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Resilience – an emerging paradigm of danger or of hope?

Karen I. Sudmeier-Rieux (Centre for Research on Terrestrial Environments, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland)

Disaster Prevention and Management

ISSN: 0965-3562

Article publication date: 28 January 2014

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore whether “resilience” offers any positive inputs to international discourse in the field of disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation and if so, what recommendations can be made for further research on the topic.

Design/methodology/approach

In addition to an in-depth literature review, observations on resilience were made based on interdisciplinary research conducted in Nepal 2008-2011 with landslide affected communities, to map local understandings of resilience in contrast to issues of risk and vulnerability.

Findings

Resilience has the potential to offer a more systemic and cross-cutting approach to disaster risk reduction, climate change adaptation and the humanitarian sector. However, it needs to be assessed critically as one attribute of sustainable development, not as a lesser substitute.

Originality/value

This paper provides new insights to the emerging contrast between proponents and critics of the resilience paradigm with recommendations for avoiding potential dangers that this paradigm brings.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

This research was entirely support by a grant from the Swiss National Science Foundation (grant no. 26083591) during the period 2009-2011, for which the author is extremely grateful. Many thanks to Prof. Michel Jaboyedoff, University of Lausanne and Dr J.C. Gaillard, University of Auckland, New Zealand for valuable inputs during the research period. Dr Ilan Kelman (CICERO, Norway), Christopher Belperron (Mission East, Nepal) Manuela Fernandez (University of Lausanne) and Dr Carolina Garcia, Disaster Risk Management Specialist, Colombia who provided very useful comments to a previous draft of this manuscript.

Citation

I. Sudmeier-Rieux, K. (2014), "Resilience – an emerging paradigm of danger or of hope?", Disaster Prevention and Management, Vol. 23 No. 1, pp. 67-80. https://doi.org/10.1108/DPM-12-2012-0143

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2014, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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