By Rose Michael, European Emergency Number Association (EENA)
When a disaster occurs, the first people on the scene are often members of the general public. In those first moments, the actions of citizens have the potential to mitigate the impacts of the crisis until professional help arrives. Despite citizens serving as an important link in the emergency chain, disaster management policies currently tend to focus primarily on the response of formal organisations. Improving disaster response therefore requires placing more emphasis on resilience as a whole-of-society endeavour.
Exploring the interaction between the population and emergency organisations is the basis of ENGAGE’s work on societal resilience. An EU-funded project, ENGAGE works on the principle that citizens have an important role to play in preventing and managing disasters, both before, during and afterwards. However, for their potential to significantly contribute to resilient societies, citizens’ capabilities need to be better integrated into the response of first responder organisations and public authorities.
Resilience involves an inclusive strategy to build a culture of risk. ENGAGE is building on our understanding of the many factors that contribute to societal resilience, all of which may impact the way that formal organisations interact with the public and vice versa. The importance of enhancing knowledge about disaster risk and all its components has been identified in the UN’s Sendai Framework (Priority Action 1). ENGAGE is therefore asking: What does an effective response from the population look like? And how can we better ensure that this happens?
So, what kind of factors should we consider? ENGAGE is identifying target aspects, such as levels of risk awareness and methods of sharing information, that can be enhanced through policies and concrete actions. Solutions to address the target aspects and help bridge the gap between practitioners and citizens come in many different forms. They include practical resources, such as technological tools, guidelines, training, and other formal and informal practices. The solutions will be analysed and categorised in a catalogue of solutions that will aim to enhance the knowledge of decision-makers and strengthen disaster risk governance (Sendai Framework Priority Action 2).
However, solutions should be chosen not only according to the target aspects they aim to improve, but based on what ENGAGE describes as contextual aspects. These are embedded in the culture of the society itself and change requires a more complex and long-term strategy. Contextual aspects, such as levels of trust in different institutions, may significantly impact the success of the various solutions.
Creating a community of collaboration through the research is therefore key, reflecting the broader, people-centred approach highlighted in the Sendai Framework. By working with a variety of actors in a Knowledge and Innovation Community of Practice, including NGOs, practitioners and citizens, ENGAGE will develop a deep understanding of the natural place of resilience in local communities. As case studies are analysed, we’re exploring how lessons learnt from countries across the world, such as Japan, can be built on and implemented in the European context.
Understanding how interaction with citizens fits into disaster response will help to enhance policy that can ultimately save lives and ensure that societies bounce back quicker and more effectively from a crisis. Once we start considering resilience as an intrinsic ability of a whole society – to be able to adjust itself and continue functioning before, during and after crises – we see that local communities are valuable resources that can be drawn upon during a disaster.