There Is No Such Thing As A Natural Disaster

Author : Gregory Squires,Chester Hartman
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 324 pages
File Size : 47,5 Mb
Release : 2013-01-11
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9781136084829

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There is No Such Thing as a Natural Disaster by Gregory Squires,Chester Hartman Pdf

There is No Such Thing as a Natural Disaster is the first comprehensive critical book on the catastrophic impact of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans. The disaster will go down on record as one of the worst in American history, not least because of the government’s inept and cavalier response. But it is also a huge story for other reasons; the impact of the hurricane was uneven, and race and class were deeply implicated in the unevenness. Hartman and. Squires assemble two dozen critical scholars and activists who present a multifaceted portrait of the social implications of the disaster. The book covers the response to the disaster and the roles that race and class played, its impact on housing and redevelopment, the historical context of urban disasters in America and the future of economic development in the region. It offers strategic guidance for key actors - government agencies, financial institutions, neighbourhood organizations - in efforts to rebuild shattered communities.

Author : Jacob A.C. Remes,Andy Horowitz
Publisher : University of Pennsylvania Press
Page : 283 pages
File Size : 44,8 Mb
Release : 2021-08-20
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9780812299724

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Critical Disaster Studies by Jacob A.C. Remes,Andy Horowitz Pdf

This book announces the new, interdisciplinary field of critical disaster studies. Unlike most existing approaches to disaster, critical disaster studies begins with the idea that disasters are not objective facts, but rather are interpretive fictions—and they shape the way people see the world. By questioning the concept of disaster itself, critical disaster studies reveals the stakes of defining people or places as vulnerable, resilient, or at risk. As social constructs, disaster, vulnerability, resilience, and risk shape and are shaped by contests over power. Managers and technocrats often herald the goals of disaster response and recovery as objective, quantifiable, or self-evident. In reality, the goals are subjective, and usually contested. Critical disaster studies attends to the ways powerful people often use claims of technocratic expertise to maintain power. Moreover, rather than existing as isolated events, disasters take place over time. People commonly imagine disasters to be unexpected and sudden, making structural conditions appear contingent, widespread conditions appear local, and chronic conditions appear acute. By placing disasters in broader contexts, critical disaster studies peels away that veneer. With chapters by scholars of five continents and seven disciplines, Critical Disaster Studies asks how disasters come to be known as disasters, how disasters are used as tools of governance and politics, and how people imagine and anticipate disasters. The volume will be of interest to scholars of disaster in any discipline and especially to those teaching the growing number of courses on disaster studies.

Author : Ilan Kelman
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Page : 192 pages
File Size : 48,7 Mb
Release : 2020-02-27
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780192578280

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Disaster by Choice by Ilan Kelman Pdf

An earthquake shatters Haiti and a hurricane slices through Texas. We hear that nature runs rampant, seeking to destroy us through these 'natural disasters'. Science recounts a different story, however: disasters are not the consequence of natural causes; they are the consequence of human choices and decisions. we put ourselves in harm's way; we fail to take measures which we know would prevent disasters, no matter what the environment does. This can be both hard to accept, and hard to unravel. A complex of factors shape disasters. They arise from the political processes dictating where and what we build, and from social circumstances which create and perpetuate poverty and discrimination. They develop from the social preference to blame nature for the damage wrought, when in fact events such as earthquakes and storms are entirely commonplace environmental processes We feel the need to fight natural forces, to reclaim what we assume is ours, and to protect ourselves from what we perceive to be wrath from outside our communities. This attitude distracts us from the real causes of disasters: humanity's decisions, as societies and as individuals. It stops us accepting the real solutions to disasters: making better decisions. This book explores stories of some of our worst disasters to show how we can and should act to stop people dying when nature unleashes its energies. The disaster is not the tornado, the volcanic eruption, or climate change, but the deaths and injuries, the loss of irreplaceable property, and the lack and even denial of support to affected people, so that a short-term interruption becomes a long-term recovery nightmare. But we can combat this, as Kelman shows, describing inspiring examples of effective human action that limits damage, such as managing flooding in Toronto and villages in Bangladesh, or wildfire in Colorado. Throughout, his message is clear: there is no such thing as a natural disaster. The disaster lies in our inability to deal with the environment and with ourselves.

Author : National Research Council,Division on Earth and Life Studies,Commission on Geosciences, Environment and Resources,U.S. National Committee for the Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction
Publisher : National Academies Press
Page : 85 pages
File Size : 46,7 Mb
Release : 1991-02-01
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780309045469

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A Safer Future by National Research Council,Division on Earth and Life Studies,Commission on Geosciences, Environment and Resources,U.S. National Committee for the Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction Pdf

Initial priorities for U.S. participation in the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction, declared by the United Nations, are contained in this volume. It focuses on seven issues: hazard and risk assessment; awareness and education; mitigation; preparedness for emergency response; recovery and reconstruction; prediction and warning; learning from disasters; and U.S. participation internationally. The committee presents its philosophy of calls for broad public and private participation to reduce the toll of disasters.

