Combining the ethics and science of disaster management: key issues, policy considerations and best practices

Abstract

Around the world, the scientific discourse about disasters has historically focused predominantly upon the characteristics of the physical hazards themselves and the costs of mitigation actions to reduce the risks of these physical threats. While this physical science approach involves the expertise of talented experts from the fields of seismology, hydrology and geophysics the importance of addressing the root causes of disasters has become increasingly recognized in the social sciences. For example, in the broader public and policy literature, there are important ethical and social disaster issues which include understanding the root causes of community vulnerabilities and the ethical issues of not addressing climate change impacts (otherwise known as the costs of inaction). This research uses statistical tools including binary logistic regression to analyze ethical considerations in flood disaster management issues. Since many of Asia's worst floods have occurred in China they are used as a case study.