Universität Stuttgart
Permanent URI for this communityhttps://elib.uni-stuttgart.de/handle/11682/1
Browse
5 results
Search Results
Item Open Access Adaptation after extreme flooding events : moving or staying? The case of the Ahr Valley in Germany(2023) Truedinger, Alessa Jasmin; Jamshed, Ali; Sauter, Holger; Birkmann, JoernMore than 130 lives were lost in the 2021 heavy precipitation and flood event in the Ahr Valley, Germany, where large parts of the valley were destroyed. Afterwards, public funding of about 15 billion Euros has been made available for reconstruction. However, with people and settlements being in highly exposed zones, the core question that is not sufficiently addressed is whether affected people want to rebuild in the same place, or rather opt to move out. The paper explores this question and assesses motivations and reasons for moving or staying in the Ahr Valley. For this purpose, a household survey was conducted focusing on 516 flood-affected households. The collected data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The results revealed that the ownership of the house or flat significantly influenced the decision of whether to stay or to leave. In addition, an attachment to the place and the belief that such extreme events occur very rarely influenced the decision to stay and rebuild. Age, gender and household income barely influenced the decision to stay or to move to a new place. Interestingly, results demonstrated that many respondents view settlement retreat and the relocation of critical infrastructures as important options to reduce risk, however, many still rebuild in the same place. These insights enable local policy and practice to better address the needs of the population in terms of whether to stay or move after such an extreme disaster.Item Open Access Flood resilience assessment from the perspective of urban (in)formality in Surat, India : implications for sustainable development(2023) Jamshed, Ali; Patel, Chirag; Puriya, Anshul; Iqbal, Nimra; Rana, Irfan Ahmad; McMillan, Joanna M.; Pandey, Rajiv; Altaf, Shahbaz; Mehmood, Rana Tahir; Saad, Umair binUrbanization has resulted in increasing the pace of informality, specifically in developing countries like India. Informality is taking place at locations that are exposed to various hazards, and therefore, resilience building of both informal and formal settlements is needed to achieve sustainable development. Resilience assessment is key in defining appropriate area-specific resilience measures. Given that, this research assesses the resilience of formal and informal settlements of Surat city in India and presents implications for sustainable development. To assess resilience, an indicator-based approach was taken, using a household survey to collect the data. Analysis suggests that the resilience of formal and informal settlements is significantly different. Key differences were found in physical and institutional resilience, where informal settlements were found to be significantly less resilient than formal settlements. Several measures, such as gender-sensitive education and livelihood programs, as well as mobile water and sanitation, have positive implications for sustainable development. Overall, the study can guide disaster managers and policy makers to adopt a strategic and more targeted approach to strengthen resilience and achieve sustainable development.Item Open Access Linkages between typologies of existing urban development patterns and human vulnerability to heat stress in Lahore(2022) Iqbal, Nimra; Ravan, Marvin; Jamshed, Ali; Birkmann, Joern; Somarakis, Giorgos; Mitraka, Zina; Chrysoulakis, NektariosThe combined effects of global warming, urbanization, and demographic change influence climate risk for urban populations, particularly in metropolitan areas with developing economies. To inform climate change adaptation and spatial planning, it is important to study urban climatic hazards and populations at risk in relation to urban growth trends and development patterns. However, this relationship has not been adequately investigated in studies dedicated to climate vulnerability. This study identifies the typologies of development patterns within Lahore, Pakistan, investigates the heat vulnerability of residents at a neighborhood scale, and establishes a relationship between both of these factors. We identified urban clusters with diverse development patterns. Fourteen context- and site-specific indicators were selected to construct a human heat vulnerability index. Weighted sum, cluster analysis, and ANOVA test of variance were conducted to analyze the data. Our results demonstrate that development patterns significantly influence human vulnerability to heat stress, e.g., vulnerability is higher in older cities and undeveloped neighborhoods with less diverse land uses. These findings are essential for informing policy-makers, decision-makers and spatial planners about proactive adaptation planning in dynamic urban environments.Item Open Access Spatial planning and systems thinking tools for climate risk reduction : a case study of the Andaman Coast, Thailand(2022) McMillan, Joanna M.; Birkmann, Joern; Tangwanichagapong, Siwaporn; Jamshed, AliThe impact of climate change and related hazards such as floods, heatwaves, and sea level rise on human lives, cities, and their hinterlands depends not only on the nature of the hazard, but also on urban development, adaptation, and other socioeconomic processes that determine vulnerability and exposure. Spatial planning can reduce climate risk not just by influencing the exposure, but also by addressing social vulnerability. This requires that relevant information is available to planners and that plans are implemented and coordinated between sectors. This article is based on a research project in Thailand, particularly on the results of multi-sectoral workshops in the case study region of the Andaman Coast in southern Thailand, and draws upon climate risk, spatial planning, and systems thinking discourses. The article formulates recommendations for planning in the context of Thailand that are relevant for other rapidly growing and urbanizing regions. Among other conclusions, it suggests that systems thinking approaches and cross-sectoral strategies are ways to grasp the interdependencies between and within climate risk and spatial development challenges.Item Open Access A conceptual framework to understand the dynamics of rural-urban linkages for rural flood vulnerability(2020) Jamshed, Ali; Birkmann, Joern; Feldmeyer, Daniel; Rana, Irfan AhmadRural areas are highly vulnerable to floods due to limited social, economic, and physical resources. Understanding rural vulnerability is vital for developing effective disaster risk reduction strategies. Even though rural areas and cities are intrinsically linked, rural vulnerability was assessed without considering its relation to cities. Numerous theoretical frameworks on systemizing and assessing vulnerability were developed with varying level of scope and depth in terms of scale, dimensions, and components. Nevertheless, these frameworks did not explicitly mention the impact of flood or other hazards on the linkages between spatial units i.e., rural and urban. This study aims to understand and conceptualize the rural vulnerability with respect to the dynamics of rural-urban linkages in the case of flood events. To do so, current literature on rural-urban linkages, vulnerability, as well as factors that influence them were critically reviewed. Taking into account the main elements of rural-urban linkages (flow of people, information, finances, goods and services), components of vulnerability (exposure, susceptibility, and capacity), and factors (social, economic, institutional, infrastructural, spatial, and environmental), a unified framework is proposed. The framework underscores that the role of rural-urban linkages is essential to fully understand rural flood vulnerability. Moreover, the framework highlights the role of spatial factors-city size and proximity to the city-as crucial to comprehend rural vulnerability. This framework can be used as a tool for understanding multifaceted rural vulnerability for climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction considering spatial development perspective. In this context, empirical investigations can be made to validate the proposed framework and policies can be introduced accordingly. Overall, the proposed framework can help recognize concepts and links of vulnerability, rural–urban dependencies, and rural development dynamics.