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The purpose of this paper is to deliver a detailed analysis of the functioning of upstream–downstream interface process of the tsunami early warning and mitigation system in Sri Lanka. It also gives an understanding of the social, administrative, political and cultural complexities attached to the operation of interface mechanism, and introduces an analytical framework highlighting the significant dynamics of the interface of tsunami early warning system in Sri Lanka.

Through the initial literature review, a conceptual framework was developed, highlighting the criteria against which the interface process can be assessed. This framework was used as the basis for developing data collection tools, namely, documentary analysis, semi-structured interviews and observations that focused on the key stakeholder institutions in Sri Lanka. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data according to the conceptual framework, and an improved and detailed framework was developed deriving from the findings.

The manner in which the interface mechanism operates in Sri Lanka’s tsunami early warning system is discussed, providing a detailed understanding of the decision-making structures; key actors; standardisation; technical and human capacities; socio-spatial dynamics; coordination among actors; communication and information dissemination; and the evaluation processes. Several gaps and shortcomings were identified with relation to some of these aspects, and the significance of addressing these gaps is highlighted in the paper.

A number of recommendations are provided to address the existing shortcomings and to improve the overall performance of tsunami warning system in Sri Lanka.

Based on the findings, a framework was developed into a more detailed analytical framework that depicts the interface operationalisation in Sri Lanka, and can also be potentially applied to similar cases across the world. The new analytical framework was validated through a focus group discussion held in Sri Lanka with the participation of experts and practitioners.

The current National Early Warning System for Sri Lanka (NEWS: SL) was established after the devastations of the Indian Ocean Tsunami in 2004. Although early warning (EW) systems and evacuation procedures are in place, several areas which need improvements have been emphasized in recent studies carried out in the country. Therefore, this paper aims to outline the gaps in existing EW and EP related to tsunami and other coastal hazards with a special focus on the use of social media for disaster communication based on age groups.

This study has drawn on a review of past studies carried out by the same research team to identify the scope of the study. In addition to that, a conceptual framework was developed for the use of social media in the event of a disaster. Based on this conceptual framework, an online questionnaire was administered to identify the current status of the use of social media in Sri Lanka during a disaster situation. In total, 408 responses were collected and analyzed using the binary logistic regression method to evaluate the variation of different predictors associated with the use of social media for disaster communication.

Findings of the study revealed that the use of social media for disaster communication depends on the previous experience of users and their age. The gender of users does not affect the use of social media for disaster communication. Therefore, the accuracy and timeliness of disaster information distributed via social media should be improved further to enhance the use of social media for disaster communication. Moreover, the findings have highlighted unaddressed issues in areas such as governance; communication of technical agencies; evacuation and shelters; and response of the community.

This paper has identified key areas that need attention in the process of enhancing the use of social media for disaster communication. More use of technological platforms such as social media for receiving disaster-related information can address issues such as bottlenecks in communication, poor awareness and lack of last-mile dissemination. Furthermore, this paper has proposed recommendations for addressing the identified gaps in the overall EW mechanisms and EP pertaining to tsunamis and other coastal hazards to enhance the coastal disaster resilience in Sri Lanka.

Given the current focus on sustainable development, there is a need to identify the current status of the transport sector in developing countries and the obstacles to the development of a sustainable transport system. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to provide a critical review on what needs to be done in such countries towards a sustainable transportation system. The focus of the paper will be on the South Asian context. In order to achieve the aim, the paper examines the current issues, the policy context and the key actions required in the countries selected in South Asia (i.e. Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives and Nepal).

The main method used for the project was a combination of semi-structured interviews and focus groups. In addition, a policy analysis was also carried out with a use of secondary data. Altogether, 348 interviews and 16 focus groups (with 157 participants) were carried out in the selected six countries. Although the purpose of the research methods was to carry out a situational analysis of each country mentioned above on seven societal challenges identified under the EU’s Horizon 2020 research programme, this paper only focusses on presenting the findings relating to sustainable transport.

Findings reveal that South Asian countries need to improve different aspects of their transportation sector, starting from national-level transportation policies. Sustainable transportation is not merely about mobility but also about creating safer, convenient and environmentally friendly transportation systems. Some key actions needed for these include introducing driver and passenger safety regulations, establishing vehicle emissions test centres to reduce CO2 emissions, and introducing public-private partnerships where useful.

This study provides a robust policy direction towards the introduction/improvement of a sustainable transportation system in South Asian countries.

Post conflict housing reconstruction is crucial to development and peacekeeping. However, the success of it, is hindered by a number of problems related to a lack of addressing housing needs. The purpose of this paper is to explore how such housing needs can be effectively managed in post conflict housing reconstruction in Sri Lanka.

Using the grounded theory method as the research strategy, unstructured interviews were conducted with policy makers, practitioners, beneficiaries and academics in Sri Lanka. Data were analysed using open, axial and selective coding to develop the theoretical framework.

The study reveals the challenges, contributing factors and strategies in addressing housing needs of accessibility, habitability, affordability, location, facilities, cultural considerations and security of land tenure. It also identifies the gaps and recommendations. The paper establishes the links between these and presents a theoretical framework for managing housing needs effectively in post conflict housing reconstruction in Sri Lanka.

This research enhances the success of post conflict housing reconstruction through addressing housing needs effectively, which contributes to sustainable housing development after conflicts.

The study combines the literature from five main areas: conflicts, post conflict, post conflict reconstruction, post conflict housing reconstruction and housing needs and provides a better understanding on how the housing needs can be managed during post conflict housing reconstruction in developing countries based on empirical evidence.

