Risk perception of local stakeholders on natural hazards: implications for theory and practice

Abstract

In Romania, local stakeholders' knowledge plays a role in making decisions for emergencies, supporting rescue officers in natural hazard events, coordinating, and assisting the affected populations physically and psychologically. However, despite the increasing occurrence and severity of natural hazards in the Iași metropolitan area (of north-eastern Romania), there is a lack of knowledge of local stakeholders on how to encourage the population regarding safety actions. For this reason, we interviewed 118 local stakeholders to determine their risk awareness and preparedness capacities over a set of natural hazards, in order to understand where deficiencies in knowledge, action, and trust are greatest. Results reveal substantial distinctions between different threats and among stakeholders based on their cognitive and behavioural roles in the communities. The roles of responsibility and trust are important driving factors shaping their perception and preparedness. Preparedness levels are low, and, for many, learning and preparatory actions are needed to build resilience to the negative occurrences of natural hazards. As the stakeholders' role is to direct interventions in affected areas by managing communication initiatives with the entire population of the community, there is a need to create stakeholders' networks, empowering local actors and serving as a bridge between authorities' decisions and local people, making effective risk management plans, and securing more lives and economies.