Perceptions, Knowledge, and Teaching of Climate Change and Natural Disaster Risk at Honduran Universities

Abstract

The objective of the study was to examine perceptions, knowledge, and teaching of climate change and natural disaster risk of 457 faculty members of Honduran universities. In the last 20 years, Honduras has been among the countries with the highest vulnerability due to climate change. The tool RISKPERCEP was used to calculate perception of natural disasters, climate vulnerability, social vulnerability, and disaster response. The results showed that the teachers interviewed evaluated risk with an overall perception of 2.06. They tended to overestimate the variables: imminence, catastrophism, exposure, role of the media, involvement, and history. They underestimated risk for organizational climate, risk comprehension, uncertainty, and familiarity. Overall, 59% of the teachers interviewed did not teach the topics examined here. But they perceived their knowledge was adequate, even though more than 60% of the informers had not received formal training on climate change or natural disaster risk. The results reveal the importance of strengthening the knowledge and applied research of Honduran university professors on climate change and natural disaster risk.