In the early months of 2020, the world's attention was riveted on Australia, where the nation's iconic wildlife fought for survival in the face of unprecedented wildfires. Images of koalas drinking from firefighters' water bottles went viral and became the global face of a catastrophe that would kill as many as three billion animals. Known as the Black Summer, the fire season was responsible for more wildlife deaths and near-extinctions than any other single event in Australian history. Flames of Extinction, written by a journalist at the heart of this news coverage, is the first book to tell the stories of Australia's record-setting fires, focusing on the wild animals and plants that will be forever changed. As news of the fires spread around the world, journalist John Pickrell was inundated with requests for articles about the danger to Australia's wildlife. The picture seemed grim, from charred koalas to flames that burned so hot not even animal skeletons remained. But Pickrell's reporting exposed a larger picture of hope. Flames of Extinction tells the story of the scientists, wildlife rehabilitators, and community members who came together to save wildlife and protect them in the future. As climate change intensifies and devastating wildfires become more commonplace, Australia's Black Summer offers a poignant warning to the rest of the world. Through evocative and urgent storytelling, Flames of Extinction puts readers on the ground to witness the aftermath of one of Australia's greatest tragedies and inside the inspiring effort to save lives.

This book presents the evolution of the science technology paradigm in Japan and analyzes the critical community and local governance issues from the perspectives of the changing risk landscape, Society 5.0, and digital transformation. It also provides suggestions for the future development of a resilient society and community, by drawing lessons from other countries. Advancements in science technology in recent decades in Japan and the world might have increased our capacity to tackle the adverse human consequences of various kinds of disasters and environmental issues. However, the accompanied and interlinking phenomena of urbanization, climate change, rural to urban migration, population decreases, and aged population have posed new challenges, especially in the small, medium-sized cities, and in rural areas of Japan. This is also enhanced by the risk of cascading, complex and systemic risk, which is defining a new normal as "living with uncertainties". Society 5.0 is defined as "A human-centered society that balances economic advancement with the resolution of social problems by a system that highly integrates cyberspace and physical space." Society 5.0 was proposed in the 5th Science and Technology Basic Plan as a future society that Japan should aspire to. Society 5.0 achieves a high degree of convergence between cyberspace (virtual space) and physical space (real space), compared with the past information society (Society 4.0) that people would access a cloud service (databases) in cyberspace via the Internet and search for, retrieve, and analyze information or data. In Japan, in the initial stage, a great deal of confusion about the number of people infected with coronavirus occurred. Not only made it inefficient, but it did not produce the accurate data needed for critical decisions. Japan may have unique disadvantages compared with other countries. Trying to drive digitization without thoroughly understanding these disadvantages and addressing them head-on will only lead to failed digital transformations. With these three pillars of changing risk landscape, Society 5.0, and Digital transformation drive, the book will analyze the evolution of the science technology paradigm in Japan, will go deeper into the critical community and local governance issues, and will provide suggestions for future development of resilient society and community, by drawing lessons from overseas disaster risk reduction.

The first part of this book reviews the basics of atmospheric chemistry, radiation transport, and optical spectroscopy before detailing the principles underlying DOAS. The second part describes the design and application of DOAS instruments as well as the evaluation and interpretation of spectra. The recent expansion of DOAS application to the imaging of trace gas distributions by ground, aircraft, and satellite-based instruments is also covered.

An earthquake shatters Haiti and a hurricane slices through Texas. We hear that nature runs rampant, seeking to destroy us through these 'natural disasters'. Science recounts a different story, however: disasters are not the consequence of natural causes; they are the consequence of human choices and decisions. We put ourselves in harm's way; we fail to take measures which we know would prevent disasters, no matter what the environment does. This can be both hard to accept, and hard to unravel. A complex of factors shape disasters. They arise from the political processes dictating where and what we build, and from social circumstances which create and perpetuate poverty and discrimination. They develop from the social preference to blame nature for the damage wrought, when in fact events such as earthquakes and storms are entirely commonplace environmental processes. We feel the need to fight natural forces, to reclaim what we assume is ours, and to protect ourselves from what we perceive to be wrath from outside our communities. This attitude distracts us from the real causes of disasters: humanity's decisions, as societies and as individuals. It stops us accepting the real solutions to disasters: making better decisions. This book explores stories of some of our worst disasters to show how we can and should act to stop people dying when nature unleashes its energies. The disaster is not the tornado, the volcanic eruption, or climate change, but the deaths and injuries, the loss of irreplaceable property, and the lack and even denial of support to affected people, so that a short-term interruption becomes a long-term recovery nightmare. But we can combat this, as Kelman shows, describing inspiring examples of effective human action that limits damage, such as managing flooding in Toronto and villages in Bangladesh, or wildfires in Colorado. Throughout, his message is clear: there is no such thing as a natural disaster. The disaster lies in our inability to deal with the environment and with ourselves.

