Exploring Approaches that Empower Community Members to Engage with Emergency Authorities - Research Proposal Example

Disaster management (Name) (University) Introduction The past few decades has been rife with several disaster situations, whether man-made, accidental or intentional. A look at the most devastating and the most publicized disasters of the past few decades is profound in terms of disaster preparedness and response. Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy, and the tropical storm Debby ravaged parts of New Jersey, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico (Brennan, Cantrell, Spranger, & Kumaran, 2014). The events of September eleventh were one of the most shocking disasters of the modern world. These disasters are famous not only for the destruction they caused but also for what happened in terms of response in the near period after the occurrences. One constant after natural disasters is the amount of expectations from the people of participation from all levels of government. Such major events increase pressure from locals on national, state, federal or local governments and from non-governmental organizations (Sperry, 2013). The public expects, and rightly so, that the governments will actively participate in the disaster management and response coordination efforts. However, natural disasters are as unpredictable as they are devastating. This often gets in the way of effective planning and response when it matters. The emergency response management community continues to face increasingly complex circumstances and situations which get in the way of the operating environment. The complexity of disaster management takes the form of an increased number of incidents. This can be attributed in part to the effects of global climate changes (Accuweather, 2013). The threats are becoming more and more unfamiliar and require more information to analyze and make informed decisions about, often with very little time. There are new players involved every time, and the technology is becoming more complex. The combination of these factors has created a different landscape in risk management when it comes to natural disasters. Public policy makers have been seeking to make changes in order to reduce the risk posed to human life in case of a disaster. In fact, this is thought to be the origin of the emergency management field. The focus of this field of study has, however, been in the area of finding appropriate technological fixes and human response mechanisms. These two areas focus mainly on response, which is only a small part of disaster management (Sperry, 2013). Public policymakers have been largely reactive rather than proactive in their disaster management efforts. The increase in frequency of natural disasters and the threat posed by the dynamism of terrorism has increased focus on disaster management. However, governments have not realized their role in the coordination and facilitation of disaster preparedness and response efforts. In truth, and contrary to popular efforts, the true first responders in cases of emergency are the local citizens. Before the arrival of the professional emergency first responders, it is the citizens that will be actively involved in the transportation of the sick to hospital, the provision of first aid and performing emergency rescue (Palen, Hiltz, & Liu , 2007). In fact, research shows that even after the experts come in and the response is formalized, the locals still continue to be of help. They organize themselves to provide food, child care, shelter and transportation. In fact, with the internet becoming increasingly accessible, it is becoming easier to mobilize help even across international borders. The empowerment of the community in their engagement with disaster authorities to help enhance preparedness and response is therefore important in the minimization of loss of lives and property. This paper looks at the possible approaches that might encourage the empowerment of local population as they engage with emergency and disaster preparedness authorities. Statement of problem Between 1980 and 2012, losses from disaster reached 3800 billion dollars worldwide (Rajeev, 2014). While rural local populations especially suffer the worst of natural disaster and are in the best position to respond quickest and prevent loss, several factors get in the way of the effectiveness of their response. Many studies have found that many natural disaster are often misjudged. The evidence of events with low probability are often misjudged. For instance, many believe that if one flood happens in a year, the likelihood of another happening in the near future are very low (Wilson, et al., 2007). Part of disaster management is the requirement that both the administrative bodies and the local community comes up with disaster preparedness measures by themselves. Local communities are, however, never actively involved in these processes. Many people only see disasters as acts of god, mythical and beyond human control. Such beliefs often impact the ability to react in time to evacuation calls and announcements. Reaction to disaster by both the local population and the administrative units is often also flawed. In some cases, disaster response is politically motivated, resulting to some areas marginalized even when they experience legitimate disasters. The UN recognizes the threat caused by natural disasters, stating the importance of safeguarding the MDGs from the growing threat of natural disasters (UNDP, 2013). The AU on