Between a rock and a wet place: exploring historical trajectories of exposure, governance and tenure to build resilience to multiple hazards in SIDS

Resilience building requires integrated approaches to disaster risk management (DRM) to identify overlaps and leverage political support for measures that improve early warning systems, encourage adaptations and improve recovery from a range of hazardous events within the context of sustainable development. As our climate changes, accelerating such integration is paramount to improve responses to intensifying and multiple shocks and risks. The need is even more acute for Small Island Developing States, where isolation, limited land availability, a complex range of environmental hazards and limited resource base further intensify their exposure to risk. In this proposal we suggest that 'all hazards' approaches to building resilience are needed and test the thesis that these will be more effective if placed within the particular historical and cultural contexts through which land use patterns were established in individual SIDS, in order to assess how risk is created and disaster risk management responses evolve.
We test this on two islands in the Pacific and the Caribbean by focussing particularly on exposure and physical vulnerability to multiple hazards, and analysing historical factors that have shaped tenure and governance processes in order to explore how these may have contributed to increased exposure of populations and physical vulnerability to hazards as well as detrimental political and cultural responses. We are particularly interested in the interactions between differing hazards and the implicit competing pressures on resources and tenure, both on- and offshore. We are taking an 'all-hazards' approach to this analysis, to identify strategies and investments that can relieve these pressures and encourage long-term resilience to multiple land and marine-based hazards. We refer to these measures as DRM investments with 'co-benefits', meaning that one action, originally intended for a particular type of hazard, can be adapted and used to produce joint, multiple and/or simultaneous benefits in terms of reducing risk. We will identify measures that have the potential to reduce risk to multiple hazards through the development of future scenarios and an approach to modelling impacts that tests the benefits (in terms of loss avoidance) of different DRM investments. The two islands selected to trial this holistic approach are exposed to a range of environmental hazards, and have colonial and imperial histories and sets of institutions to address risk with some similarities but also differences. Drawing insights across these settings will allow us to better understand the potential for applying this approach to other SIDS around the world, including in the Indian Ocean.
This research will also have implications for implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 (SFDRR), linking it more closely with resilience targets in the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Climate Change Agreement by enhancing knowledge of the links between past and future hazard exposure and development, and identifying options for overcoming resource constraints in SIDS and building resilience to multiple shocks and stresses.

The proposed work represents a foundational step in strengthening integrated research on resilience for SIDS. In the closing stages of the project, via the final workshop event and other dissemination forums, the team will reflect on progress and develop ongoing guidance for wider application of the approach to other regions.

Two key groups of stakeholders are intended to benefit from this research through a strengthening of analysis that will inform future disaster risk management action: a) local communities on islands who directly face the risk from multiple hazards; b) agencies that work to reduce risk faced by residents, including NGOs, disaster management and monitoring agencies, planners, sectoral agencies (including those responsible for infrastructure development and housing) and legislators.
The beneficiaries in the first instance will be those stakeholders from both groups on the islands selected for case study. However, the dissemination of the research and planned rolling out of the methodology to other sites in future should benefit equivalent stakeholders in a much wider range of sites, in SIDS but also in other developing country settings.
We will deliver these benefits through a commitment from the outset to engage, inform and work in partnership with stakeholders in all steps of the research process.There are three main ways we will achieve this:

(b) engaging multiple stakeholders on the ground from early in the project to help design conduct of the project through a series of in-country stakeholder meetings - this will be facilitated by the existing strong linkages between research partners and national government;

(b) communicating findings in focus countries through feedback workshops, which will serve to enhance decision-making information available to stakeholders - this will feature evidence-based arguments and approaches to help support the identification and prioritization of different types of DRM investments with co-benefits.

(c) embedding results in global DRM debates and institutions through a public event at ODI and presentation of briefing note at the Global Platform for DRR in Cancun (May 2017) - results of the studies in two countries will be published in working papers and synthesised in a policy brief.

We are working closely with our Project Partners in the Caribbean and Pacific Region (Seismic Research Centre, University of the West Indies; Lennox Honychurch, Island Heritage Initiatives (Dominica), the Global Water Partnership (Caribbean) and the University of the South Pacific and Secretariat of the Pacific Community of relevance to Vanuatu). This will help us to frame our research correctly and remain mindful of saliency for the initiatives we outline above, and in turn help to build their capacity. It is important to place this within the context of their existing initiatives and analysis in each nation. Our UK Partners (CEFAS and RMS) bring their experience working on relevant research in these settings and will also work with us to frame and disseminate our research.

The project will also impact on the capacities of the wider research team, in ways that are captured in the section 'Academic Beneficiaries'.