Published with ProVention Consortium, UNDP and UN-Habitat 'This excellent book is essential reading for those concerned with urban risk and its reduction in Africa, the most rapidly urbanizing region of the world.'Professor Jo Beall, Development Studies Institute, London School of Economics 'At last a book that recognizes the impacts of disasters on Africa's 350 million urban dwellers, including the many disasters that get overlooked and go unrecorded. But also a book that, through careful case studies, shows what creates disaster risk and what local measures can be taken to address it.'David Satterthwaite, International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED).'This innovative volume combines the latest conceptualisations of urban disaster risk and vulnerability with case studies from across the African continent on how existing and innovative information can inform efforts to address the problems. Coverage ranges from the major catastrophes of news headlines to small, everyday disasters with which poor urban residents have to cope in their survival strategies. Written by international authorities and local specialists, this extremely useful book should find a place in the hands of academics and practitioners alike.'Professor David Simon, Department of Geography, Royal Holloway, University of LondonThis is a one-of-a-kind book packed with original research and offering an innovative way of thinking about the reduction of risk in rapidly urbanizing cities across the globe. It is a must-have for professionals, researchers and policy makers.The book addresses four inter-related themes critical for urban risk reduction: environment; livehood; urban governance and the generation of urban risks. Its focus is on Africa, the most rapidly urbanizing world region, but it illustrates global processes. Part one reviews development, urbanization and disaster risk in Africa as a whole, identifies state-of-the-art practices and policies for building urban resilience and provides a tool kit for urban risk reduction. It also presents a powerful conceptual framework to analyse and compare disaster risk and resilience in different cities and communities. Part two presents detailed case studies from Algeria, Ghana, Senegal, Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa illustrating vulnerability to hazards ranging from earthquake to shack fire, environmental health hazards, traffic hazards and flooding. Part three looks to the future and outlines a vision for a safer urban Africa based on achieving gains in human security through inclusive governance and investment in the creative capacities of Africa's urban dwellers.With foreword by Anna Tibaijuka, Executive Director, UN-HABITAT

"Building Back Better" (BBB) has been a popular slogan in disaster recovery efforts around the world, including the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, the 2009 Samoan Tsunami, the 2010 Haiti Earthquake and the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. BBB has recently been identified as one of four priorities of action for disaster risk reduction globally in the next 15 years by the United Nations Sendai Framework. However, there has consistently been a mismatch and confusion in the interpretation of the phrase and what BBB encapsulates which has made proper implementation difficult and unsuccessful at times. This book explains the concept of "Building Back Better" as an innovative holistic approach to rebuilding a community following a disaster event in order to develop resilience. It begins by exploring the background, development and definitions of BBB. The theory behind establishing BBB as a holistic concept is explained and the internationally recognised BBB Framework developed by the authors is introduced and described. Each of the components of the Framework are explained in detail with findings from international research and case studies from the US, Haiti, Indonesia, Samoa, Sri Lanka, Vanuatu, Gaza, China, Australia, UK and New Zealand, providing practical recommendations for implementation in recovery projects. There is a focus on the translation of BBB theory into practice to assist implementers to use the BBB Framework and BBB Indicators introduced in this book as an effective tool to plan and implement disaster recovery projects. This publication can be used as a handbook by government, non-governmental and private industry practitioners to prepare for and implement post disaster recovery projects that benefit and strengthen local communities and as a core text on international Disaster and Energy Management courses.

