DisastersPub Date : 2025-08-29DOI: 10.1111/disa.70012
John-Michael Davis, Tara Checko, Abigail Sumner, Sarah Molinari
{"title":"The Disaster Response Mobilization System: a community-based disaster preparedness strategy in Puerto Rico","authors":"John-Michael Davis, Tara Checko, Abigail Sumner, Sarah Molinari","doi":"10.1111/disa.70012","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.70012","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Puerto Rico is increasingly vulnerable to natural hazards that exacerbate ongoing humanitarian and economic crises. Historically, local and federal recovery efforts have been slow and inadequate, leaving community members as first responders post disaster. Community-based disaster preparedness can reduce vulnerability and improve disaster management strategies, yet there is an absence of implementation tools appropriate for grassroots organisations. This article introduces the Disaster Response Mobilization System (DRMS) co-developed with seven grassroots organisations in Puerto Rico from 2021–24 and discusses one piloted implementation in detail. The DRMS supports community-driven disaster management capacities by assessing household preparedness, mapping household assets and vulnerabilities, mobilising community resources, and expediting external assistance following a disaster. We reflect on its value and limitations, demonstrate pathways for scaling up and adaptation in other settings, and contend that it can be an effective strategy to advance internal and external response before and after disasters while encouraging collaboration and the building of climate resilience.</p>","PeriodicalId":48088,"journal":{"name":"Disasters","volume":"49 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144915292","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
DisastersPub Date : 2025-08-29DOI: 10.1111/disa.70009
Basma Taysir El Doukhi
{"title":"Reclaiming Power and Partnerships in the Wake of Donor Retraction through South–South Partnership","authors":"Basma Taysir El Doukhi","doi":"10.1111/disa.70009","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.70009","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The recent US foreign assistance cuts represent not only a funding crisis but also a reckoning for the humanitarian and development sectors. This moment must catalyse a shift towards South–South cooperation, partnership and funding ecosystems that are not beholden to the strategic fluctuations of traditional donors. Global North institutions continue to marginalise the knowledge, leadership and capacities of Global South communities; thus, aid needs to be reshaped as solidarity, not charity. This paradigm shift would place communities, civil society and local governments at the centre of decision-making, reclaiming power, dignity and autonomy by local and displaced actors. To make this transition effective, national and local communities and actors must invest in capacity strengthening, inclusive governance models and equitable partnerships. Embracing these practices will not only increase the sustainability of interventions but also uphold the dignity and leadership of those at the frontlines of crisis and humanitarian action. In addition, it is imperative to reform existing aid architectures to reflect new geopolitical and environmental realities.</p>","PeriodicalId":48088,"journal":{"name":"Disasters","volume":"49 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/disa.70009","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144918793","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Unmasking the systemic inequalities undermining refugee sexual and reproductive health and rights, intimacy, and access in Lebanon","authors":"Jasmin Lilian Diab, Bechara Samneh, Alexandra Spencer, Aida Afandi, Megan Daigle","doi":"10.1111/disa.70013","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.70013","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This paper examines the barriers to accessing sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) services for refugees in Lebanon, focusing on Syrian, Palestinian, Iraqi, and Sudanese communities. Amidst Lebanon's socioeconomic crisis, the study highlights how legal restrictions, cultural norms, and discrimination limit SRHR access by these marginalised groups. Stringent admission criteria, high residency permit costs, and the cessation of refugee registration severely restrict refugees' mobility and access to essential services. Societal taboos around sex and intimacy further stigmatise and discriminate against refugees, particularly those with intersecting identities like gender, sexuality, race, and disability. We argue that SRHR acts as a key vector for restricting and conditioning the lives of crisis-affected people. The findings emphasise the need for humanitarian organisations to support legal reforms, cultural competency training, inclusive sexuality education, and better coordination of efforts. Addressing these systemic issues can improve SRHR outcomes for Lebanon's most vulnerable populations, promoting dignity and human rights for all.</p>","PeriodicalId":48088,"journal":{"name":"Disasters","volume":"49 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144905618","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
DisastersPub Date : 2025-08-21DOI: 10.1111/disa.70008
Samir Elhawary
