The Northridge Earthquake : Vulnerability and Disaster

ISBN-13: 9780415178976 / Angielski / Twarda / 1998 / 288 str.

Robert Bolin; Lois Stanford

Opis

This text argues that Natural disasters have more to do with the social, political, and economic aspects than they do with the environmental hazards that trigger them. Disasters occur at the interface of vulnerable people and hazardous environments. The author concentrates on the social aspects of disaster, focusing on the most expensive disaster to date in US history, the Northridge earthquake of 1994, to examine the facets of vulnerability and post-disaster recovery strategies. Surveying the historical and contemporary aspects of life in Southern California the author explains how vulnerability to disaster has been shaped by more than a century of immigration, urbanization, environmental transformations and economic development. Examining other recent disasters alongside Northridge, this book provides a global view of the social effects of disaster in developed and developing countries. An insight into the field, the text presents aspects of sustainable development and state policy and concludes with considerations of ways that vulnerability can be reduced in the future.

Recenzje

"It is both challenging of prevailing discourses, and is written with a cultural sensitivity, which makes it a highly imnportant book for those who whose work explores interactions between people and hazardous environments....A book that it is felt will contribute to a concerted effort by some hazards researchers to bridge the 'risk archipelago." The Geographical Journal, March 2000

'Bolin and Stanford have made an important and timely contribution to the disaster literature.' - The Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management

Spis treści

I. A Common Disaster II. Perspectives on Disasters III. Situating the Northridge Earthquake IV. Situating the Communities and the Research V. Responding to Northridge VI. Restructuring After Northridge VII. Vulnerability, Sustainability, and Social Change

O autorze

Robert Bolin, Lois Stanford