the other hand, does not have emergency response explicitly mentioned in any of its objectives (Zwitter, Lamont, Heintze, & Herman, 2015). Even the NDP plan does not explicitly mention local empowerment as a major disaster preparedness objective. This highlights the importance of highlighting approaches that empower the community in disaster preparedness. General aim The aim of this research paper is to highlight the gap in research between reactive and proactive disaster management in terms of the involvement and empowerment of the general public. Traditionally, many disaster prevention techniques have mainly focused on reaction rather than being proactive. However, given the increased unpredictability and frequency of disaster, need for the involvement of the local population is increasing. Disaster preparedness has been discussed for a long time. It has been broken down into before, after and during. However, not much has gone into disaster preparedness, the before stage. Disaster preparedness is all the steps that can be taken in advance to reduce the impact of any possible disaster (Otsi & Miyake, 2013). Even in areas where there has been significant research in community participation, there is a significant gap between theory and practice. This paper intends to highlight this gap and explore ways to close it. Specific objectives The specific objectives are as follows To establish the importance of community participation in disaster preparedness and response To establish the barriers to community engagement in disaster preparedness and response To establish the most effective members to empower community members to engage with emergency and disaster authorities To establish sustainable ways to incorporate community development into active national and international development agendas Significance of the study Local communities are often the first phase of emergency responders. The results and conclusions from this paper will help in capacity building and training. Training should especially be targeted at local youth from basic medical training and first aid, to techniques of mobilizing communication links to respond to disaster. This paper can help disaster management authorities tailor traditional knowledge with modern techniques and knowledge. Authorities must make sure that disaster early warning and response systems are tailored to the local conditions and incorporate local knowledge. It can also help in other measures like the application of the latest technology and the pushing of risk transfer options like disaster insurance. This paper can improve the participation of local public health institutions in disaster preparedness and empowerment. The expanding of the mandate of public institutions, increasing their manpower and giving proper guidelines regarding the role they play in disaster preparedness can help improve empowerment. Health institutions at all levels must be given critical roles in terms of disaster management (Rajeev, 2014). It is only through such investigation that their input can be optimized. Community empowerment can also be improved if disaster management is introduced in educational curriculum. This recommendations of this paper can help in incorporating disaster management into education by identifying the preparedness and the empowerment need of the local community. Many of these empowerment initiatives can only be achieved through the decentralization of disaster management. This paper can help in ensuring the combination of top down and bottom up approaches in the formulating of disaster preparedness initiatives and techniques to empower local communities. Justification of the study The risks associated with natural disasters, accidents and attacks has increased in the past few years. The number of recorded natural disasters increased from around 50 incidences per year in the seventies to about 400 by the year 2005. Looking at the monetary cost, natural disasters have resulted in material losses of up to 650 billion dollars between the years of 1996 and 2005. This, compared to the decade between 1950 and 1959 is almost 15 fold. Disasters have both long and short term effects on economies and can a lot of human suffering. The losses or capital, human life and the direct and indirect economic losses are massive. If prevented, they could lead to significant gains in welfare (Guha-Sapir, Santos, & Borde, 2013 ). Natural disasters, especially those caused by climatic events, also limit the agricultural productivity and interrupt livelihoods through migration (Saldaña-Zorrilla, 2015). All inhabitants of natural disaster prone areas are vulnerable. However, some sections of the population are more vulnerable than others. People living with disabilities, children and the elderly are especially more vulnerable than others. The needs of the vulnerable populations must be addressed specifically in the improvement of disaster preparedness and response. It is only through local support and participation that vulnerable groups are catered for. For instance, several NGOs have lists and volunteer networks through which they reach the elderly for care. These networks can only be tapped into through local participation and empowerment in times of disaster. Minimizing losses, of life especially begins with taking better care of the most vulnerable in the society. Many people prepare disaster preparedness and risk aversion maps by default when going about their day to day activities. It is only through the involvement and empowerment of the local