RISK-DISASTER-AND-INSURANCE

Update on the Consortium Disasters cause a wide variety of social, economic, and environmental impacts that can reverse hard fought development gains in vulnerable communities. ProVention was created in 2000 to provide a forum for dialogue and for catalysing new ideas and collaborative initiatives on disaster risk reduction. Originally hosted by the World Bank, it has been hosted since 2003 by the IFRC and has included a broad range of partners, from development to humanitarian organizations and from the public sector to the private sector. The Consortium has been widely recognised for its role in brokering links among diverse actors. Over the ten years between 2000 and 2010, many of ProVention's original goals to mainstream attention to disaster risk reduction have been successfully attained. With the increasing strength of many of its partners institutions on disaster risk reduction, the needs for a consortium like ProVention have changed and the decision has been made in 2010 to phase out ProVention's program activities. This website will continue to be maintained by the IFRC to ensure that the ProVention legacy continues and to highlight the resources that have been developed through ProVention projects and related partners initiatives. It is hoped that the resources on this site will continue to be useful in improving policy and practice and advancing the disaster risk reduction agenda. For a review of ProVention achievements over the last 10 years, a short analysis of key lessons and an overview of progress on ProVention work program activities in 2009, see the ProVention Update 2010 report.

The making of European private law: toward a ius commune europaeum as a mixed legal system J. M. Smits 0 Resenhas Intersentia nv, 2002 - 306 páginas The private law of the Member States of the European Union has become more and more 'European'. The fact that the European Union is making ever more use of directives as an instrument to achieve private law goals, is, in this context, not the most important development. Of much more substance is the fact that one increasingly realises that a uniform European private law has to be created, in one way or another, in the near future, if a truly common European market is to function at all. Over the last decade, Europe has witnessed the emergence of a vigorous debate about the need for and the feasibility of a future European ius commune in the field of private law. This book critically discusses this debate and provides a systematic overview of the various initiatives taken and describes the fragmentary European private law that already exists (by way of European directives, international conventions, etc.). In addition, the author aims at making a contribution to the debate by suggesting that the experience (good or bad) of the so-called 'mixed legal systems' is of great importance to the European private law venture and to the development of a uniform private law for Europe. This idea is supported by insights from Law & Economics and illustrated by South African law in particular. This idea of 'European private law as a mixed legal system' is then applied to the law of contracts, torts and property. This book takes up the challenge to give a critical examination on the various methods of creating this ius commune. A detailed table of contents, list of abbreviations, bibliography, table of cases and index complete the book and make it a valuable study for everyone interested in European private law.

At risk: natural hazards, people's vulnerability and disasters Benjamin Wisner 0 Resenhas Routledge, 2004 - 471 páginas The term "natural disaster" is often used to refer to natural events such as earthquakes, hurricanes, or floods. However, the phrase suggests an uncritical acceptance of a deeply engrained ideological and cultural myth.At Riskquestions this myth and argues that extreme natural events are not disasters until a vulnerable group of people is exposed. This new edition ofAt Riskconfronts a further ten years of ever more expensive and deadly disasters since it was first published, and discusses disaster not as an aberration, but as a signal failure of mainstream development. Two analytical models are provided as tools for understanding vulnerability. One links remote and distant root causes to unsafe conditions in a progression of vulnerability. The other uses the concepts of access and livelihood to understand why some households are more vulnerable than others. The book then concludes with strategies to create a safer world

Mapping vulnerability: disasters, development, and people Greg Bankoff, Georg Frerks, Dorothea Hilhorst 0 Resenhas Earthscan, 2004 - 236 páginas * Major disasters increased over 93 per cent during the 1990s, reaching 712 in 2001 * Up to 340 million people are affected by disasters every year * 'Vulnerability' is the key to understanding the causes, impacts and ways to mitigate disasters In this penetrating analysis, the authors critically examine "vulnerability" as a concept that is vital to the way we understand the impact and magnitude of disasters. This book is a counterbalance to technocratic approaches that limit themselves to simply looking at natural phenomena. Through the notion of vulnerability, the authors stress the importance of social processes and human-environmental interactions as causal agents in the making of disasters. They critically examine what renders communities unsafe, a condition they argue that depends primarily on the relative position of advantage or disadvantage that a particular group occupies within a society's social order. Bolstering their theoretical analysis with case studies drawn from Asia, Africa and Latin America, the authors also look at vulnerability in terms of its relationship to development and through its impact on policy and peoples' lives.

