Enhancing disaster resilience: The role of community early warning systems

Many communities are exposed to a growing number of environmental risks due to natural hazards, population pressures, misuse of natural resources, poor planning, and climate change. Early warning systems (EWS) are increasingly understood as an effective disaster risk reduction (DRR) mechanism that can support communities at-risk in minimizing the adverse effects of natural hazards upon their lives and livelihoods. Despite this insight, many EWS remain disjointed, ineffective and unsustainable since few have genuinely managed to address multiple community vulnerabilities and priorities, and to incorporate local hazard knowledge and skills with sustainable technology, financial and human resources. As climate-related hazards have increased in magnitude, frequency and severity in many parts of the world, so has the discourse on community EWS (CEWS) evolved. This extended abstract gives evidence as to why a CEWS is an essential element of DRR to build community resilience. It also presents arguments on why social capital and partnerships are important to consider when designing and implementing CEWS, and how CEWS fit within the integrative risk management framework.