Civil Protection, Disaster Management, and Resilience – serie

This open access book an era defined by disruption, such as cyberattacks, global outages, pandemics, and supply chain failures, resilience is no longer optional. Anticipate and Secure: Enhancing Resilience Through Effective Business Continuity Management (BCM) is an open access book and provides organisations, leaders, and students of BCM with the tools to prepare, respond, and recover from crisis with confidence.Drawing on decades of research and practical experience, the authors present a comprehensive and accessible framework for modern BCM. The book goes beyond compliance checklists to show how BCM can become a strategic driver of organisational resilience, protecting value, reputation, and stakeholder trust. Through contemporary case studies, including the 2024 global IT outage and COVID-19, Anticipate and Secure: Enhancing Resilience Through Effective Business Continuity Management demonstrates how effective continuity planning transforms crises into opportunities for growth and learning.Whether you are a manager, policymaker, or student, this volume offers clear guidance on implementing international standards, fostering leadership commitment, managing third-party risk, and embedding continuity within organisational culture. Practical, evidence-based, and future-oriented, it equips readers to anticipate disruption, secure continuity, and build lasting resilience in an unpredictable world.

Disasters – whether natural, technological, or public health-related – are increasing in frequency, scale, and complexity, with profound human, economic, and geopolitical consequences. While advances in early warning systems, infrastructure, and coordinated response have reduced some vulnerabilities, new risks driven by climate change, demographic shifts, and global interdependence threaten to reverse these gains. Against this backdrop, the need for effective legal and institutional frameworks for disaster management has never been more urgent.This open access book offers a comprehensive yet accessible overview of contemporary international disaster management from both an institutional and legal perspective. Part I examines the principal actors and coordination mechanisms shaping the international response, with particular attention to the evolution of the United Nations system and the European Union Civil Protection Mechanism as the most advanced regional model. Part II turns to the legal frameworks governing disaster management, distinguishing between post-disaster response and recovery measures on the one hand, and pre-disaster prevention and preparedness - most notably disaster risk reduction - on the otherDrawing on the latest empirical data and recent normative developments, including the Sendai Framework and the International Law Commission’s Draft Articles on the Protection of Persons in the Event of Disasters, the volume situates disaster law and policy within broader debates on resilience, sustainable development, and climate adaptation. Intended as a reference text, this book is particularly valuable for scholars, students, practitioners, and policymakers seeking a structured understanding of the evolving institutional landscape and legal architecture of disaster management at both global and regional levels.

As we confront increasingly frequent and complex disasters, geospatial information plays a central role in effective disaster management.This open access book offers a comprehensive examination of how spatial data, cutting-edge technologies, and innovative approaches are revolutionising the way we prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters. From remote sensing and artificial intelligence to social media monitoring and geohealth applications, it demonstrates how geospatial innovations are reshaping every stage of the disaster management cycle. Clear explanations, real-world case studies, and practical tools guide readers through concepts ranging from multi-hazard risk assessment to impact-based forecasting.Designed for professionals, researchers, and students in disaster management, geography, and geoinformatics, this book bridges theory and practice. It not only highlights the potential of spatial technologies but also critically examines their limitations, ethical challenges, and future directions. By connecting data-driven methods with humanitarian needs, it equips readers with the knowledge to harness geospatial information for more resilient societies in the face of evolving hazards.

How can we better understand, assess, and manage the risks posed by natural hazards in a rapidly changing world? This open access book provides clear answers by combining scientific knowledge with practical experience in disaster risk management. It equips readers with tools to identify and evaluate risks, introduces innovative approaches such as impact chains, and demonstrates how institutions and communities can strengthen their resilience.Covering a broad range of hazards – from floods and storms to earthquakes and landslides – the chapters present both established methods and emerging trends. Special attention is given to socio-economic and psycho-social dimensions, acknowledging that disasters impact people not only physically but also socially and emotionally. International and European frameworks, including the Sendai Framework and the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, are explored as models for effective, coordinated action.By bridging research, policy, and practice, the book offers clear explanations, case examples, and forward-looking perspectives. Readers gain a structured understanding of evolving risks, their underlying drivers, and strategies for adaptation in the face of climate change, technological transformation, and growing vulnerabilities.Designed as a concise yet comprehensive reference, this volume is an essential resource for students, researchers, practitioners, and policymakers seeking actionable insights and a future-oriented approach to disaster risk management.

The open access book focusses on civil protection and resilience in contemporary Europe. In a time marked by overlapping crises and shifting global power dynamics, Europe faces unprecedented challenges that test its capacity to protect citizens, infrastructure, and democratic values. Geopolitical and Security Challenges in Risk Management explores how European societies can strengthen civil protection, reduce potential risks, and improve community resilience amid a rapidly changing security environment.Explore how Europe adapts civil protection and risk management to hybrid threats, climate change, and poly-crises for greater resilience! Based on research from the Estonian Academy of Security Sciences and partner institutions, this book offers a comprehensive examination of emerging risks from hybrid warfare and digital vulnerabilities to climate-induced disasters and socio-political instability. It combines policy analysis with case studies from across Europe to show how societies can adapt civil protection and risk governance to new geopolitical realities.Integrating academic insight with policy relevance, this volume provides practical recommendations for decision-makers, researchers, and practitioners in civil protection, internal security, crisis management, and resilience planning. It is essential reading for anyone concerned with how Europe can prepare for, and thrive through, the crises of the current and next decades.

Modern societies rely on a wide range of interconnected industrial infrastructures - petrochemical plants, chemical industries, transport networks, energy systems - whose activities generate significant technological risks during the production, storage, and transport of hazardous materials. Major accidents such as Deepwater Horizon (2010), Rouen (2019), and Beirut (2020) have shown how deficiencies in risk management can produce severe, long-lasting consequences for human health, ecosystems, and economies. Reducing these risks requires a solid understanding of accidental phenomena and of the combinations of events that can escalate into major disasters.This open-access book provides an integrated and accessible overview of risk analysis methods and presents the scientific bases for understanding some of the most critical hazardous phenomena, including explosions, fires, and marine pollution. It also draws attention to emerging challenges, such as NaTech scenarios, the growing influence of climate change on industrial vulnerability, and the transformations brought by the energy transition—illustrated by the rise of new fuels such as ammonia. By combining technical insights and broader systemic perspectives, the book encourages readers to anticipate evolving risks and contribute to more resilient, adaptive, and sustainable societies.