Risk and vulnerability indicators at different scales:Applicability, usefulness and policy implications

TLDR

Indicators and indices for natural hazard risk and vulnerability have been developed at various scales, yet mapping human vulnerability remains less advanced than hazard assessment, highlighting the need to evaluate their applicability and policy relevance. This study compares three global disaster‑risk indicator programmes with a local approach to assess their applicability, usefulness, and policy implications, and proposes ways to improve sub‑national vulnerability identification. The authors briefly introduce the three global approaches and juxtapose them with one local approach to examine differences in assessment functions, purpose, and policy impact.

Abstract

Abstract This paper outlines selected approaches to measuring risk and vulnerability to hazards of natural origin using indicators and indices. It discusses their applicability, usefulness and policy implications. Indicators and indices have been developed on different scales and for different purposes. The paper will briefly introduce three global approaches to disaster-risk identification and will juxtapose them with one local approach in order to examine the differences concerning the functions and the purpose of the assessment as well as their impact for policy development. In contrast to an earlier comparative analysis of the three global disaster-risk indicator programmes by Mark Pelling in 2004, which focused primarily on the methodologies used, this paper places more emphasis on aspects of applicability and policy implications and outlines challenges and limitations of the different approaches. Since the assessment and mapping of human vulnerability is less developed than hazard assessment work [Pelling M., 2004. Visions of Risk: A Review of International Indicators of Disaster Risk and its Management. UNDPS—Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery (BRCP), Geneva], this paper focuses in greater depth on how the approaches capture vulnerability. Conclusions will be formulated on how to further enhance vulnerability identification, particularly at the sub-national level.