When the River Started underneath the Land: Social Constructions of a 'Severe' Weather Event in Pangirtung, Nunavut (original) (raw)
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Frequent Flooding and Perceived Adaptive Capacity of Subarctic Kashechewan First Nation, Canada
ARCTIC, 2020
Perceived (socio-cognitive) capacity is as important as objective (material resources) capacity in assessing the overall adaptive capacity of people at the community level. Higher perceived and objective capacities generate greater total adaptive capacity. This article assesses the perceived adaptive capacity of the Kashechewan First Nation, located in the flood-prone southwestern James Bay (Subarctic) region in Canada. The community is frequently disrupted by the elevated risk of spring flooding and has experienced five major floods since its establishment in 1957. Residents have been evacuated 14 times since 2004 because of actual flooding or flooding risk and potential dike failure. We surveyed 90 residents using 21 indicators to assess the community’s perceived adaptive capacity. The results indicate that residents’ risk perception and perceived adaptive capacity are high and are reshaping their adaptive behavior to the hazard of spring flooding. The strong positive interrelatio...
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Geosciences
In general, much is known about patterns relating to flood risk reduction, coping, and adaptation in various types of communities; however, knowledge of their drivers—which are critical for building community resilience to natural hazards—is limited. The present study investigates the influencing factors of coping and adaptation measures vis-a-vis flood hazards at the community level and examines their interrelationships. This work employs a “case study” approach and analyzes two towns—St. Adolphe and Ste. Agathe—in the Red River Valley in the province of Manitoba, Canada. Data collection consisted of in-depth interviews with key informants and obtaining oral histories from the locals, along with an examination of secondary official records and documents. The results revealed that the major drivers of local-level coping and adaptation include functioning partnerships among stakeholders, strong institutional structures that facilitate interactive learning, knowledge co-production, re...
Arctic, 2012
Indigenous communities in the Arctic have become increasingly characterized as "vulnerable" in the context of climate change research. We question the use and application of this term in light of the potential consequences it may bring for indigenous peoples. First, the label "vulnerable" is often generated by those who are more or less unfamiliar with the complexities of local culture, economies, and capabilities. Second, we are concerned that such labels can generate misguided actions and policy responses built on how peoples and places come to be seen and understood by others. Third, the label "vulnerable" has the potential to shape how northern indigenous peoples come to see themselves as they construct their own identities-and identifying themselves as vulnerable may ultimately hinder their efforts to gain greater autonomy over their own affairs. As researchers become more engaged in the social dimensions of climate-change research, we encourage more careful and critical attention to the power and potential peril of community labels.
Geosciences
Being strongly influenced by the landscape of the Red River Valley, geophysical and a variety of sociodemographic and economic factors, the characteristics of floods are complex in the Province of Manitoba, Canada, which causes substantial loss and damage to lives and properties. The primary objectives of this study are two-fold: (i) to identify the geophysical and human-induced conditions of floods, and examine the trend in flood loss and damage in the Province of Manitoba, Canada; and (ii) to analyze the social vulnerability perspectives of floods in the Rural Municipality of St. Andrews, as a local community case study. Using the Delphi technique, primary data were procured from the field for community-level vulnerability analysis. Secondary data for a provincial-level analysis were collected from various public domains, including governmental departments and other non-government sources. The results reveal that a nested set of geophysical and societal factors determine the degre...
SOCIAL VULNERABILITY: SOCIAL SCIENCE PERSPECTIVES ON CLIMATE CHANGE, PART 1
Recent extreme weather events in the United States exemplify the uneven impacts of climate change on populations, even within relatively small geographic regions. Differential human vulnerability to environmental hazards results from a range of social, economic, historical, and political factors, all of which operate at multiple scales. While adaptation to climate change has been the dominant focus of policy and research agendas, it is essential to ask as well why some communities are disproportionately exposed to and affected by climate threats. The cases and analysis presented here consider four key themes-resource access, culture, governance, and information-and identify actionable steps that will help reduce vulnerability. Social scientific approaches to human vulnerability draw vital attention to the root causes of climate change threats and the reasons that people are forced to adapt to such threats. Because vulnerability is a multidimensional process rather than an unchanging state, a dynamic social approach to vulnerability is most likely to improve mitigation and adaptation planning efforts.