Hazards of nature, risks to development: an IEG evaluation of World Bank assistance for natural disasters World Bank. Independent Evaluation Group 0 Resenhas World Bank Publications, 2006 - 181 páginas The World Bank's Independent Evaluation Group examined the World Bank's experience in disaster prevention and response over the past 20 years and found that the scale of Bank operations has grown over the period. The report found that the Bank has demonstrated considerable flexibility in its approach, but actions have tended to be more reactive than proactive, with disaster response taking more of the focus that preventative measures. « Menos

Natural disaster hotspots: a global risk analysis, Parte 611 Maxx Dilley 1 Resenha World Bank Publications, 2005 - 132 páginas This report presents a global view of major natural disaster risk hotspots - areas at relatively high risk of loss from one or more natural hazards. It summarizes the results of an interdisciplinary analysis of the location and characteristics of hotspots for six natural hazards - earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, floods, drought, and cyclones. Data on these hazards are combined with state-of-the-art data on the subnational distribution of population and economic output and past disaster losses to identify areas at relatively high risk from one or more hazards.

Natural Disaster Risk Management and Financing Disaster Losses in Developing Countrie

Macroeconomic risk management against natural disasters: analysis focussed on governments in developing countries Stefan Hochrainer 0 Resenhas Springer, 2006 - 201 páginas

When All Else Fails: Government as the Ultimate Risk Manager David A. Moss 5 Resenhas Harvard University Press, 2004 - 456 páginas One of the most important functions of government--risk management--is one of the least well understood. Moving beyond the most familiar public functions--spending, taxation, and regulation--When All Else Fails spotlights the government's pivotal role as a risk manager. It reveals, as never before, the nature and extent of this governmental function, which touches almost every aspect of economic life. In policies as diverse as limited liability, deposit insurance, Social Security, and federal disaster relief, American lawmakers have managed a wide array of private-sector risks, transforming both the government and countless private actors into insurers of last resort. Drawing on history and economic theory, David Moss investigates these risk-management policies, focusing in particular on the original logic of their enactment. The nation's lawmakers, he finds, have long believed that pervasive imperfections in private markets for risk necessitate a substantial government role. It remains puzzling, though, why such a large number of the resulting policies have proven so popular in a country famous for its anti-statism. Moss suggests that the answer may lie in the nature of the policies themselves, since publicly mandated risk shifting often requires little in the way of invasive bureaucracy. Well suited to a society suspicious of government activism, public risk management has emerged as a critical form of government intervention in the United States.

RETROACTIVE LIABILITY UNDER THE SUPERFUND: TIME TO SETTLE THE ISSUE NANCY K. KUBASEK,[*] CARRIE WILLIAMSON,[**] AND RACHAEL VIGIL[***] Copyright © 1997 Florida State University Journal of Land Use & Environmental Law I. INTRODUCTION Over the past two years, reauthorization of Superfund legislation has been a hotly debated topic.[1] A primary issue in these debates has been to what extent should retroactive liability be limited under the law.[2] Before Congress acted on any proposal to limit retroactive liability, a federal district court judge issued a controversial ruling holding that the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA)[3] did not apply retroactively to impose liability for waste disposed prior to the law's enactment in 1980. The controversial case was United States v. Olin,[4] decided by Senior District Court Judge Hand in May 1996. Even though this decision was later reversed on appeal, this case briefly gave hope to those who did not favor retroactive liability.[5]

Superfund and Retroactive Liability: Is It Really Fair? by Adam J. Smargon Part I -- Introduction The United States produces close to 300 million tons of hazardous waste every year. Nineteen years ago, Congress wanted to improve the management and disposal of hazardous waste, and it therefore enacted the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). But that act failed in the area of previously existing hazardous waste sites which threatened nearby residents by leaking into the water supply. In 1976, the nation awoke to find that Love Canal families had to move due to the neighborhood being built over an abandoned hazardous waste site. The end result in the wake of this public outcry was the passing of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), more commonly known as Superfund. It gave more authority to the federal government to react to threatened or actual releases of hazardous materials, and "it allows the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to compel parties to clean up their properties, or alternatively, to reimburse [the] EPA for the government's cost of doing the cleanup."[1] CERCLA was amended and reauthorized six years later, as the obviously-named Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA).

