This book focuses on exploring the linkages between natural disasters and sustainable development at the global, regional, and national levels. Disasters and development are closely related, yet the disciplinary silos prevail and there is little communication and cooperation between the disaster management, environment, and development communities. One catastrophic event, such as an earthquake, tsunami, or cyclone, can destroy infrastructure, people’s lives and livelihoods, and set back development. Similarly, slow onset disasters—often associated with global climate change—pose threats to development, livelihoods, food security, and long-term sustainable development. This book is uniquely aimed at bridging the gaps between the environmental, development, and disaster management communities. It traces the evolution of concepts and practice and highlights the linkages between natural disasters and sustainable development in key sectors, including food security, health, and water. The book includes case studies from the field highlighting the complex issues that challenge sustainable development and disaster risk management in practice. It draws policy conclusions for the global community based on state-of-the art knowledge from research and practice.
The primary target groups for the book are researchers, including graduate students, in the fields of environment and sustainable development, geography, disaster risk reduction, and climate change studies. The second target group comprises practitioners and policymakers working in national and international organizations, the private sector, and civil society.
Juha Uitto is the Director, Independent Evaluation Office of the Global Environment Facility (GEF). His career has combined positions in international organizations and academia, including the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations University (UNU), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the Nordic Africa Institute. He is Visiting Professor at Rutgers – The State University of New Jersey, and has held short-term visiting positions at the Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies, Kyoto University, in 2005 and 2013. His research interests pertain to assessing and measuring the effects and impact of environmental interventions, and he has written extensively on topics related to environment-poverty linkages, natural resources management, environmental hazards, and evaluation. A geographer by training, he holds a PhD from the University of Lund and MSc from Helsinki University.
Rajib Shaw is a Professor in the Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies of Kyoto University, Japan. He worked closely with the local communities, NGOs, governments and international organization, including United Nations, especially in the Asian countries. He is currently the Chair of the United Nations Asia Regional Task Force for Urban Risk Reduction, and the President of Asian University Network of Environment and Disaster Management (AUEDM). His research interests are: community based disaster risk management, climate change adaptation, urban risk management, and disaster and environmental education. He has published several books in the field of disaster and environmental management. He is also the Chief Editor of Asian Journal of Environment and Disaster Management.