Building Resilience Amongst Communities in EuropeSee http://embrace-eu.org/

Outline of talk

Background and objective

Cases and methods

Contribution and findings

Background

Map as communication and planning tool

include the social (social map)

Uses of models

Communication of ideas Generate and interrogate scenarios

Objective

Learning about uses of methods with stakeholders

allowing them to “play” with the idea of community resilience

Cases

South Tyrol, Italy. Landslides

municipal organisations, emergency services, mayor and other local actors, householders

Cumbria, England. Flooding

district governance, county/ nat. governance, environment agency, emergency services, householders

Local flood action group

Methods

Methods that describe complexity

Social network analysis (SNA) and mapping

Agent-based modelling (ABM)

See paper for further info

Methods II

Commitment to participatory research

meaning community engagement in stages of the research, grounding in practicalities

In principle, SNA → P-SNA ABM → P-ABM

Contribution

Our contribution is in testing 4 uses : check that we have represented local

knowledge(s) correctly; translate that knowledge across geographical and

policy spaces; link socially robust data to and from indicators; explore alternatives re. more resilient options

Findings New data and findings in South Tyrol

survey in Abtei (2 questions about use of networks)

mapping with organisational stakeholders

New data and findings in Cumbria

workshops in Keswick (mapping of preparedness and response networks)

analysis of 60 interviews in Cumbria

Disaster preparedness ABM

Patton's disaster preparedness model relates risk perception, hazard anxiety, critical awareness, etc.

Adding social influence: communication networks

Conclusions

P-SNA and P-ABM seem to help to stimulate discussion and elicit further data However in the English case P-SNA may have been

viewed as too abstract

Method take-up by partners less than hoped may take time to develop competencies and get

desired ‘scientific’ results build complexity of models so they are relevant and

reliable

they are not 'mainstream' in DRR / disaster resilience research

milestone is increasing the modelling literacy of stakeholders (a prerequisite for ‘deep’ participation?)

Conclusions cont.

The greatest insights into ways to improve risk management may come from the community itself

Thankyou !