{"title":"Humanitarian reform in 2025: why this time has to be different","authors":"Samir Elhawary","doi":"10.1111/disa.70008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.70008","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Humanitarian reform has regained urgency in 2025 amid funding shortfalls, rising global needs, and a deepening crisis of legitimacy. Unlike past efforts, today's reform imperative – shaped by geo-political shifts and a retreat of traditional Western support - is both structural and existential. It demands a move away from a top-down and institution-centric model to a networked humanitarian ecosystem — one that shares responsibility more equitably, mobilises a broad range of responders, empowers local actors, and focuses squarely on achieving better outcomes for affected populations.</p><p>This shift requires a review of traditional roles and responsibilities and new tools to measure impact, along with revised accountability mechanisms. This crucial political moment presents a rare opportunity to reimagine global solidarity - decentralising power, embracing geopolitical change, and putting people and communities at the centre.</p>","PeriodicalId":48088,"journal":{"name":"Disasters","volume":"49 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144881398","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
DisastersPub Date : 2025-08-18DOI: 10.1111/disa.70010
Paul Howe
{"title":"How and why famines form: towards an integrated approach to causation","authors":"Paul Howe","doi":"10.1111/disa.70010","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.70010","url":null,"abstract":"<p>In recent years, there has been renewed global concern about the risk of famine, prompting calls for a greater focus on prevention. Yet, for preventive efforts to be successful, it is critical to understand what causes these extreme crises. While numerous theories have been put forward, they often offer only a partial view. This article attempts to take a step towards a more comprehensive approach by arguing for the importance of understanding both <i>how</i> and <i>why</i> famines occur. Expanding and integrating the famine systems model and priority regimes approach, the article applies the proposed framework to several contemporary and historical case studies and highlights the new insights that can be gained by looking at both aspects together. While recognising the genuine challenges involved, it suggests that a combined framework could help us better understand causation, identify who or what is responsible, and contribute to the prevention of famines in the future.</p>","PeriodicalId":48088,"journal":{"name":"Disasters","volume":"49 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144861667","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
DisastersPub Date : 2025-08-01DOI: 10.1111/disa.70003
Virgil Henry Storr, Jordan K. Lofthouse, Nona Martin Storr
{"title":"Calling on and thanking God: the role of faith and faith communities in disaster recovery","authors":"Virgil Henry Storr, Jordan K. Lofthouse, Nona Martin Storr","doi":"10.1111/disa.70003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.70003","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Faith and faith communities play a critical role in post-disaster recovery for at least three reasons. First, faith is a socially shared frame through which individuals understand a disaster and evaluate potential means of recovery. Second, faith is a driver or motivator of post-disaster recovery, providing inspiration, encouragement, and solace. Third, faith communities foster social capital, aiding the re-establishment and rebuilding of devastated areas. We examine the role of faith and faith communities in the recovery of The Bahamas after Hurricane Dorian struck in 2019—the most powerful and costliest storm to hit this Caribbean country. Relying on qualitative evidence from interviews with survivors and faith leaders, we explore how faith helped affected individuals discover opportunities for engaging in recovery and fostered an optimistic attitude about the ability to recover. Additionally, members of faith-based communities leveraged their social connections to obtain the goods and services they needed to recover from the disaster.</p>","PeriodicalId":48088,"journal":{"name":"Disasters","volume":"49 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/disa.70003","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144758584","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
DisastersPub Date : 2025-08-01DOI: 10.1111/disa.70001
HaEun Lee PhD, RN, Ryan Rego PhD, Neyat Fiseha BA, Ashok Kumar Barman MS, Nimo Sharif BA, Peninah Wachira BA, Joe Kolars MD, Akbar Waljee MD, Rubhana Rakqib PhD, Md Sirajul Islam PhD, Amina Abubakar PhD
{"title":"Social cohesion, trust, and utilisation of maternal health services among refugee and host community women in Bangladesh and Kenya","authors":"HaEun Lee PhD, RN, Ryan Rego PhD, Neyat Fiseha BA, Ashok Kumar Barman MS, Nimo Sharif BA, Peninah Wachira BA, Joe Kolars MD, Akbar Waljee MD, Rubhana Rakqib PhD, Md Sirajul Islam PhD, Amina Abubakar PhD","doi":"10.1111/disa.70001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.70001","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The global refugee crisis places significant pressure on host communities, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Social cohesion and trust between refugee and host communities are critical for maternal health service utilisation. This study explores the relationship between host–refugee trust, social cohesion, and maternal health service use in Bangladesh and Kenya, focusing on facility-based delivery, antenatal care visits, and postnatal care attendance. To do so, a cross-sectional survey was administered among 649 refugee/displaced women and 371 host community women in the two locations. The results show high trust levels in both groups, while social cohesion is greater among refugee/displaced women. A higher social cohesion score is significantly associated with increased odds of attending four or more PNC appointments (adjusted odds ratio: 1.03; 95 per cent confidence interval: 1.01–1.05). Strengthening social cohesion may enhance maternal health service utilisation, especially postnatal care, in refugee-hosting settings, underlining the need for interventions fostering community bonds.</p>","PeriodicalId":48088,"journal":{"name":"Disasters","volume":"49 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/disa.70001","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144758583","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
