Lunenburg Part 2 - Section 5 - Social Vulnerability - August 30.pdf

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While Cutter made no attempt to determine weights for the variables considered, Dwyer et al. employed a method – known as decision tree analysis – for weighting indicators, based on the results of a risk perception questionnaire distributed to both experts in the field of natural hazards and non-experts. They also used the statistical procedure of synthetic estimation to approximate the degree of cross-correlation amongst indicators – the degree to which members of the population experience multiple factors of social vulnerability. Like Cutter’s SOVI, Dwyer et al.’s method for assessing social vulnerability is for use in conjunction with natural hazards data. 5 All of the aforementioned studies also employ nationally available statistical information about factors of vulnerability, so that the resulting index can be applied throughout a country. The advantage of this approach is that it allows for the comparison of social vulnerability amongst various locations, facilitating targeted funding for the most vulnerable areas. However, some researchers argue that this type of approach is too large in scale, so that locally relevant factors and important details are masked. 6 These researchers advocate a qualitative, bottom-up approach to assessing social vulnerability. These methods tend to evaluate social vulnerability on a community level, based on features and experiences of an entire community. This contrasts the methods discussed above, which are all concerned with the social vulnerability of individuals in households: they measure the prevalence of factors of social vulnerability that are experienced by individuals, such as age, income, family composition, or the ability to speak the dominant local language. This information is aggregated at various levels, depending on the geographic units used by the relevant national statistical agency. Drs. Ellen Wall and Katia Marzall of the University of Guelph studied the adaptive capacity for climate change of Canadian rural communities in 2006. They chose to document current adaptive responses as the basis for understanding future adaptive capacity, rather than applying a theoretical model. Their approach was to identify community resources – social, human, institutional, natural and economic – and select appropriate indicators for measuring them. They used a variety of data sources and types, including statistical data, contemporary research on rural Canada, and key informant interviews. 7 In 2003, Drs. John Dolan and Ian Walker, then of the University of Victoria Department of Geography, integrated an assessment of individual and household vulnerability, based on demographic features, with community-scale determinants such as income distribution, reliance on natural resources and critical infrastructure susceptible to sea-level rise impacts, access to technology, and institutional frameworks. Similar to Wall and Marzall, they emphasized the use of qualitative, community-based research methods involving institutions, local decision-makers, resource users and residents, arguing that scientific knowledge must be grounded in local experience to obtain the most meaningful results. 8 In another similar study, researchers from McGill University, Carleton University, and the University of Toronto cooperated in a study of community vulnerability in the Canadian arctic. The approach was a case study of a small Inuit community. This research used a process of retrospective analysis to examine how community members have responded to anomalous conditions; identify adaptive responses; characterize processes and conditions shaping vulnerability; and suggest the potential implications of future climate change. These researchers 5 Dwyer et al., 2004. 6 Tapsell et al., 2010. p. 26. 7 Wall and Marzall, 2006. 8 Dolan and Walker, 2003. 4
also emphasize the need for detailed local knowledge to understand the complex interactions of climatic and non-climatic factors of vulnerability in the study area. 9 The Brandon University Department of Applied Disaster Studies is a unique degree program in Canada dedicated to the study of emergency management and disaster responses. Faculty member Dr. John Lindsay notes that emergency management in Canada has been slow to include social vulnerability in risk assessments, in spite of abundant Canadian social sciences research that could be used to inform such work. He argues that the Canadian Social Determinants of Health are well-established indicators of social vulnerability in Canada, and that population health promotion and disaster management are a natural pairing due to shared goals and concerns. 10 In a 2007 report commissioned by the Canadian Red Cross, Drs. Elaine Enarson and Sarah Walsh, also of the Brandon University Department of Applied Disaster Studies, echo this conclusion. Their research analyzes the extent to which the needs and capacities of socially vulnerable populations are integrated into Canadian emergency management, and identifies opportunities to improve emergency management planning and practice. 11 Numerous national and international organizations have performed reviews of vulnerability assessment methodology and practice. Examples include reports by Hans-Martin Füssel of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, for the World Bank 12 ; researcher Tapsell and colleagues from the Middlesex University Flood Hazard Resarch Centre in London, England for CapHaz-Net, a European research network devoted to investigating the social dimensions of natural hazards 13 ; a research group from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at the University of East Anglia 14 ; and by Cutter an her research team in a literature review published in Social Science Quarterly. 