Every year, droughts, floods, and fires impact hundreds of millions of people and cause massive economic losses. Climate change is making these catastrophes more dangerous. Now. Not in the future: NOW. This book describes how and why climate change is already fomenting dire consequences, and will certainly make climate disasters worse in the near future. Chris C. Funk combines the latest science with compelling stories, providing a timely, accessible, and beautifully-written synopsis of this critical topic. The book describes our unique and fragile Earth system, and the negative impacts humans are having on our support systems. It then examines recent disasters, including heat waves, extreme precipitation, hurricanes, fires, El Ninos and La Ninas, and their human consequences. By clearly describing the dangerous impacts that are already occurring, Funk provides a clarion call for social change, yet also conveys the beauty and wonder of our planet, and hope for our collective future.

Since the first edition of The Human Side of Disaster was published in 2009, new catastrophes have plagued the globe, including earthquakes in Haiti and New Zealand, tornadoes in Alabama and Missouri, floods in numerous locations, Hurricane Sandy, and the infamous BP oil spill. Enhanced with new cases and real-world examples, The Human Side of Disaster, Second Edition presents an updated summary of the social science knowledge base of human responses to disaster. Dr. Drabek draws upon his 40-plus years of conducting research on individual, group, and organizational responses to disaster to illustrate and integrate key insights from the social sciences to teach us how to anticipate human behaviors in crisis. The book begins with a series of original short stories rooted within actual disaster events. These stories are woven into the entire text to demonstrate essential findings from the research literature. Dr. Drabek provides an overview of the range of disasters and hazards confronting the public and an explanation of why these are increasing each year, both in number and scope of impact. The core of the book is a summary of key findings regarding disaster warning responses, evacuation behavior, initial post-impact survival behavior, traditional and emergent roles of volunteers, and both short-term and longer-term disaster impacts. The theme of "organized-disorganization" is used to illustrate multiorganizational response networks that form the key managerial task for local emergency managers. The final chapter provides a new vision for the emergency management profession-one that reflects a more strategic approach wherein disasters are viewed as non-routine social problems. This book will continue to be an invaluable reference for professionals and students in emergency management and public policy and aid organizations who need to understand human behavior and how best to communicate and work with the public in disaster situations.

A biodiversity hotspot, Florida is home to many ecosystems and species that depend on frequent fire to exist. In this book, Reed Noss discusses the essential role of fire in generating biodiversity and offers best practices for using fire to keep the region's ecosystems healthy and resilient. Reviewing fossil evidence, Noss shows that fire has been important to the Southeastern Coastal Plain for tens of millions of years. He explains how the region's natural fire patterns are connected to its climate, high rate of lightning strikes, physical chemistry, and vegetation. But urbanization has recently reduced the frequency and range of these fires in profound ways. Noss believes the practice of controlled burns can and should be improved in order to protect fire-dependent species from extinction. Noss argues that fire managers should mimic the natural fire regimes of an area when conducting controlled burns. Based on what the species of the Southeast experienced during their evolutionary histories, he makes recommendations about pyrodiversity, how often and in what seasons to burn, the optimal heterogeneity of burns, mechanical treatments such as cutting and roller-chopping, and the proper use of fuel breaks. In doing so, Noss is the first to apply the new discipline of evolutionary fire ecology to a specific region. This book is a fascinating history of fire ecology in Florida, an enlightening look at why fire matters to the region, and a necessary resource for conservationists and fire managers in the state and surrounding areas.

"Building Back Better" (BBB) has been a popular slogan in disaster recovery efforts around the world, including the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, the 2009 Samoan Tsunami, the 2010 Haiti Earthquake and the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. BBB has recently been identified as one of four priorities of action for disaster risk reduction globally in the next 15 years by the United Nations Sendai Framework. However, there has consistently been a mismatch and confusion in the interpretation of the phrase and what BBB encapsulates which has made proper implementation difficult and unsuccessful at times. This book explains the concept of "Building Back Better" as an innovative holistic approach to rebuilding a community following a disaster event in order to develop resilience. It begins by exploring the background, development and definitions of BBB. The theory behind establishing BBB as a holistic concept is explained and the internationally recognised BBB Framework developed by the authors is introduced and described. Each of the components of the Framework are explained in detail with findings from international research and case studies from the US, Haiti, Indonesia, Samoa, Sri Lanka, Vanuatu, Gaza, China, Australia, UK and New Zealand, providing practical recommendations for implementation in recovery projects. There is a focus on the translation of BBB theory into practice to assist implementers to use the BBB Framework and BBB Indicators introduced in this book as an effective tool to plan and implement disaster recovery projects. This publication can be used as a handbook by government, non-governmental and private industry practitioners to prepare for and implement post disaster recovery projects that benefit and strengthen local communities and as a core text on international Disaster and Energy Management courses.

