Understanding Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience: A Conceptual Framework

Abstract

Disaster risk reduction and resilience should be seen as a concept and practice of reducing disaster risks through systematic efforts to analyze and manage the causal factors of disasters, including through reduced exposure to hazards, lessened vulnerability of people and property, wise management of land and the environment, and improved preparedness for adverse events. The major threat emanates from an increasingly interconnected and interdependent social, technical, and biological systems and complex risk landscape. In developing countries, disasters represent a major source of risk for the poor and can potentially destroy development gains and accumulated wealth.

It should be noted that while the term “disaster reduction ” is sometimes used, the term “disaster risk reduction and resilience” provides a better recognition of the ongoing nature of disaster risks and the ongoing potential to reduce these risks. At a time when climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of extreme weather events, disasters will continue to be major impediments to sustainable development so long as the economic incentives are to develop in hazard-prone locations. Integrating disaster risk reduction into investment decisions is the most cost-effective way to reduce these risks; investing in disaster risk reduction is therefore a precondition for developing sustainably in a changing climate.

In this chapter, an attempt has been made to simplify our understanding of the core idea and processes involved in disaster risk reduction and resilience with an intention to disseminate it into an ever-expanding community of students, researchers, and professionals. A historical approach has been attempted by way of illustrations and data tabulation. It seeks to increase the likelihood that this chapter is fully taken advantage of at the above-stated scales of interest.