Exploring social contracts of disaster risk through twitter narratives during a major storm
Social contracts are evolving relationships between the government and the public; they describe the rights and responsibilities of each party in catastrophic hydroclimatic events. As the climate crisis unfolds disaster losses continue to increase and the need for new infrastructure is becoming more...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2024-12-01
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| Series: | Nature-Based Solutions |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772411524000880 |
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| author | Andressa V. Mansur Gabrielle Langhorn Donald R. Nelson |
| author_facet | Andressa V. Mansur Gabrielle Langhorn Donald R. Nelson |
| author_sort | Andressa V. Mansur |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Social contracts are evolving relationships between the government and the public; they describe the rights and responsibilities of each party in catastrophic hydroclimatic events. As the climate crisis unfolds disaster losses continue to increase and the need for new infrastructure is becoming more apparent. Research suggests that incorporating Nature-based Solutions (NbS) into infrastructure adaptations may reduce exposure and loss and improve social well-being. While researchers and policy makers push for NbS, it is unclear whether they adequately recognize contemporary social contracts and whether these contracts are shifting sufficiently to accept the differences. We operationalize social contracts and test a conceptual approach through analysis of tweets before, during and after Hurricane Ida. Our results indicate a social contract of inequalities manifested through experience, perceptions and expectations of citizens. There is a great deal of uncertainty and feelings of insecurity about the public's perception of government response and resource provisions. Although our results indicated a gap in public perception of NbS, uncertainty about the effectiveness of conventional infrastructure was expressed. Public expectations include an evolving social contract that addresses the challenges related to inequalities while also adapting to climate change. We discuss how this twitter data can be used to understand the role of social contracts in responding to disaster risk and infrastructure adaptation and how inadequacies in current protection measures can inform potential use of NbS. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-07ec8d52d4134dfab9c8a4202fa7d942 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2772-4115 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature-Based Solutions |
| spelling | doaj-art-07ec8d52d4134dfab9c8a4202fa7d9422024-12-17T05:02:09ZengElsevierNature-Based Solutions2772-41152024-12-016100197Exploring social contracts of disaster risk through twitter narratives during a major stormAndressa V. Mansur0Gabrielle Langhorn1Donald R. Nelson2Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3), Leioa, 48940, Spain; Department of Anthropology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, United States; Institute for Resilient Infrastructure Systems, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, United States; Corresponding author at: BC3 - Basque Centre for Climate Change, Sede Building 1, 1st floor, Scientific Campus of the University of the Basque Country, 48940 Leioa, Spain.Department of Anthropology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, United States; Institute for Resilient Infrastructure Systems, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, United StatesDepartment of Anthropology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, United States; Institute for Resilient Infrastructure Systems, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, United StatesSocial contracts are evolving relationships between the government and the public; they describe the rights and responsibilities of each party in catastrophic hydroclimatic events. As the climate crisis unfolds disaster losses continue to increase and the need for new infrastructure is becoming more apparent. Research suggests that incorporating Nature-based Solutions (NbS) into infrastructure adaptations may reduce exposure and loss and improve social well-being. While researchers and policy makers push for NbS, it is unclear whether they adequately recognize contemporary social contracts and whether these contracts are shifting sufficiently to accept the differences. We operationalize social contracts and test a conceptual approach through analysis of tweets before, during and after Hurricane Ida. Our results indicate a social contract of inequalities manifested through experience, perceptions and expectations of citizens. There is a great deal of uncertainty and feelings of insecurity about the public's perception of government response and resource provisions. Although our results indicated a gap in public perception of NbS, uncertainty about the effectiveness of conventional infrastructure was expressed. Public expectations include an evolving social contract that addresses the challenges related to inequalities while also adapting to climate change. We discuss how this twitter data can be used to understand the role of social contracts in responding to disaster risk and infrastructure adaptation and how inadequacies in current protection measures can inform potential use of NbS.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772411524000880Social contractsDisaster riskHurricane IdaNatural infrastructureNature-based solutionsDisaster response |
| spellingShingle | Andressa V. Mansur Gabrielle Langhorn Donald R. Nelson Exploring social contracts of disaster risk through twitter narratives during a major storm Nature-Based Solutions Social contracts Disaster risk Hurricane Ida Natural infrastructure Nature-based solutions Disaster response |
| title | Exploring social contracts of disaster risk through twitter narratives during a major storm |
| title_full | Exploring social contracts of disaster risk through twitter narratives during a major storm |
| title_fullStr | Exploring social contracts of disaster risk through twitter narratives during a major storm |
| title_full_unstemmed | Exploring social contracts of disaster risk through twitter narratives during a major storm |
| title_short | Exploring social contracts of disaster risk through twitter narratives during a major storm |
| title_sort | exploring social contracts of disaster risk through twitter narratives during a major storm |
| topic | Social contracts Disaster risk Hurricane Ida Natural infrastructure Nature-based solutions Disaster response |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772411524000880 |
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