community members that these channels can be leveraged to help in formal disaster management. Theoretical framework Disaster management is gaining in significance and focus in terms of research and study. There are three aspects of every disaster management plan; the before, during and after. Generally, the stronger the strategies before the disaster, the more effective the disaster preparedness and management. Disasters are unpredictable and their frequency is generally increasing. Researchers have established that social participation and involving the local community in disaster management plans improves chances of reducing the loss in capital, human life and economic opportunity that comes from the natural disasters. Local authorities that incorporate public policies into their disaster management activities have a higher chance of success than those who do not (Joaquin, 2014) Wilson et. al. (2007) explores the effects of a lack of disaster preparedness by the community. Emergency management depends largely on the local and social economic conditions of the area. Without the involvement of the locals in the disaster management program, what remains are large organizations that cannot serve the interests of the public. The nature of the community involved influences the extent of their participation in disaster preparedness and the success of the disaster management efforts. Several disaster risk behaviors influence the quality of disaster mitigation (Witvorapong, Muttarak, & Pothisiri, 2015). The issue of resilience of the community is also mentioned as a determinant of its participation and disaster readiness (Norris, Stevens, Pfefferbaum, Wyche, & Pfefferbaum, 2008). Scope This paper is an in depth research topic of the issue affecting disaster preparedness and management in local populations. It is an in depth review of various reports and research detailing the disaster management situations in various countries. The researcher will also collect data on the disaster preparedness situation in Uganda, the region and across the world, and the amount of political and legal goodwill that disaster management and community participation receives in official regional declarations like the National Development plan, the AU objectives and the UN millennium development goals (National Development Plan, 2010). Literature review Witvorapong, Muttarak, & Pothisiri (2015) explore the subject of risk reduction behaviors in tsunami prone areas. This paper starts by identifying the levels at which disaster management efforts can be coordinated. After the tsunami of 2004 in the Indian Ocean, there has been increased awareness about disaster management. This research paper identifies social capital as one of the areas recently focused on in disaster management. The researchers define social capital and explain its importance in building social networks (Chola & Alaba, 2013). According to these researchers, social networks have a positive correlation with disaster mitigation. Sperry (2013) highlights the gap between expectations and reality in terms of disaster management participation. Natural disasters are increasing in frequency and complexity, and providing new problems for disaster management authorities. On the other hand, the pressure from the public continues to grow. After the major events such as hurricane Katrina and the September eleventh attacks of 2001, there is increased pressure for governments at all levels and NGOs to participate more actively in helping the citizenry in times of disaster. Sperry (2013) identifies the fact that participation of local populations will help improve disaster management efforts. However, there are significant gaps in the mobilization and facilitation of public participation. This paper identifies barriers to empowering locals such as the difficulty in getting them to attend educative forums (Li-Vollmer, 2013). Wilson et. al. (2007) speak about the effects of a lack of disaster preparedness by the public, and their effect on communities. The researchers divide the issue of disaster preparedness into four parts; recovery, response, preparedness and mitigation. It then focuses on the activities of citizens and local governments and their personal responsibilities throughout the four phases. This is a systematic literature review paper that attempts to expose the reason for the ill preparation of various communities and their reliance on the government. Palen, Hiltz, & Liu (2007) explore the role of the internet in supporting participation in emergency preparedness. The paper starts by identifying the fact that local citizens are often the fisrt in line when it comes to disaster management. Even before the professionals come, they are involved in various activities such as the transportation of food, provision of shelter and assistance with child care. Even when the professionals arrive, they still play an active role in the disaster management. The researchers attempt to reveal the growing role of online platforms in mobilizing locals and coordintaing disaster management efforts even across borders. Hypotheses Community empowerment and participation have a postive correlation with favorable disaster management efforts Community characteristics are barriers to their participation in disaster management and their disaster preparedness The internet improves community mobilization and grassroots participation in disaster management There is a gap between theory and practice with regards to community empowerment and engagement in disaster management