The devastating impacts of natural disasters not only directly affect humans and infrastructure, but also animals, which may be crucial to the livelihoods of many people. This book considers the needs of animals in the aftermath of disasters and explains the importance of looking to their welfare in extreme events. The authors explore how animals are affected by specific disaster types, what their emergency and subsequent welfare needs are and the appropriate interventions. They describe the key benefits of management of animals to populations and discuss preventative measures that can be taken to reduce risk and build resilience. They also include a summary of recent debates and public policy advances on animals in disasters. The book covers livestock, companion and wild animals, with case studies to show how the concepts can be put into practice. It provides a standalone text for students of disaster studies and management as well as professionals and NGOs who require an entry-level introduction to the subject.

The world has spent the majority of 2020 enduring an unpreceded crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The impact of this crisis has been enormous, and the situation has yet to be resolved. It is still difficult to anticipate when the pandemic will end and how our lives will have changed after the crisis. Higher educational institutions (HEIs) have also had to undergo tremendous transformation, in particular, changing a conventional educational, teaching, and learning system to a digital and online mode and cancelling or postponing important events such as graduation and entrance ceremonies and entrance examinations. In addition, a number of HEIs have been facing financial constraints due to reduced enrolment, particularly from overseas. Students have missed opportunities to meet their family and friends, causing profound psychosocial impact and stress for all concerned. Simultaneously, however, the situation has given HEIs a good opportunity to consider their disaster preparedness, response, and recovery capacity on campus. Some surveys have highlighted a lack of preparedness for pandemic and other hazardous risks beyond natural hazards. Safety issues are a top priority at HEIs because they bring together a number of students, faculty, and staff. This book covers the experiences and lessons learned from HEIs in preparedness, response, and recovery during the COVID-19 pandemic to prepare for such calamities beyond natural disasters in the future. The book consists of 15 chapters divided into three major sections. They highlight the importance of HEIs' governance issues in disaster risk management, examine the challenges that HEIs have faced during the pandemic and the implementation of new teaching and learning methodologies, and provide innovative responses and preparedness by HEIs based on science and technology, respectively.

The Angry Earth explores how various cultures in different historical moments have responded to calamity, offering insight into the complex relationship between societies and their environments. From hurricanes, floods, and earthquakes to oil spills and nuclear accidents, disasters triggered by both natural and technological hazards have become increasingly frequent and destructive across the planet. Through case studies drawn from around the globe the contributors to this volume examine issues ranging from the social and political factors that set the stage for disaster, to the cultural processes experienced by survivors, to the long-term impact of disasters on culture and society. In the second edition, each chapter has been updated with a postscript to reflect on recent developments in the field. There is also new material on key present-day topics including epidemics, drought, non-governmental organizations, and displacement and resettlement. This book demonstrates the relevance of studying disaster from an anthropological perspective and is a valuable resource not only for anthropologists but for other fields concerned with education, policy and practice.

In this history of extinction and existential risk, a Newsweek and Bloomberg popular science and investigative journalist examines our most dangerous mistakes -- and explores how we can protect and future-proof our civilization. End Times is a compelling work of skilled reportage that peels back the layers of complexity around the unthinkable -- and inevitable -- end of humankind. From asteroids and artificial intelligence to volcanic supereruption to nuclear war, veteran science reporter and TIME editor Bryan Walsh provides a stunning panoramic view of the most catastrophic threats to the human race. In End Times, Walsh examines threats that emerge from nature and those of our own making: asteroids, supervolcanoes, nuclear war, climate change, disease pandemics, biotechnology, artificial intelligence, and extraterrestrial intelligence. Walsh details the true probability of these world-ending catastrophes, the impact on our lives were they to happen, and the best strategies for saving ourselves, all pulled from his rigorous and deeply thoughtful reporting and research. Walsh goes into the room with the men and women whose job it is to imagine the unimaginable. He includes interviews with those on the front lines of prevention, actively working to head off existential threats in biotechnology labs and government hubs. Guided by Walsh's evocative, page-turning prose, we follow scientific stars like the asteroid hunters at NASA and the disease detectives on the trail of the next killer virus. Walsh explores the danger of apocalypse in all forms. In the end, it will be the depth of our knowledge, the height of our imagination, and our sheer will to survive that will decide the future.