global threats NEW! Investigating Food-Borne Illness an interview with Robert Tauxe Airborne Disease Control by Wladyslaw Jan Kowalski The Spread of Dengue Fever an interview with Duane J. Gubler The Evolution of Emerging Viruses an interview with Eddie Holmes Biomedical and Biodefense Uses for Ricin an interview with Ellen Vitetta Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases: A Global Problem an interview with Stephen S. Morse Plant Genebanks: Food Security by Geoffrey C. Hawtin and Jeremy Cherfas Agricultural Bioterrorism by Radford G. Davis Microbes: What They Do & How Antibiotics Change Them by Maura Meade-Callahan

Asbestos and the Future of Mass Torts Michelle J. White Article Citation White, Michelle J. 2004. "Asbestos and the Future of Mass Torts." Journal of Economic Perspectives, 18(2): 183-204. DOI:10.1257/0895330041371187

Las perforaciones en la Plataforma Continental Exterior (OCS) amenazan a nuestras playas, océanos, comunidades costeras y vida marina El Presidente Bush y algunos miembros del Congreso están presionando para abrir áreas que han sido protegidas de la perforación petrolera por muchos años, incluyendo las costa este y oeste, y Florida. Pero según la propia Administración de Información de Energía de la administración Bush, el efecto de permitir las perforaciones en esas áreas sería "insignificante". Y los costos ambientales y económicos serían inmensos.   La infraestructura petrolera y de gas en tierra daña los terrenos, las economías y las comunidades costeras Las explotaciones petroleras y de gas en ultramar requieren caminos costeros, tanques de almacenado, tuberías, plantas de procesamiento y otras instalaciones industriales. Todo eso puede dañar playas, humedales y hábitat de la costa, con consecuencias para las economías costeras que dependen del turismo, la recreación y la pesca.   Un peligro para la salud del océano Las perforaciones y la producción en ultramar crean inmensas cantidades de desechos que contienen contaminantes tóxicos y radioactivos que pueden contaminar a los peces y a las especies marinas que consumen los seres humanos. Los desechos de la perforación contienen metales tóxicos, incluso mercurio, plomo y cadmio. Cada pozo crea decenas de miles de galones de estos desechos y la mayoría se tira en las aguas circundantes.  Cada pozo también descarga cientos de miles de galones de "agua producida", que contiene contaminantes tóxicos que incluyen benceno, arsénico, plomo, radio, naftalina, zinc y tolueno, además de hidrocarburos de petróleo.   Contaminación del aire y emisión de gases de efecto invernadero Los pozos en ultramar emiten contaminantes del aire que son carcinógenos conocidos, causan problemas respiratorios y son gases de efecto invernadero. Las emisiones de la perforación de un pozo de e

Risks in modern society Hans-Jürgen Bischoff 0 Resenhas Springer, 2008 - 329 páginas This book describes the complex issue of risks in a changing world (of work), and how to find solutions through risk management and risk governance - for the benefit of employees, employers, other stakeholders, shareholders and society in general. The focus is on occupational safety and health, also the complex structure of 'surrounding' political, cultural, natural and economic environments are considered.

Social theories of risk Sheldon Krimsky, Dominic Golding 2 Resenhas Praeger, 1992 - 412 páginas The social science approach to risk has matured over the past two decades, with distinct paradigms developing in disciplines such as anthropology, economics, geography, psychology, and sociology. Social Theories of Risk traces the intellectual origins and histories of twelve of the established and emerging paradigms from the perspective of their principal proponents. Each contributor examines the underlying assumptions of his or her paradigm, the foundational issue it seeks to address, and likely future directions of research. Taken together, these essays illustrate that the principal achievement of social sciences has been to broaden the debate about risk beyond the narrow, technical considerations of engineers and the physical and life sciences. The authors conclude that expert knowledge is not value-free, that public perceptions of and attitudes toward risks vary according to a wide range of social, psychological, and cultural variables, and that public opposition to particular risks cannot be assuaged by technical fixes. The essays reveal the circuitous paths that lead people to the study of risk, highlight how these paths have crossed and discuss some of the seminal influences on individuals and the field in general. Social Theories of Risk presents a broad, retrospective view of the state of the theory in the social sciences, written by many who have been on the cutting edge of risk research since its early days. The book includes both established and novel perspectives that address the theoretical foundations of the field and reflect what we know about risk as a psychological, social, and cultural phenomenon. The collection of papers not only informs us of the tributary ideas that spawned the social studies of risk, but also how the field has matured. The biographical flavor of the essays provides fascinating reading for established members of the field, and a v

