The Vulnerability of Cities to Disasters and Climate Change: A Conceptual Framework

Abstract

This chapter offers a conceptual overview to help unpack human vulnerability to natural disaster and climate change in the city. Vulnerability and its components are interpreted as applications of wider debates on social justice that emphasize the human dimension of security – the meeting of basic needs and human rights (Anand/Gasper 2007). But vulnerability is more than this; at its core is the interaction of social and environmental systems so that human security has to be seen within a socio-ecological lens. This positioning is felt most clearly on the ground where projects aimed at reducing vulnerability overlap comprehensively with those for sustainable development (UNDP 2004).