Disasters: concepts & causes

This course will focus on the risk to society from hazards and disasters, and how society adapts to those risks.

Course content will not tend to focus on the hazards themselves, but rather on disaster theory and the processes within society and the environment that creates vulnerability. An interdisciplinary and mainly social science approach with a global perspective will be taken.

General topics will include:

1. disaster data and theory
2. patterns of risk
3. processes that create vulnerability
4. human response and coping mechanisms
5. impacts of disasters
6. case studies of disasters

Course Outline

This course examines disasters from an interdisciplinary point of view, particularly considering how and why decisions made by people create vulnerable communities.

Topics to be taught are:

- What is a disaster?
- Disaster models and disaster management models
- Disaster data
- Risk
- Vulnerability
- Myths and Fallacies
- Disasters and ethics
- Principles of Disaster Management
- Normal Accident Theory.
- Climate Change
- Case Studies

Approach

This is a lecture and discussion based course that is supplemented by required readings and video documentaries.

Learning outcomes

- Students will gain a broad understand of theoretical issues and tensions in the field of emergency and disaster management.
- Students will become aware of advantages and pitfalls related to different disaster management strategies.