Governing Disasters
Engaging Local Populations in Humanitarian Relief

Drawing on international, state and private sector case studies and a global survey, this book examines local engagement in disaster relief.

Shahla F. Ali (Author)

9781107106390, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 30 June 2016

346 pages
22.9 x 15.2 x 2.1 cm, 0.63 kg

'Offers a rich and comparative analysis of local participation in disaster response and recovery in six recent disasters. At a time when the international humanitarian community is stretched thin by multiple large-scale disasters, and the twin forces of conflict and larger natural disasters place millions in need of humanitarian assistance globally, there has never been a more apt time to consider seriously how best to support and enhance the capacities of local communities to respond to and manage disaster response. Governments, scholars and humanitarian and development practitioners will benefit enormously from reviewing the actual experience of local community participation in disaster recovery expertly examined in this work.' Vincenzo Bollettino, Harvard Humanitarian Initiative

With growing awareness of the devastation caused by major natural disasters, alongside integration of governance and technology networks, the parameters of humanitarian aid are becoming more global. At the same time, humanitarian instruments are increasingly recognizing the centrality of local participation. Drawing on six case studies and a survey of sixty-nine members of the relief sector, this book suggests that the key to the efficacy of post-disaster recovery is the primacy given to local actors in the management, direction and design of relief programs. Where local partnership and knowledge generation and application is ongoing, cohesive, meaningful and inclusive, disaster relief efforts are more targeted, cost-effective, efficient and timely. Governing Disasters: Engaging Local Populations in Humanitarian Relief examines the interplay between law, governance and collaborative decision making with international, state, private sector and community actors in order to understand the dynamics of a global decentralized yet coordinated process of post-disaster humanitarian assistance.

Part I. Introduction: 1. New governance and humanitarian aid
2. Legal background: post-disaster humanitarian aid law and policy
Part II. International-Led Response: 3. Theory and practice of international response
4. Indonesia's tsunami of 2004
5. The Haitian earthquake of 2010
Part III. State-Led Response: 6. Theory and practice of state-led response
7. The Thai flood of 2011
8. Japan's Tohoku earthquake and tsunami 2011
9. Hurricane Katrina
Part IV. Examining Public-Private Partnerships: 10. Myanmar's Cyclone Nargis of 2008
11. Public-private partnerships through crowd-sourced
12. Governance and humanitarian aid survey data
13. Conclusions: lessons learned/policy suggestions.

Subject Areas: Natural disasters [RNR], Arbitration, mediation & alternative dispute resolution [LNAC5], International arbitration [LBHT], International humanitarian law [LBBS], Public international law [LBB], International relations [JPS]