As humanitarian needs continue to grow rapidly, humanitarian action has become more contested, with new actors entering the field to address unmet needs, but also challenging long-held principles and precepts. This volume provides detailed empirical comparisons between emerging and traditional humanitarian actors. It sheds light on why and how the emerging actors engage in humanitarian crises and how their activities are carried out and perceived in their transnational organizational environment. It develops and applies a conceptual framework that fosters research on humanitarian actors and the humanitarian principles. In particular, it simultaneously refers to theories of organizational sociology and international relations to identify both the structural and the situational factors that influence the motivations, aims and activities of these actors, and their different levels of commitment to the traditional humanitarian principles. It thus elucidates the role of the humanitarian principles in promoting coherence and coordination in the crowded and diverse world of humanitarian action, and discusses whether alternative principles and parallel humanitarian systems are in the making. This volume will be of great interest to postgraduate students and scholars in humanitarian studies, globalization and transnationalism research, organizational sociology, international relations, development studies, and migration and diaspora studies, as well as policy makers and practitioners engaged in humanitarian action, development cooperation and migration issues.

Converging Social Justice Issues and Movements argues that multiple contemporary converging crises have significantly altered the context for and object of political contestations around agrarian, climate, environmental and food justice issues. This shift affects alliances, collaboration and conflict among and between state and social forces, as well as within and between social movements. The actual implications and mechanisms by which these changes are happening are, to a large extent, empirical questions that need careful investigation. The majority of the discussions in this volume are dedicated to the issue of responses to the crises both by capitalist forces and those adversely affected by the crises, and the implications of these for academic research and political activist work. Interdisciplinary in nature, Converging Social Justice Issues and Movements will be of great use to scholars of agrarian politics, as well as climate and environmental justice studies. The chapters were originally published as a special issue in Third World Quarterly.

Case Studies in Disaster Recovery, the initial release in the Disaster and Emergency Management: Case Studies in Adaptation and Innovation series, explores recovery from a number of perspectives: household, community and nation. Chapters cover the concept of social vulnerability to explain/predict recovery outcomes, consider broader themes of sustainability, assess community vulnerability and capacity, and explore the challenges associated with long-term recovery and disaster case management. Cases explored illustrate the ways in which communities and governments used the window of opportunity after a disaster to make changes that reduce future risk and vulnerability. Included cases illustrate the diversity of change realized in communities following disasters.

Natural Disaster and Development in a Globalizing World makes clear that there are links between global scale processes and local experiences of disaster, but underlies the difficulty of attributing blame for individual disasters on specific global pressures. It argues that action to reduce disaster needs to be coordinated at the local, national and global scales and that there is a need for greater integration across the physical and social sciences. In this context, the human rights agenda is seen as a way of moving disaster reduction efforts forward.

This volume is the proceedings of a NATO-sponsored Advanced Study Institute (ASI) entitled "Coping with Flash Floods" held in Ravello, Italy on 8-17 November 1999. Thirty-five participants from nine countries attended the ASI, representing both developed (United States, England, Italy, and Mexico) and developing (Poland, Uganda, Greece, Ukraine, and Slovenia) countries. Participants from a variety of professions and disciplines were involved including a hydraulics engineering professor from Slovenia, four members from the Polish Institute of Meteorology and Water Management, and a U. S. Geological Survey research hydrologist from Puerto Rico. Although the ASI was officially composed of lecturers and students, these roles were blurred as each person shared information and ideas, and learned from the other participants during the 10 days. One of the highlights of the ASI was the collaborative effort of participants from different countries and disciplines. It was particularly extraordinary that the two engineers from Greece made the most passionate pleas for long term sustainable solutions to flash floods. A further example is that while there were only three participants with social science backgrounds, most of the recommendations focus on the policy and societal priorities, more than the engineering, hydrologic or meteorologic efforts.