DisastersPub Date : 2025-07-31DOI: 10.1111/disa.70004
Hui-Nien Lin, Sasala Taiban
{"title":"Disaster colonialism: indigenous tribal community responses to Typhoon Morakot in southern Taiwan","authors":"Hui-Nien Lin, Sasala Taiban","doi":"10.1111/disa.70004","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.70004","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Limited research has been conducted to date on how disaster colonialism shapes, maintains, or destroys social organisations and relationships within indigenous societies. This study was conducted within the Hot Spring Tribal Community (HSTC) of the Rukai people, one of 16 indigenous groups in Taiwan, in the aftermath of Typhoon Morakot in 2009. Based on ethnographic research, the study reveals that the HSTC had endured more than a century of colonialism, resulting in an ‘unnatural’ disaster long before the storm struck the island. The impact of colonial forces intensified through a variety of post-disaster intervention strategies, spawning numerous power struggles within the modern organisations of the HSTC. This study supports the theory of disaster colonialism, which refers to the perpetuation and amplification of power conflicts through so-called natural and unnatural disasters. It also demonstrates how government intervention strategies have continued both to marginalise and exploit indigenous people via existing settler structures.</p>","PeriodicalId":48088,"journal":{"name":"Disasters","volume":"49 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2025-07-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144751500","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
DisastersPub Date : 2025-07-29DOI: 10.1111/disa.70002
Anne Décobert, Pyae Phyo Maung, Alec Scott, Tamas Wells
{"title":"Compliance and coloniality: aid bureaucracy and the failures of ‘localisation’ in Myanmar's complex emergency","authors":"Anne Décobert, Pyae Phyo Maung, Alec Scott, Tamas Wells","doi":"10.1111/disa.70002","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.70002","url":null,"abstract":"<p>In this article, we explore how logics and systems of coloniality are reproduced through the bureaucracy of international aid. Drawing on qualitative research with civil society and international aid workers in Myanmar, we examine tensions between international agencies' ‘do no harm’ and ‘localisation’ commitments and their compliance requirements. We demonstrate that international compliance frameworks are experienced as top-down and overly rigid by civil society actors leading aid programmes, and that they can have unintended negative consequences, causing harm to Myanmar aid workers and communities. These frameworks also reinforce logics and systems of coloniality, by valuing the technocratic knowledge and approaches of international agencies over the ‘ways of being’ of civil society actors, and by crystallising artificial and hierarchical distinctions between the ‘local’ and ‘international’. Compliance systems in turn highlight the inadequacies of current ‘localisation’ endeavours, which fail to recognise and redress deep-seated inequalities and injustices in the international humanitarian industry.</p>","PeriodicalId":48088,"journal":{"name":"Disasters","volume":"49 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2025-07-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/disa.70002","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144716919","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
DisastersPub Date : 2025-07-14DOI: 10.1111/disa.70000
Vandra Harris Agisilaou, Tuba Boz
{"title":"Humanitarian virtue: identifying ethics and values in humanitarian thinking","authors":"Vandra Harris Agisilaou, Tuba Boz","doi":"10.1111/disa.70000","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.70000","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This paper proposes that ethical thinking provides a useful lens for understanding how different approaches to humanitarian thinking may be connected through the values that underpin them. In the era of polycrisis, humanitarianism is continually expanding to accommodate a proliferation of diverse actors. Importantly, concerns are often raised about how ‘humanitarian’ some of them are, which can influence cooperation and interaction. Ethical thinking is a valuable way of interpreting commonalities and differences between actors because actions, policies, and ideas are buttressed by values that frequently remain unspoken. Therefore, we examine 14 approaches to humanitarian thinking so we can highlight key ways of comprehending: what is good; the tension between means and ends; and for whom we are responsible. We propose a number of clusters of ethical thinking that capture how different groups answer these questions, and we discuss how they may help identify points of unity and division and appreciate the values that support choices and actions in humanitarian contexts.</p>","PeriodicalId":48088,"journal":{"name":"Disasters","volume":"49 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2025-07-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/disa.70000","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144615327","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}