One of the most hotly debated questions in Vanuatu has been about how communities can rebuild so that they are safer and more resilient to future cyclones. That’s not as simple as you might think.
There are more resilient ways to build in vulnerable areas.
Resilient Collective Housing', New Jersey Institute of Technology College of Architecture and Design studio project by Taryn Wefer and Naomi Patel. Instructors: Keith Krumwiede and Martina Decker
The climate is changing. Development patterns that have hardly served us well in the past certainly won’t serve us well in the future. Now is the time to adapt.
Would giving disaster victims cash, rather than just supplies, help them get back on their feet faster?
Reuters
When disaster strikes, billions of dollars are spent on food and supplies, with little accounting of whether relief groups bought the right things or what impact they had.
Everybody’s leaving New Orleans ahead of Katrina.
Rick Wilking / Reuters
Hurricanes can be deadly to those in their path. Officials don’t want to unnecessarily alarm before solid forecasts are in place, but residents need enough time to prepare and heed evacuation orders.
With many people in need of shelter and schools only now re-opening, Nepal is not yet ready to restart the lucrative tourism industry that will help its recovery.
EPA/Narendra Shrestha
While some operators have prematurely suggested it’s safe for tourists to return, Nepal’s recovery from the earthquake has barely begun. In the longer term, though, tourism will be vital to this process.
The road to recovery is a long one for Nepal, which goes beyond the immediate priority of disaster relief.
Diego Azubel/AAP
Politics in Nepal will hinder relief and recovery efforts following the earthquake and its aftershocks. But look at it the other way around. Could the disaster help to resolve political problems?
People catch up with the news of the earthquake at a kiosk in Kathmandu, Nepal.
EPA/Abir Abdullah
Nepal has thousands of journalists working in hundreds of media outlets and publications. But getting the story out about the deadly earthquake was no easy task.
Bushfires such as this one in Western Australia can be hard to predict.
CSIRO
Bushfires can be deadly and destroy homes and properties. But knowing where they are likely to spread next can help emergency services.
Earthquake survivor Krishna Kumari Khadka, 24, is rescued by the French, Israeli and Norwegian rescue teams from a collapsed building six days after the earthquake in Kathmandu, Nepal April 30 2015.
Adnan Abidi/Reuters
Research suggests that many international health-oriented responses are poorly targeted. So what kind of health response would best target the needs of the Nepalese?
Rescue workers looking for possible survivors in Kathmandu, Nepal, in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake.
EPA/Carl Whetham/International Federation of the Red Cross
Natural disasters are becoming more frequent, with more people with less money exposed to a greater number of hazards.
Vanuatu has a well-co-ordinated disaster response system but limited material resources. Medical support is needed when a disaster like Cyclone Pam strikes.
EPA/UNICEF
The people of Vanuatu have always had to cope with extreme weather events, but natural disasters on the scale of Cyclone Pam test their strengths and leave areas of vulnerability exposed.
Vital but routine public health measures are often compromised in the weeks following natural disasters.
UNICEF
Any public health assessment of Vanuatu should include the identification of immediate needs and associated risks, as well as put in plans for mitigating future natural disasters.
Australian has moved swiftly to fly relief aid and personnel to Vanuatu but has been less responsive to Pacific Islanders’ pleas to act on climate change.
AAP/Dave Hunt