Author : UNESCO
Publisher : UNESCO
Page : 33 pages
File Size : 55,6 Mb
Release : 2014-10-20
Category : Electronic
ISBN : 9789231000454

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Stay safe and be prepared: a parent's guide to disaster risk reduction by UNESCO Pdf

Author : Neil Smith
Publisher : Univ of California Press
Page : 592 pages
File Size : 41,8 Mb
Release : 2004-10-29
Category : History
ISBN : 9780520243385

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American Empire by Neil Smith Pdf

Annotation American Empire challenges our deepest assumptions about the rise of American globalism in the twentieth century and puts geography back into the History of what is called the American Century.

Author : Jonathan Franzen
Publisher : HarperCollins UK
Page : 80 pages
File Size : 55,8 Mb
Release : 2021-01-21
Category : Nature
ISBN : 9780008434052

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What If We Stopped Pretending? by Jonathan Franzen Pdf

The climate change is coming. To prepare for it, we need to admit that we can’t prevent it.

Author : Naomi Klein
Publisher : Vintage Canada
Page : 674 pages
File Size : 51,5 Mb
Release : 2009-03-18
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9780307371300

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The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein Pdf

From the bestselling author of No Logo—the gripping story of how America’s “free market” polices exploited crises and shock for three decades from Pinochet’s coup in Chile in 1973 to the "War on Terror." In her groundbreaking reporting, Naomi Klein introduced the term "disaster capitalism." Whether covering Baghdad after the U.S. occupation, Sri Lanka in the wake of the tsunami, or New Orleans post-Katrina, she witnessed something remarkably similar. People still reeling from catastrophe were being hit again, this time with economic "shock treatment," losing their land and homes to rapid-fire corporate makeovers. The Shock Doctrine retells the story of one the most dominant ideologies of our time: Milton Friedman's free market economic revolution. In contrast to the popular myth of this movement's peaceful global victory, Klein shows how it has exploited moments of shock and extreme violence in order to implement its economic policies in so many parts of the world from Latin America and Eastern Europe to South Africa, Russia, and Iraq. At the core of disaster capitalism is the use of cataclysmic events to advance radical privatization combined with the privatization of the disaster response itself. Klein argues that by capitalizing on crises, created by nature or war, the disaster capitalism complex now exists as a booming new economy, and is the violent culmination of a radical economic project that has been incubating for fifty years.

Author : World Bank,United Nations
Publisher : World Bank Publications
Page : 276 pages
File Size : 54,9 Mb
Release : 2010-11-10
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 9780821381410

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Natural Hazards, UnNatural Disasters by World Bank,United Nations Pdf

This book examines how to ensure that the preventive measures are worthwhile and effective, and how people can make decisions individually and collectively at different levels of government.

Author : Misa Sugiura
Publisher : HarperCollins
Page : 295 pages
File Size : 54,8 Mb
Release : 2021-06-08
Category : Young Adult Fiction
ISBN : 9780062991256

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Love & Other Natural Disasters by Misa Sugiura Pdf

This delightfully disastrous queer YA rom-com is a perfect read for fans of Jenny Han, Morgan Matson, and Sandhya Menon. When Nozomi Nagai pictured the ideal summer romance, a fake one wasn’t what she had in mind. That was before she met the perfect girl. Willow is gorgeous, glamorous, and…heartbroken? And when she enlists Nozomi to pose as her new girlfriend to make her ex jealous, Nozomi is a willing volunteer. Because Nozomi has a master plan of her own: one to show Willow she’s better than a stand-in, and turn their fauxmance into something real. But as the lies pile up, it’s not long before Nozomi’s schemes take a turn toward disaster…and maybe a chance at love she didn’t plan for.

Author : Bill Gates
Publisher : Knopf Canada
Page : 240 pages
File Size : 40,8 Mb
Release : 2021-02-16
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780735280458

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How to Avoid a Climate Disaster by Bill Gates Pdf

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER NATIONAL BESTSELLER In this urgent, singularly authoritative book, Bill Gates sets out a wide-ranging, practical--and accessible--plan for how the world can get to zero greenhouse gas emissions in time to avoid an irreversible climate catastrophe. Bill Gates has spent a decade investigating the causes and effects of climate change. With the help and guidance of experts in the fields of physics, chemistry, biology, engineering, political science and finance, he has focused on exactly what must be done in order to stop the planet's slide toward certain environmental disaster. In this book, he not only gathers together all the information we need to fully grasp how important it is that we work toward net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases but also details exactly what we need to do to achieve this profoundly important goal. He gives us a clear-eyed description of the challenges we face. He describes the areas in which technology is already helping to reduce emissions; where and how the current technology can be made to function more effectively; where breakthrough technologies are needed, and who is working on these essential innovations. Finally, he lays out a concrete plan for achieving the goal of zero emissions--suggesting not only policies that governments should adopt, but what we as individuals can do to keep our government, our employers and ourselves accountable in this crucial enterprise. As Bill Gates makes clear, achieving zero emissions will not be simple or easy to do, but by following the guidelines he sets out here, it is a goal firmly within our reach.

