Representations of resilience in the disaster policies of four association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) member states
Date
2015
Authors
Niall, Asha
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Disasters have the ability to overwhelm coping capacities of both communities and the state. This makes them an area of significant concern on local, regional, national and international scales. The international governance framework established to deal with disaster risk is the Hyogo Framework (HFA) and its successor, the Sendai Framework for Action (SFA), and has been adopted by the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) to guide disaster policy development in the region. Climate change is a major driver of disaster risk, and is governed internationally by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). These two frameworks aim to address disaster risk through building resilience by reducing vulnerability. This thesis is concerned with ideas that influence the development of disaster policy within the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN). More specifically, how the concept of resilience permeates from international governance frameworks, into regional agreements and domestic policy. Resilience is contested and can be loosely defined – within this study it is understood as a network of adaptive capacities. Word searches and document analysis of key country documents were used to examine how resilience is reflected in disaster policy within ASEAN countries. Due to the scoping limitations of this study, four countries -‐ Cambodia, Lao PDR, Indonesia and the Philippines – are explored. This thesis found that resilience is described as a general goal, used as a guide for a broader policy direction over different time scales, across multiple levels of government. Throughout analysis, it became clear that disaster risk is influenced by a variety of factors, many of which need to be better understood. Similarly, resilience is used to inform policy explicitly designed to address increased risk from disaster as a result of low levels of development. There is also a strong focus on vulnerability through the lenses of demographic dynamics, including gender. However it is unclear how enhanced demographic information influences disaster policy. This thesis established that resilience ‘works’ within policy by drawing together multiple temporal, spatial and governance scales, and can encourage interactions by creating networks to build adaptive capacities. Resilience has a strong influence on international, regional and domestic disaster policy. By demonstrating how resilience is reflected in disaster policy, this research provides a firm foundation for areas of further study, particularly surrounding the implementation and efficacy of disaster policy within ASEAN states.
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Thesis (Honours)
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