnerable people previously involved in fisheries livelihoods in Aceh.

Design/methodology/approach

Brief discussion of the preliminary findings of the work of Salim reveals the recommendation of further examination within a sustainable livelihoods DRM framework. Thus, after development and exposition of this framework, interviews and secondary research allow brief description of the context in which livelihood strategies might be implemented.

Findings

By combining the preliminary assessment of resource provisions with discussion of the institutional and vulnerability context of fisheries activities, preliminary recommendations of important considerations in developing appropriate vulnerability‐reducing livelihood strategies are listed under the categories of resource provisions.

Originality/value

This paper should be valuable to researchers interested in further development of applicable DRM models and to government and non‐government agencies interested in the effectiveness of assistance in achieving long‐term sustainable livelihood and sustainable development goals.

Details

Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal, vol. 15 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-3562

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 6 October 2021

Musabber Ali Chisty, Ashrafuzzaman Nazim, Md. Mostafizur Rahman, Syeda Erena Alam Dola and Nesar Ahmed Khan

Persons with disabilities face the impacts of disasters differently. Early warning systems can be one of the powerful tools to reduce the vulnerabilities of persons with…

Abstract

Purpose

Persons with disabilities face the impacts of disasters differently. Early warning systems can be one of the powerful tools to reduce the vulnerabilities of persons with disabilities and mitigate the impacts of disasters. The main objective of this study was to assess the disability inclusiveness of the current early warning system (EWS) in flood-prone areas of Bangladesh.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative method was focused on getting in-depth information. Persons with disabilities participated in focus group discussions (FGDs) and shared the inclusiveness and gaps of the current EWS. Through extensive literature review, a checklist was developed to conduct the FGDs. QDA Miner 6.0.6 software was used for coding and analyzing the data.

Findings

Results indicated that, though persons with disabilities have proper risk knowledge, the current monitoring and warning service, dissemination and communication, and response capability are not fully inclusive. A significant gap in the EWS was found in response capability. Even if somehow persons with disabilities manage to receive a warning about a flood, they lack the capacity to respond to the warning.

Research limitations/implications

The study proposed that to make an EWS inclusive and effective, the concerned authorities should focus on all four parts of the EWS.

Originality/value

Studies related to disability and disaster management are not very common. Conducting a qualitative study provided the persons with disabilities the opportunity to share their perspectives. Future studies can focus on vulnerability and capacity assessment of persons with disabilities to identify areas requiring interventions to enhance resilience.

Details

Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal, vol. 30 no. 4/5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-3562

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 28 March 2015

Martin Krygier

This paper seeks to identify in Philip Selznick’s earliest predominantly organizational writings the germs of a strong and unifying temper – or better perhaps, because the concept…

Abstract

This paper seeks to identify in Philip Selznick’s earliest predominantly organizational writings the germs of a strong and unifying temper – or better perhaps, because the concept plays a significant role in the works, a coherent intellectual and moral character. It infuses Selznick’s work in all the domains he entered. It was evident in his earliest political writings and contributions to organization theory, and remained so in his later contributions to the sociology of law and social and public philosophy.

At one level each of his works had a different subject, at another they all were pondered within a common frame of concerns, intellectual and moral, and approached with a distinctive manner and tone. At a general level, this involved a conception of social science as a “humanist science,” the central concern of which was the fate of values in the world. His specific posture in relation to this subject was underpinned by a commitment to moral realism, or what I call “Hobbesian idealism.”

Selznick began, like Thomas Hobbes as a threat expert, and never lost regard for that expertise. He is alert to fragility, vulnerability, and the need to guard against them. Moreover, his normative reflections are sustained and deepened by his understanding of social processes in general, and of the dangers to which organizations and institutions, but also human personalities and groups, are susceptible. He has a lot to tell us about ways in which those dangers might be avoided. However, Selznick resists stopping where Hobbes stops. Though he stresses the presence and resilience of evil and the need for strenuous efforts to contain it, he holds out for more. Indeed, though recognizing danger might be the beginning of wisdom, it is only half – over time less than half – of the story.

He emphasized the importance of attending both to Hobbesian insights and idealistic ambitions in relation to organizational leadership, to law, to justice, to human achievement of all kinds. To see him, as the earliest critics of his organizational theory did, as a voice of unadulterated melancholy, or as his later ones tended to, as altogether too programmatically sunny and full of hope, is to miss the real core of the intellectual and moral sensibility that pervaded his life of scholarship in the social sciences. The paper concludes by commending this uncommon sensibility, both at the general level of advocacy of “humanist science” and in its specific “Hobbesian idealist” posture.

Details

Institutions and Ideals: Philip Selznick’s Legacy for Organizational Studies
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78441-726-0

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 August 2022

Maria da Glória Bonelli, Fernanda Damacena, Aline Silveira Viana, Alice Dianezi Gambardella and Victor Marchezini

This article discusses the professional status of civil defense and protection agents and coordinators in Brazil, their working conditions and demands for professionalization in…

Abstract

Purpose

This article discusses the professional status of civil defense and protection agents and coordinators in Brazil, their working conditions and demands for professionalization in disaster risk management.

Design/methodology/approach

Two online surveys with operators and civil defense and protection managers and documentary analysis based this research. The first survey engaged 1,933 participants who provided information about the working conditions at municipal civil defense, while the second involved 1,344 civil respondents who assessed their roles and duties in disaster risk management.

Findings

Civil defense and protection agents pointed to the high turnover in these positions as the main factor for setbacks in disaster risk reduction, allied to precarious working conditions, lack of training, and unclear responsibilities in disaster risk management.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to the international debate on the professionalization of civil defense and protection and disaster risk management, bringing some insights from the sociology of professions. It has a policy impact of suggesting pathways to the inclusion of civil defense and protection in the Brazilian Occupational Classification to advance professional patterns and public recognition of disaster risk management careers.

Details

Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal, vol. 31 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-3562

Keywords

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