Dilanthi Amaratunga – författare

The construction industry is typically engaged in a range of critical activities after a disaster, including provision of temporary shelter in the immediate aftermath and restoration of permanent shelter and public infrastructure once the immediate humanitarian needs have been attended to. Post-Disaster Reconstruction of the Built Environment identifies the challenges that face the industry and highlights best practice to enable the construction industry to address those problems which make an effective response to these unexpected events difficult. Written by an international team of experts, this book will help researchers and advanced students of construction understand the problems faced by communities and the construction industry when faced with a natural or man-made disaster, and identify the planning and management processes required by the industry to mount an effective response.

The construction industry is typically engaged in a range of critical activities after a disaster, including provision of temporary shelter in the immediate aftermath and restoration of permanent shelter and public infrastructure once the immediate humanitarian needs have been attended to. Post-Disaster Reconstruction of the Built Environment identifies the challenges that face the industry and highlights best practice to enable the construction industry to address those problems which make an effective response to these unexpected events difficult. Written by an international team of experts, this book will help researchers and advanced students of construction understand the problems faced by communities and the construction industry when faced with a natural or man-made disaster, and identify the planning and management processes required by the industry to mount an effective response.

This book presents a collection of papers under the theme of multi-hazard early warning and disaster risks. These were selected from the presentations made at the International Symposium on Tsunami and Multi-Hazard Risks, Early Warning and Community Awareness in supporting implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030.  This conference aimed to recognize achievements and to highlight work that still needs to be carried out.  The conference promoted collaboration among academia, research institutions and disaster management offices, and further encouraged multidisciplinary and multi-sectoral interaction

This International Symposium on Multi-Hazard Early Warning and Disaster Risk Reduction provided an important opportunity to reflect upon our progress to date in tackling disaster risk, but also to consider some of the challenges and opportunities that lay ahead of us.

A particular focus of this event wasMulti-Hazard Early Warning. During the negotiations for the Sendai Framework, countries and partners highlighted the need to:

1.       Continue to invest in, develop, maintain and strengthen people-centred, end-to-end early warning systems;

2.       Promote the application of simple and low cost early warning equipment and facilities;

3.       Broaden the dissemination channels for early warning information to facilitate early action.

Countries also called for the further development of and investment in effective, nationally compatible, regional multi-hazard early warning mechanisms. To address these needs, global Target (g) of the Sendai Framework was adopted, namely to “substantially increase the availability of and access to multi-hazard early warning systems and disaster risk information and assessments to the people by 2030”.

Global climate change is one of the greatest environmental threats facing humanity and it is affecting every country on every continent. Recent evidence confirms a close liaison between climate change induced hazards and the built environment, as the built environment demonstrates a high fragility and vulnerability to hazardous situations. The impact of climate change is particularly pertinent to the built environment given the life expectancy of buildings and the fact that it is essential to adapt the existing built environment to deal with a climate that may be significantly different from that in which it evolved.  Coastal regions are highly vulnerable to climate change because, in addition to changes in temperature, precipitation, and more frequent flooding, they will be affected by rising sea levels, wave heights, and accelerated coastal erosion. The built environment exerts considerable influence over coastal communities'' local climate and environment. Coastal areas also tend to be highly populated, with many vulnerable urban centres located near the coastal belt. In addressing such challenges, it is important to better understand the impacts of climate change on the built environment and to develop tangible climate adaptation measures for the built environment.