2020
Natural hazards pose a significant risk to local economies, critical infrastructure and public health and safety. Climate change compounds this risk by introducing a new existential threat to Canadian riverine communities, amplifying the risks of flooding for homeowners. Ensuring the long-term sustainability of communities requires the implementation of climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction strategies. Managed retreat-the act of purchasing, demolishing and/or relocating homes that are under the threat of flooding-is one of the few government-supported policy options that are available to Quebec homeowners facing repeated long-term flood-damage, through the General Indemnity and Financial Assistance Program Regarding Actual or Imminent Disasters-Flooding. An alternative policy option, which is available in Ontario, is the Disaster Recovery Assistance for Ontarians (DRAO) program that is used to aid homeowners in repairing, cleaning and replacing damaged essential property (Government of Ontario, 2016). The 2017 and 2019 Ottawa River floods, which affected both Constance Bay, Ontario and Pointe Gatineau, Quebec, indicated the need for increased government assistance for homeowners to cope with flood related events. Effective policy deployment in both jurisdictions, along with future support and retreat options for homeowners, could be offered in advance to help mitigate flood disaster risks. This research adopts the protect, accommodate, retreat and avoid (PARA) framework in the context of climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction. This approach allows for the examination of the perspectives of different stakeholders who have vested economic, political and social interests in Canadian flood related disasters. Semi-structured interviews provided insights into why different policies were created in Ontario and Quebec (despite sharing a common river and flood risks), how the policy deployment strategy that followed the 2017/2019 floods evolved, and how the policies prompted homeowners to make the decision to retreat or rebuild. This research provides insights into flood adaptation strategies that are cost effective and highlights the successes and challenges associated with governmentsponsored home buyout and disaster recovery assistance programs. This research is intended to assist policy makers to make informed, evidence-based decisions that can protect communities from inundation risks and build long-term resilience against flood hazards.
Environmental management, 2018
Technology alone cannot address the challenges of how societies, communities, and individuals understand water accessibility, water management, and water consumption, particularly under extreme conditions like floods and droughts. At the community level, people are increasingly aware challenges related to responses to and impacts of extreme water events. This research begins with an assessment of social and political capacities of communities in two Commonwealth jurisdictions, Queensland, Australia and Saskatchewan, Canada, in response to major flooding events. The research further reviews how such capacities impact community engagement to address and mitigate risks associated with extreme water events and provides evidence of key gaps in skills, understanding, and agency for addressing impacts at the community level. Secondary data were collected using template analysis to elucidate challenges associated with education (formal and informal), social and political capacity, community...
International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management, 2020
Purpose Based on social representation theory, this study aims to evaluate and analyze the similarities and differences between social representations of climate change held by people living in two territories, which have in common that they are exposed to coastal risks but have different socio-cultural contexts: on the one hand, Cartagena (Colombia) and on the other, Guadeloupe (French overseas department, France). Design/methodology/approach A double approach, both quantitative and qualitative, of social representation theory was adopted. The data collection was undertaken in two phases. First, the content and organization of social representation of climate change (SRCC) was examined with a quantitative study of 946 participants for both countries, followed by a qualitative study of 63 participants for both countries also. Findings The study finds unicity in the SRCC for the quantitative study. In contrast, the qualitative study highlights differences at the level of the institut...
Gender-Based Experiences and Perceptions after the 2010 Winter Storms in Atlantic Canada
International journal of environmental research and public health, 2015
This paper conveys the findings of the first phase of a longitudinal study into climate change adaptation in Atlantic Canada. Men and women from 10 coastal communities in three provinces (Quebec, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island) were interviewed to better understand how both sexes perceived and reacted to extreme weather events. Their responses were recorded based on their experiences, personal and community levels of preparedness, as well as help received and effects on their lives. Most importantly, the findings denote that more men were personally prepared and more active in the community than women. More men recognized a deficiency in help at the community level, and were critical of government in particular, addressing a lack of financial interventions and support. Women were forthcoming with their emotions, admitting to feeling fear and worry, and their perceptions in terms of impacts and actions were closer to home. The results support what others have shown that in r...