Economic reforms in China began in 1979 and initiated some of the most fundamental changes ever to occur in any country. While allowing some of the most astonishing economic growth the world has seen, they have also induced some of the most profound social and environmental shifts. This volume looks at two aspects of the impacts of the reforms, firstly on the demography of the country (especially migration and urbanization), and secondly on the environment. A third section examines various problems of environmental degradation in relation to natural processes and human efforts to mitigate their effects.

Hurricane Agnes struck the United States in June of 1972, just months before a pivotal election and at the dawn of the deindustrialization period across the Northeast. The response by local, state, and national officials had long-term consequences for all Americans. President Richard Nixon used the tragedy for political gain by delivering a generous relief package to the key states of New York and Pennsylvania in a bid to win over voters. After his landslide reelection in 1972, Nixon cut benefits for disaster victims and then passed legislation to push responsibility for disaster preparation and mitigation on to states and localities. The impact led to the rise of emergency management and inspired the development of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). With a particular focus on events in New York and Pennsylvania, Timothy W. Kneeland narrates how local, state, and federal authorities responded to the immediate crisis of Hurricane Agnes and managed the long-term recovery. The impact of Agnes was horrific, as the storm left 122 people dead, forced tens of thousands into homelessness, and caused billions of dollars in damage from Florida to New York. In its aftermath, local officials and leaders directed disaster relief funds to rebuild their shattered cities and reshaped future disaster policies. Playing Politics with Natural Disaster explains how the political decisions by local, state, and federal officials shaped state and national disaster policy and continues to influence emergency preparedness and response to this day.

On November 8, 2018, the ferocious Camp Fire laid waste to almost the entire town of Paradise, California, a community of 27,000 people. At least 85 died, images of the fire transfixed viewers across the world and the resulting devastation yielded a humanitarian crisis that continues to unfold. Written by a pair of Bay Area reporters who covered the story and its aftermath extensively, Fire in Paradise is a fast-paced narrative of the disaster based on hundreds of in-depth interviews with residents, firefighters, police and scientific experts. Alastair Gee and Dani Anguiano capture an historic event; explore the reasons behind the increasing frequency and force of wildfires in our time and describe the moving efforts to raise Paradise from the ruins.

COVID-19 has made differential impacts on countries and communities around the world. China, where COVID-19 started, has developed and utilized different types of technologies, including both traditional and disruptive technologies, to address the pandemic risks. Also, there have been many innovations in applying technologies in different contexts during the pandemic as well as in the post-pandemic recovery and preparedness aspects. This book covers some of these technological developments as well as the governance mechanisms for developing a technology and innovation ecosystem in a post-COVID-19 context in China. The book also explores the experiences and lessons learned from different types of technologies and their implementation in the post-COVID-19 period and highlights how they can be useful to prepare for future calamities.

Japan has been one of the most important international sponsors of human security, yet the concept has hitherto not been considered relevant to the Japanese domestic context. This book applies the human security approach to the specific case of the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear accident that struck Japan on 11 March 2011, which has come to be known as Japan's 'triple disaster'. This left more than 15,000 people dead and was the most expensive natural disaster in recorded history. The book identifies the many different forms of human insecurity that were produced or exacerbated within Japan by the triple disaster. Each chapter adds to the contemporary literature by identifying the vulnerability of Japanese social groups and communities, and examining how they collectively seek to prevent, respond to and recover from disaster. Emphasis is given to analysis of the more encouraging signs of human empowerment that have occurred. Contributors draw on a wide range of perspectives, from disciplines such as: disaster studies, environmental studies, gender studies, international relations, Japanese studies, philosophy and sociology. In considering this Japanese case study in detail, the book demonstrates to researchers, postgraduate students, policy makers and practitioners how the concept of human security can be practically applied at a policy level to the domestic affairs of developed countries, countering the tendency to regard human security as exclusively for developing states.