The Social Contours of Risk: Risk analysis, corporations and the globalization of risk Jeanne X. Kasperson, Roger E. Kasperson 0 Resenhas Earthscan, 2005 - 326 páginas We live in a 'risk society' where the identification, distribution and management of risks, from new technology, environmental factors or other sources are crucial to our individual and social existence. Jeanne and Roger Kasperson are two of the world's leading and most influential analysts of the social dimensions of risk. 'The Social Contours of Risk' brings together in two volumes their most important contributions to this fundamental and wide-ranging field. Volume 2 centers on the analysis and management of risk in society, in international business and multinationals, and globally. The 'acceptability' of risk to an individual depends on the context, whether in the larger society or in, say, a corporate framework. Their work clarifies the structures and processes for managing risks in the private sector, and the factors that produce or impede effective decisions. Corporate culture is crucial as they show in determining risk management. They analyze the transfer of corporate risk management systems from industrial to developing countries, and how globalization is spreading and creating new kinds of risk -- the combination of traditional and modern hazards presented by climate change, technology transfer and economic growth. They describe the new priorities and capacities needed to deal with these enhanced vulnerabilities around the globe.

Risk and blame: essays in cultural theory Mary Douglas 0 Resenhas Routledge, 1994 - 323 páginas "The idea of risk has recently risen to prominence in political debate, and has become the regular coinage of exchange in public policy." InRisk and Blame, a collection of essays, Mary Douglas studies the concepts of risk and blame, and suggests how political and cultural bias can be incorporated into the study of risk perception and the discussion of reponsibility and danger in public policy. Risk and Blameargues that any analysis of risk perception that ignores cultural and political bias is worthless. The text goes on to discuss questions of cultural theory, including questions of autonomy, credibility and gullibility, the origin of wants, and the idea of a distinctive thought style that is part of a way of life. Because these topics have so far only been lightly touched upon in the social sciences, risk perception is now moving center-stage as the dominant idiom of policy analysis, forcing radical reconsideration of other key topics. InRisk and BlameMary Douglas suggests that the prominence of risk discourse will force upon the social sciences a program of rethinking and consolidation which will include the anthropological approaches studied in these pages. The range of this book extends far beyond anthropology to philosophy, cultural theory, and organizational theory, making it a welcome text for anthropologists, philosophers, sociologists, and theorists.

Risk and culture: an essay on the selection of technical and environmental dangers Mary Douglas, Aaron Wildavsky 2 Resenhas University of California Press, 1983

The next catastrophe: reducing our vulnerabilities to natural, industrial, and terrorist disasters Charles Perrow 3 Resenhas Princeton University Press, 2007 - 377 páginas Charles Perrow is famous worldwide for his ideas about normal accidents, the notion that multiple and unexpected failures--catastrophes waiting to happen--are built into our society's complex systems. InThe Next Catastrophe, he offers crucial insights into how to make us safer, proposing a bold new way of thinking about disaster preparedness. Perrow argues that rather than laying exclusive emphasis on protecting targets, we should reduce their size to minimize damage and diminish their attractiveness to terrorists. He focuses on three causes of disaster--natural, organizational, and deliberate--and shows that our best hope lies in the deconcentration of high-risk populations, corporate power, and critical infrastructures such as electric energy, computer systems, and the chemical and food industries. Perrow reveals how the threat of catastrophe is on the rise, whether from terrorism, natural disasters, or industrial accidents. Along the way, he gives us the first comprehensive history of FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security and examines why these agencies are so ill equipped to protect us. The Next Catastropheis a penetrating reassessment of the very real dangers we face today and what we must do to confront them. Written in a highly accessible style by a renowned systems-behavior expert, this book is essential reading for the twenty-first century. The events of September 11 and Hurricane Katrina--and the devastating human toll they wrought--were only the beginning. When the next big disaster comes, will we be ready?