It is significant to assess the societal trust toward the new advancements in multi-hazard early warnings (MHEW) with the focus on disaster risk reduction (DRR). Based on this, the purpose of this paper is to examine the extent of societal trust behavior along with the parameters such as mode of communication and institutions of issuing early warnings (EWs).

A field questionnaire survey was conducted to identify the extent of societal trust. This was conducted in ten selected Grama Niladari divisions in Sri Lanka based on a developed hazard matrix. The fuzzy logic approach was applied to examine the trust level of collected 323 responses obtained through this. The analysis was done based on the responses on mobile-based platforms in EW and the credibility level of the warnings received through different institutions.

The analyzed survey responses indicated that society has a higher extent of trust toward the EWs disseminated through mobile-based platforms. Moreover, these represent a strong positive correlation among the societal trust level and the level of importance of EW dissemination through mobile-based platforms. Further, in terms of trusted stakeholders in issuing EW alerts, Disaster Management Center, Sri Lanka Police and Media ranked the highest in the Sri Lankan context. Overall, findings were visually mapped through the causal loop diagrams (CLDs).

In enhancing the effectiveness of the existing MHEW mechanism, the policy implications could be done, based on the results obtained from this research study. These could be altered with the implementation of DRR strategies with a community focus.

The fuzzy logic approach was used in the determination of the societal decision-making on the extent of trust level. Fuzzy triangulation is mainly applied in the interpretation of the results. Further, overall parameters that determine the community trust on MHEW are represented through CLDs through system dynamics application.

This study aims to identify the gaps in current policy and propose a viable framework for policy improvement regarding people-centered tsunami early warning chain in Padang City. The objectives are: to describe the gaps and flaws in the current policy regarding local tsunami early warning chain, to identify potential actors to be involved in the tsunami early warning chain and to assess the roles and capacity of actors, and their potential for involvement in early warning.

This study is an exploratory study using social network analysis (SNA) on regulations and other legal documents, and primary data sources from a focus group discussion and semi-structured interviews.

The study found that the existed regulation lacks extension nodes to relay warnings to the populations at risk, often referred to as “the last mile.” Moreover, receiving warning information from both formal and informal sources is important to mobilize people evacuation more effectively during an emergency. The study found that mosque communities and disaster preparedness leaders are the potential actors who should be involved in the local early warning chain.

The research findings were presented as a recommendation to Padang City Government and have been legalized as the new tsunami early warning chain procedure in the Padang City Mayor Regulation 19/2018.

This research investigated local tsunami early warning dissemination in Padang City using SNA. The study demonstrates a close collaboration between researchers, practitioners and the community.

This paper aims to identify the main aspects requiring immediate attention in the post-disaster reconstruction of road infrastructure, thereby providing a major synthesis, which advances the understanding in this important area.

Literature and empirical evidence obtained from documents and semi-structured interviews with 28 respondents of three case study districts in Aceh, Indonesia was analysed using NVivo 10. The findings were validated through triangulation with the literature and consultation with the experts in the field of disaster management and road infrastructure.

The authors propose a framework for the reconstruction of road infrastructure, which respond to the peculiarities of road projects in a post-disaster setting. The framework comprises various components requiring detailed attention in the reconstruction process and describes their position in the road project and disaster management cycle.

The framework fills the gap in the body of knowledge with regard to road infrastructure reconstruction in a post-disaster context. For the first time, this paper recognises the importance of local government capacity in the Aceh Province with regard to the sustainability of the post-disaster reconstruction assets.

The purpose of this paper is to improve the conceptual understanding of the process of participation in early warning systems (EWS) through a review of participatory EWS examples in the academic literature. Specifically, this paper asks: who is involved, what responsibilities do participants hold, what activities are they involved in, and what are the associated successes, issues and outcomes?

A total of 30 cases of participation in EWS documented in the academic literature were identified through online searches. Existing concepts in participation (power and responsibility, communication) and people-centred early warning (risk knowledge, monitoring and warning, communication and dissemination and response capability) were used to examine each paper.

Participation was found to take place through a range of activities across all elements of the EWS. Participation also varied in breadth of inclusion, ranging from the general public to selected volunteers. The majority of cases received support and facilitation from other actors, such as government and NGOs, but the extent of power and responsibility held by participants varied greatly within this. Common successes and issues associated with participatory EWS and the potential outcomes are presented, and the opportunities, challenges and gaps in knowledge are discussed.

This paper links participation and EWS literature to form a clearer conceptualisation of participation in EWS in support of future research in the field. It provides unique insights into who participates, their roles and relations with other actors and the outcomes of participation.

This paper aims to describe an in-depth study that aimed to assess and develop a strategic disaster risk reduction plan to integrate climate change adaptation countermeasures in Cilincing, a North Jakarta City sub-district.

The study used a back-casting approach to cover hazard assessment induced by increased susceptibility, as well as vulnerability, both as a baseline study and projected up to 2045 at the micro level. The urban village (Kelurahan) level is the unit of analysis. The capacity analysis is used as baseline data, which is reviewed against the trend of the hazard and vulnerability.

The results of the study identify short-, medium- and long-term recommendations to integrate disaster risk reduction and climate change adaption. These include capacity building, especially emergency response capabilities, an increase of drainage capacity, improvements to transboundary management and minimising driving forces.

These findings at the micro level are very important to present a more holistic and realistic strategy that can be implemented until 2045, but also provides a basis for up scaling into metropolitan region planning.

This is a unique, micro-scale case study in the Cilincing sub-district of Jakarta that assesses and develops strategic disaster risk countermeasures and a reduction plan that integrates the effects of climate change, thereby addressing future disaster risk in Jakarta.