Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- 1 Introduction
- Part I Processes
- Part II Processes and applications of geomorphology to risk assessment and management
- 17 GIS for the assessment of risk from geomorphological hazards
- 18 Hazard assessment for risk analysis and risk management
- 19 Vulnerability analysis in geomorphic risk assessment
- 20 Geomorphological hazards and global climate change
- 21 Geomorphic hazards and sustainable development
- 22 Geomorphology and disaster prevention
- 23 Geomorphology and the international agenda: concluding remarks
- Index
- References
23 - Geomorphology and the international agenda: concluding remarks
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 10 January 2011
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- 1 Introduction
- Part I Processes
- Part II Processes and applications of geomorphology to risk assessment and management
- 17 GIS for the assessment of risk from geomorphological hazards
- 18 Hazard assessment for risk analysis and risk management
- 19 Vulnerability analysis in geomorphic risk assessment
- 20 Geomorphological hazards and global climate change
- 21 Geomorphic hazards and sustainable development
- 22 Geomorphology and disaster prevention
- 23 Geomorphology and the international agenda: concluding remarks
- Index
- References
Summary
Natural hazards are a part of life. But hazards only become disasters when people's lives and livelihoods are swept away. The vulnerability of communities is growing due to human activities that lead to increased poverty, greater urban density, environmental degradation and climate change.
UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, 8 October 2003, International Day for Disaster ReductionEmpirical investigations of geomorphological hazards have existed since humankind wondered about the nature of the Universe. The ancient Greeks, for example, paid attention to phenomena such as earthquakes and volcanoes. During the Renaissance, scientists such as Leonardo da Vinci contributed to the early scientific development of topics related to geomorphology. Later on, at the beginning of the nineteenth century as specialization took place, instrumentation and measurement technology improved and diverse schools of thought appeared on the scene (Bauer, 2004). Contributions became concentrated on the complexity of nature.
Accordingly, the duality between nature (hazards) and society (vulnerability) can not be regarded as new. In the nineteenth century, Humboldt and Ritter were already aware of the necessity of addressing the planet from both natural and human global perspectives. As Ritter remarked, ‘The earth and its inhabitants stand in the closest mutual relations, and one element cannot be seen in all its phases without the others.’ It seems inexorable therefore that understanding risk involves a full comprehension of the interactions among natural and cultural landscapes.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Geomorphological Hazards and Disaster Prevention , pp. 279 - 281Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2010