Author : Piers Blaikie,Terry Cannon,Ian Davis,Ben Wisner
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 492 pages
File Size : 48,9 Mb
Release : 2014-01-21
Category : Science
ISBN : 9781134528615

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At Risk by Piers Blaikie,Terry Cannon,Ian Davis,Ben Wisner Pdf

The term 'natural disaster' is often used to refer to natural events such as earthquakes, hurricanes or floods. However, the phrase 'natural disaster' suggests an uncritical acceptance of a deeply engrained ideological and cultural myth. At Risk questions this myth and argues that extreme natural events are not disasters until a vulnerable group of people is exposed. The updated new edition confronts a further ten years of ever more expensive and deadly disasters and discusses disaster not as an aberration, but as a signal failure of mainstream 'development'. Two analytical models are provided as tools for understanding vulnerability. One links remote and distant 'root causes' to 'unsafe conditions' in a 'progression of vulnerability'. The other uses the concepts of 'access' and 'livelihood' to understand why some households are more vulnerable than others. Examining key natural events and incorporating strategies to create a safer world, this revised edition is an important resource for those involved in the fields of environment and development studies.

Author : Rebecca Solnit
Publisher : Penguin
Page : 369 pages
File Size : 54,9 Mb
Release : 2010-08-31
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 9781101459010

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A Paradise Built in Hell by Rebecca Solnit Pdf

The author of Men Explain Things to Me explores the moments of altruism and generosity that arise in the aftermath of disaster Why is it that in the aftermath of a disaster? whether manmade or natural?people suddenly become altruistic, resourceful, and brave? What makes the newfound communities and purpose many find in the ruins and crises after disaster so joyous? And what does this joy reveal about ordinarily unmet social desires and possibilities? In A Paradise Built in Hell, award-winning author Rebecca Solnit explores these phenomena, looking at major calamities from the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco through the 1917 explosion that tore up Halifax, Nova Scotia, the 1985 Mexico City earthquake, 9/11, and Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. She examines how disaster throws people into a temporary utopia of changed states of mind and social possibilities, as well as looking at the cost of the widespread myths and rarer real cases of social deterioration during crisis. This is a timely and important book from an acclaimed author whose work consistently locates unseen patterns and meanings in broad cultural histories.

Author : Andy Horowitz
Publisher : Harvard University Press
Page : 297 pages
File Size : 41,8 Mb
Release : 2020-07-07
Category : History
ISBN : 9780674246768

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Katrina by Andy Horowitz Pdf

Winner of the Bancroft Prize Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities Book of the Year A Publishers Weekly Book of the Year “The main thrust of Horowitz’s account is to make us understand Katrina—the civic calamity, not the storm itself—as a consequence of decades of bad decisions by humans, not an unanticipated caprice of nature.” —Nicholas Lemann, New Yorker Hurricane Katrina made landfall in New Orleans on August 29, 2005, but the decisions that caused the disaster can be traced back nearly a century. After the city weathered a major hurricane in 1915, its Sewerage and Water Board believed that developers could safely build housing near the Mississippi, on lowlands that relied on significant government subsidies to stay dry. When the flawed levee system failed, these were the neighborhoods that were devastated. The flood line tells one important story about Katrina, but it is not the only story that matters. Andy Horowitz investigates the response to the flood, when policymakers made it easier for white New Orleanians to return home than for African Americans. He explores how the profits and liabilities created by Louisiana’s oil industry have been distributed unevenly, prompting dreams of abundance and a catastrophic land loss crisis that continues today. “Masterful...Disasters have the power to reveal who we are, what we value, what we’re willing—and unwilling—to protect.” —New York Review of Books “If you want to read only one book to better understand why people in positions of power in government and industry do so little to address climate change, even with wildfires burning and ice caps melting and extinctions becoming a daily occurrence, this is the one.” —Los Angeles Review of Books

Author : Anonim
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 84 pages
File Size : 41,8 Mb
Release : 2003
Category : Disasters
ISBN : UTEXAS:059173014097912

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Disasters are not natural by Anonim Pdf

An excellent photographic and textual history of physical disasters in El Salvador during the past century, with focus on how inattention to ecological factors have increased the impact of disasters. The work includes numerous photos on quality stock.