15 These reviews all emphasize the fact that the assessment of social vulnerability to climate change impacts is a relatively new and undeveloped area of research, particularly regarding application in developed nations; there is no established research method or criteria for assessing social vulnerability. This is problematic, as the research methods employed can have a significant influence on the results obtained. They also note that social vulnerability is a complex phenomenon that is difficult to quantify. However, these reviews all agree that these challenges do not invalidate research into social vulnerability to climate change, but rather demand further study. Methods Field Observations Field observations provided the opportunity to gain familiarity with the Municipality of the District of Lunenburg. Documentation of field observations included written notes and photographic recording of areas of social housing; areas of housing requiring maintenance, which could indicate insufficient income to carry out repairs; the locations of important physical infrastructure and social services; and isolated rural areas with limited or poorly maintained road access. 9 Ford et al., 2009. 10 Lindsay, 2010. 11 Enarson and Walsh, 2007. 12 Fussel, 2009. 13 Tapsell et al., 2010. 14 Adger et al., 2004. 15 Cutter et al., 2003. 5
Page 1 and 2: Atlantic Climate Adaptation Solutio
Page 3 and 4: And, thank you to the many resident
Page 5 and 6: The District’s extensive and irre
Page 7 and 8: OAKLAND 61 PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION FE
Page 9 and 10: Introduction Social vulnerability r
Page 11: and over time. This creates a justi
Page 15 and 16: Data Interpretation: Analysis For e
Page 17 and 18: maps of equal or superior quality t
Page 19 and 20: person’s employment improves and
Page 21 and 22: as providing valid information. She
Page 23 and 24: communication and collective action
Page 25 and 26: alone are particularly vulnerable i
Page 27 and 28: marginalization, limiting their acc
Page 29 and 30: disability in the event of a natura
Page 31 and 32: The prevalence of low income is a p
Page 33 and 34: Field Observations Travelling throu
Page 35 and 36: Average results for Nova Scotia are
Page 37 and 38: Next, the results from Table 3 are
Page 39 and 40: Figure 4. Social Vulnerability in t
Page 41 and 42: Seniors are more likely than other
Page 43 and 44: Figure 5. Storm Surge Scenarios in
Page 45 and 46: The Petite Riviere Bridge Several b
Page 47 and 48: This may reflect the Very High prop
Page 49 and 50: Table 7. Areas Requiring Attention
Page 51 and 52: Table 9. Areas Requiring Attention
Page 53 and 54: The area’s relatively high popula
Page 55 and 56: A High proportion of residents are
Page 57 and 58: An Average level of residents are s
Page 59 and 60: pharmacies, for medical services. I
Page 61 and 62: Figure 7: Storm Surge Scenarios wit
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The Plan also addresses the need fo
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A related ICSP strategic goal is to
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While the Economic Development Stra
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Oakland The Oakland Secondary Plann
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to maintain existing conditions and
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patterns and potential dangers (“
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new residents, seasonal residents,
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vulnerabilities for individuals wit
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Two coastal dissemination areas hav
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about this program and use their kn
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Groome, P. (2010). Census Changes H
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Appendix A: Annotated Bibliography
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and analyzed using a Decision Tree
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Dolan, A.H., and I.J. Walker. “Un
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in health care or mitigating socioe
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Appendix B: Table of Indicators and
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No Secondary Education Adger et al.
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Appendix C: Maps of Profile by Indi
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Government Transfer Payments This s
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Children The District has a Below A
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Seniors Living Alone The District h
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No Secondary Education Social vulne
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dissemination areas where no reside
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Visible Minorities The District of
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Appendix D: Radar Diagrams for each
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105
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DA 82 DA 83 Aboriginal Identity Vis
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DA 123 DA 124 Aboriginal Identity V
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DA 160 DA 161 Aboriginal Identity V
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Mahone Bay Food Bank Hospital, Long
Page 123:
South Shore Big Brothers Big Sister
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Lunenburg Part 2 - Section 5 - Social Vulnerability - August 30.pdf

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