Methodology This paper will use a combintaion of literature reviews and qualitative research methods. The researcher will use a systematic review of literature to identify past practices and trends with regards to empowerment of local populations and their participation in disaster management. It will also use qualitative research approaches to collect data especially from rural populations in Uganda. It will identify the trends in public participation in disaster management and the past trends. The research will be conducted in accodnce to the research guidelines of Makerere University and the Education Ministry of Uganda. Ethical Considerations Considerations regarding gender roles, ethics and environmental considerations follow the research regulations laid out by the Ugandan Council for Science and Technology. Research is conduucted for society’s benefit. It has inherent burdens wihich the individuals who volunteer and are chosen to participate must bear in order to bring about future benefits (UNCST, 2014). This research procedure will follow all the ethical guidelines laid down by the UNCST. Gender Considerations This research project will not discriminate participants in terms of gender. Project Limitations The researcher anticipates problems with data collection. The research paper will rely on a literature review to investigate past trends in disaster management in various countries. However, the focus of the research paper will primarily be in Uganda and in the African region. One anticipated problem will be the relative lack of studies and information regarding disaster management trends. Much of the information collected about disaster management and participation comes from cultures with different values and who live in different circumstances, for instance internet savviness and connection. The unpredictability of disasters and the difference especially of natural disasters makes it diffivult to standardize conditions. The researcher also anticipated some aspects of independent variable like community resilience would be difficult to quantify. References Accuweather. (2013, November 15). Steady Increase in Climate Related Natural Disasters. Retrieved from Climate Change: http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-blogs/climatechange/steady-increase-in-climate-rel/19974069 Brennan, M., Cantrell, R., Spranger, M., & Kumaran, M. (2014, January). Effective Community Response to Disaster: A Community Approach to Disaster Preparedness and Response. Retrieved from IFAS: https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/FY/FY84000.pdf Chola, L., & Alaba, O. (2013). Association of neighbourhood and individual social capital, neighbourhood economic deprivation and self-rated health in South Africa–a multi-level analysis. PLoS ONE. Guha-Sapir, D., Santos, I., & Borde, A. (2013 ). The Economic Impacts of Natural Disasters. New York: Oxford University Press. Joaquin, T. (2014). Disaster Risk Management-Europe and Central Asia Region. Conference / meeting document. World Bank. Li-Vollmer, M. (2013). Engaging the Public in Critical Disaster Planning and Decision Making: Workshop Summary. In B. M. Altevogt, S. Cooper, K. M. Gebbie, D. Kreisburg, & S. A. Messe, Engaging the Public in Critical Disaster Planning and Decision Making: Workshop Summary (pp. 26- 29). Washington D.C: The National Academies Press. National Development Plan. (2010). National Development Plan. Kampala: The Republic of Uganda. Norris, F. H., Stevens, S. P., Pfefferbaum, B., Wyche, K. F., & Pfefferbaum, R. L. (2008). Community Resilience as a Metaphor, Theory, Set of Capacities and Strategy for Disaster Readiness. American Journal of Community Psychology, 127- 150. Otsi, R., & Miyake, K. (2013). Forms of Community Participation in Disaster Risk Management Practices, natural Disaster Research, Prediction and Mitigation. Tsukuba: Nova Press. Palen, L., Hiltz, S. R., & Liu , S. B. (2007). Online Forums Supporting Grassrots Participation in Emergency Preaparedness and Response. Communications of the ACM, 54- 58. Rajeev, M. M. (2014). Sustainability and Community Empowerment in Disaster Management. International Journal of Social Work and Human Services Practice, 207-212. Saldaña-Zorrilla, S. O. (2015). Natural Disasters, Foeign Trade and Agriculture in Mexico: Public Policy for Reducing Economic Vulnerability. New York: Springer. Sperry, P. (2013). Community Participation in Disaster Planning and the Expectation Gap: Analysis and Recommendations. Virginia : Virginia Commonwealth University. UNCST. (2014). National Guidelines for Research Involving Humans as Research Participants. Kampala: Uganda National Council for Science and Technology. UNDP. (2013, February 19). Disaster management to be key component of Global Development agenda post-2015. Retrieved from UNDP: http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/presscenter/pressreleases/2013/02/19/disaster-management-to-be-key-component-of-global-development-agenda-post-2015.html Wilson, S., Temple, B., Milliron, M., Vazquez, C., Packard, M., & Rudy, B. (2007). The Lack of Disaster Preparedness by the Public and it's Affect on Communities. The Internet Journal of Rescue and Disaster Medicine. Witvorapong, N., Muttarak, R., & Pothisiri, W. (2015). Social Participation and Disaster Risk Reduction Behaviors in Tsunami Prone Areas. Plos Plos One. Zwitter, A., Lamont, C. K., Heintze, H.-J., & Herman, J. (2015). Humanitarian Action: Global, Regional and Domestic Legal Responses. London: Cambridge University Press. Read More