Janaka Jayawickrama – författare

Hazards, Risks, and Disasters in Society provides analyses of environmentally related catastrophes within society in historical, political and economic contexts. Personal and corporate culture mediates how people may become more vulnerable or resilient to hazard exposure. Societies that strengthen themselves, or are strengthened, mitigate decline and resultant further exposure to what are largely human induced risks of environmental, social and economic degradation. This book outlines why it is important to explore in more depth the relationships between environmental hazards, risk and disasters in society. It presents challenges presented by mainstream and non-mainstream approaches to the human side of disaster studies.

By hazard categories this book includes critical processes and outcomes that significantly disrupt human wellbeing over brief or long time-frames. Whilst hazards, risks and disasters impact society, individuals, groups, institutions and organisations offset the effects by becoming strong, healthy, resilient, caring and creative. Innovations can arise from social organisation in times of crisis. This volume includes much of use to practitioners and policy makers needing to address both prevention and response activities. Notably, as people better engage prevalent hazards and risks they exercise a process that has become known as disaster risk reduction (DRR). In a context of climatic risks this is also indicative of climate change adaptation (CCA). Ultimately it represents the quest for development of sustainable environmental and societal futures. Throughout the book cases studies are derived from the world of hazards risks and disasters in society.

This book critically examines how the globalisation of mental health through the dominant medical model has created barriers to understanding and responding to distress with reference to cases from Malawi and Sri Lanka. Its authors argue that mental health must be understood within the overall health of an individual, and individual health is located within the social, political, cultural, economic, and environmental context in which they live. Their analyses demonstrate that supplanting locally developed responses to distress with a Western medicalised model of mental health inhibits a meaningful engagement with individuals and communities in need of care. Further, they argue that this ‘supplanting’ is analogous with a colonial endeavour, and one which diverts attention from the real problems of development. Across contexts the book highlights the difficulties that mental health professionals face in facilitating individuals’ capacities within structurally damaging socio-economic environments and increasingly commercially orientated health systems.

This book will appeal in particular to students, researchers and practitioners working across the fields of mental health, medical anthropology, social work, and health and development studies.

This book argues that the growing disconnection between humans and nature leads to a loss of awareness of their responsibilities and accountabilities in safeguarding health and wellbeing. It critically evaluates established definitions, policies, and interventions on health and wellbeing. It draws inspirations from South Asian philosophical traditions and highlights the value of "ancient wisdoms" in comprehending and addressing health and wellbeing challenges. It contests prevailing biomedical definitions globally. It seeks to redefine health and wellbeing within the broader context of contemporary global challenges such as climate crisis, disasters, and socio-political conflicts. Through a rigorous exploration of practical realities and potential adaptations, the book examines health and wellbeing models within the South Asian context such as Ayurveda, Siddha, and Deshiya Chikitsa. This book''s interdisciplinary relevance interests scholars, students, and practitioners in social anthropology, health and wellbeing, environment and development studies, sociology, medical history, indigenous studies, human geography, and environmental humanities. The book also invites readers to reflect on their perspectives and experiences, fostering a deeper understanding of the complex interplay between humans, health, wellbeing, and nature.