O'Brien, Geoff

O'Keefe, Phil

Rose, Joanne

Wilson, Leanne

English

Northumbria University Research Portal

Citation:  O'Keefe,  Phil,  O'Brien,  Geoff,  Rose,  Joanne  and  Wilson,  Leanne  (2008) Produced  risks  without  produced  solutions  –  rethinking  the  approach.  In:  Climate  Change and Disaster Impact  Reduction, 28 June 2008, Kathmandu, Nepal.Published by: UNSPECIFIEDURL: This  version  was  downloaded  from  Northumbria  Research  Link:  http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/9440/Northumbria  University  has  developed Northumbria  Research  Link  (NRL)  to  enable users to access the University’s research output.  Copyright  © and moral  rights  for  items on NRL  are retained by the individual  author(s) and/or other  copyright  owners.  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Produced Risks without Produced Solutions – Rethinking the Approach  Phil O‟Keefe, Geoff O‟Brien,  Joanne Rose, Leanne Wilson Northumbria University Conceptualising the argument • Risks generated by climate change and variability are „produced unknowns‟ -  driven by human actions with unknown outcomes • Produced unknowns are „wicked problems‟ - answers are incomplete, contradictory and set against changing requirements  • A common feature of sustainable development, climate change and disaster risk reduction discourses is doing things differently or change  • It is desirable to develop an approach that provides a bridge among disaster management, sustainable human development and climate change mitigation and adaptation.   Resilience is a Process: Mapping Sustainable Development  Bali Roadmap  • Deep cuts in global emissions needed to avoid dangerous climate change • Measures to enhance forests  • Urgent implementation of adaptation measures for poorer nations  • Disaster risk reductions measures  • Removal of obstacles and provision of financial and other incentives to scale up the transfer of clean technologies  Learning the Lessons?  Technology alone cannot solve the interrelated problems of energy and climate change:  – Institutional willingness to change  – A shift in public attitudes towards the environment Models of energy systems  Disaster Management • Dominant model is “all-hazards” approach characterised as legally based, professionally staffed, well funded and organised.  • It aims for a return to „normality‟ • Top-down structure is incompatible with the notion of resilience building  Technocratic Model of Disaster Management Dominant Paradigm Comment Isolated event Disasters usually regarded as unusual or unique events that can exceed coping capacity Risk not normal Risk is socially constructed and risk management aims to reduce risk to within proscribed levels realised through governance structures Techno-legal The legislative framework, regulatory system and the technologies used for risk reduction and disaster response Centralized Realised through a formal system such as a government department or state funded agency Low accountability Typ ically internalised Post event planning Internal procedure for updating and validating plans based on lessons learned Status Quo restored The overall aim Ğ a return to normal  Adaptation Paradigm Comment Part of deve lopment Adaptation is not an add-on but should be an integral part of societal development Risk of disaster is an everyday c ondition Climate change and variability is a known category of natural hazards amplified and accelerated by anthropogenic activities that will occur Social capacity Enhancing the ability of societies to both respond to hazards and adjust to change Participatory Learning to enhance capacity Transparent Undertaken in an enabling environment Pre disaster plans Aimed at prevention Transformation Move society to a new set of conditions Ğ enhance coping capacity and improve baseline condition, for example, decrease levels of poverty  Adaptation as Disaster Risk Reduction PDP Principles for Adaptation  Pre-Disaster Planning Principles Comment Sustainable Development An approach that focuses on reducing risk both now and in the future Risk Avo idance Developments should be evaluated from a risk reduction perspective Embedded in Policy and Practices Adaptation should be normalised Distributed to the appropriate level It is both top down and bottom up Shared responsibility The basis for renewing the preparedness partnership between government and people Learning from scientific evidence, indigenous knowledge and experience All knowledge is important, but of equal importance is effective communication and dissemination Adjusting to changes A recognition that the future may be very d ifferent Organisational and Social Learning Thinking differently and learning about how we approach problems related to adaptation should be the norm  Linking Concepts for Climate Risk Reduction  Conclusions • Responding to produced unknowns driven by a changing climate requires resilience building.  • Local as well as institutional capacity needs to be strengthened - resilience building is a learning process at all levels.  • A focus on resilience recognises that there is no steady-state or end result. It is an iterative process based on notions of entitlements and governance. Corresponding Authors Phil O‟Keefe:  phil.okeefe@unn.ac.uk     Geoff O‟Brien: geoff.obrien@unn.ac.uk   

Produced risks without produced solutions – rethinking the approach

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