‘Lifestyle drift’ in disaster risk reduction practices magnifies inequities for high-risk populations

Abstract

High-risk populations are at disproportionate risk when disasters occur because of the vulnerable social circumstances and settings in which they live. Emergency Managers (EMs) and Emergency Social Services Directors (ESSDs) work to support individual and community resilience in all phases of the disaster management cycle. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the current practices and challenges experienced by EMs and ESSDs in Canada, in supporting community resilience and high-risk populations in the context of disaster risk reduction (DRR). EMs and ESSDs (n ​= ​21) from six Canadian provinces were interviewed. Through thematic analysis, three themes were identified and a model was developed to show how the themes interconnect. The themes included: 1) Individual level interventions magnify inequities and lead to ‘lifestyle drift’, 2) Resilience can be supported upstream by addressing social vulnerabilities, and 3) Inclusive engagement empowers high-risk populations but is challenging to implement. ‘Lifestyle Drift’ permeates DRR practices and has unique implications for high-risk populations, whose basic needs are already challenged. Both top-down and bottom-up interventions can reduce the demands placed on emergency services in the hours after a disaster. However, bottom-up interventions, such as a ‘whole community’ approach are more likely to foster asset literacy, adaptive capacity, and social justice —and ultimately support resilience of high-risk populations.

Keywords

• High-risk populations
• Disaster risk reduction
• Whole-community
• Lifestyle drift
• Resilience
• Social justice