DEPARTMENT FOR SCIENCE, INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY

Caribbean Cyclone Cartography: Mapping histories, narratives and futures of hurricane 'resilience' in a changing climate.

Project disclaimer

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Description

When category-5 Hurricane Maria made landfall in Dominica (Eastern Caribbean, population 71,293) on 18th September 2017 - killing 31 people, disappearing 37 people, damaging 90% of buildings and costing an estimated US$ 1.3 billion/226% of GDP - this environmentally and economically vulnerable Small Island Developing State was left in chaos, without national planning measures to ensure a clear course to recovery. Thus, besides limited humanitarian aid, Dominicans survived Maria by improvising meals from stockpiled food, assembling work crews to clear debris, telling cathartic stories to ease stress and using remittances to rebuild homes. They survived, through social modes of resilience. Months later, the government vowed to make Dominica -the most mountainous island in the region with perhaps the greatest number of environmental hazards per square mile - the 'first climate resilient nation on earth', launching the Climate Resilience Execution Agency of Dominica (CREAD) and a 'National Resilience Development Strategy' (aligned to the UN 2030 Sustainable Development and Sendai agendas) to 'climate proof' the island's housing, infrastructure, energy and tourism sectors. Yet, despite this macroscale 'resilience turn', very little is known about the micro - individual, household and community level - adaptations that enabled Dominicans to survive Maria, Erika (2015) and earlier storms. Nor is there a critical high-level conversation what this ubiquitous term, 'resilience', means to everyday Dominicans - notably marginalized groups (Dominican youth, female farmers, indigenous people and displaced communities). Towards creating a more inclusive understanding of cyclone preparation, response and recovery, the CCC project will develop collaborative methodologies that explore lived understandings of what 'building back better' might mean in local terms. This multi-disciplinary approach to such 'vernacular resiliencies' is intended to complement and critically enhance the CREAD agenda, holistically mapping survivor-led recoveries - past, present and future. But why mapping? We believe maps do not simply represent the world; they guide our experience of it. We will investigate and visually map cyclone resilience 'from below' by using the following research methods: - Oral, archival and architectural enquiry into hurricane histories. - Contemporary community-led digital storytelling and ethnography of life and livelihoods after Maria (with an emphasis on marginalized experiences). - Citizen-led GIS survey and cartographies of hazards, shelters and response agencies across the island. The research will produce the following outputs: An online hurricane 'resilience' map of Dominica - documenting historic and recent storm recoveries; and plotting hazard sites, shelters and support agencies to reduce future risks to wellbeing. A map that is publicly accessible, informative and easy to navigate - for citizen, policy maker and scholar alike. A series of multi-stakeholder symposia, research enskillment workshops and practice-based interventions - to build research capacities, share models of best practice (both indigenous and scientific) across scales, specialisms and sectors. A cluster of public project film screenings, a visual arts exhibition and Caribbean Climate Conversations podcast/radio show - to showcase key outputs to Dominican, British, Jamaican and international publics (promoting informed ecological citizenship). An online digital hub - an archive of research outputs to stand as a public cyclone resilience resource; and a blog space to offer a home for the pre-existing (but at present piecemeal) public conversation on disaster resilience that is ongoing in the Caribbean. A series of project investigator publications - academic articles, publicly disseminated info-zines and an edited book featuring research outcomes

Objectives

The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.

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Location

The country, countries or regions that benefit from this Programme.

Dominica

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