Improving Risk Communication Strategies through Public Awareness and Engagement: Insights from South Tyrol and Carinthia

Abstract

This chapter presents experiences and results from the INTERREG Italy-Austria Project RiKoST-Risk communication strategies. The project is a collaboration between partners from research and public authorities and aims at improving target-group-oriented risk communication in South Tyrol (Italy) and Carinthia (Austria). Risk communication plays an essential role for risk governance and may address different aspects and fulfill various purposes, from informing about natural hazards, generating acceptance and awareness for structural and non-structural measures, to triggering participation, increasing resilience, and supporting the development of a risk-competent society. To be effective, risk communication needs, firstly, to acknowledge the needs of different target groups and, secondly, to develop approaches, tools and contents that are most suitable to reach and involve them. This chapter describes the results from different activities carried out in the project: a population survey to better understand people’s risk perception and their knowledge about natural hazards, the information channels they use and trust; awareness raising activities in different municipalities; interactive lessons and a workshop in schools; stakeholder workshops. Our results show that that existing non-structural protection and prevention measures, especially Hazard Zone Plans, are little known among the population, that trust in the responsible authorities is high and that there is a need for a risk dialog through different risk communication activities at different stages to provide targeted information on how individual citizens can contribute to risk management. The chapter concludes on how the presented results can be used by public authorities and policy makers to innovate risk communication strategies and to initiate a risk dialog with the overall aim to improve risk governance at local level.

Risk-Based Decision Support for Protective Forest and Natural Hazard Management

“…The next chapter of this book [27], therefore, focuses on the integration of stakeholders and decision-makers in an IRM of natural hazards. Following examples of communicating modeling results in the field of natural hazard risk management with a particular focus on mountain areas ( [57,58]; see also chapters [21,59] of this book), the project GreenRisk4ALPs aimed to deliver openly available and easy-to-use DSS to practitioners and policy makers.…”

Enhancing risk governance by addressing key risk communication barriers during the prevention and preparedness phase in South Tyrol (Italy)

“…Effective communication can also support people reacting in the event of a disaster (Carnelli & Anselmi, 2018) and can empower communities to take action to protect themselves and their assets. It encompasses a wide range of activities such as: developing emergency plans and procedures, providing information to the public through various channels, coordinating the response and recovery efforts of various organisations and agencies, facilitating communication between emergency responders and the public, providing training and education, and raising awareness on risk preparedness and response (Alexander, 2014; Árvai, 2014, Link & Stötter, 2014; Pedoth et al, 2021; Renn, 2008). Consequently, risk communication should be recognised neither as a sole phase of risk management (Pedoth et al, 2021) nor as a ‘one‐way information flow for disseminating hazard forecasts, disaster warnings, alarms, risk messages’ (Khan & Mishra, 2022, p. 2562).…”

“…Additionally, effective risk communication should be planned before a disaster happens and cannot be improvised at any stage of risk management (Pedoth et al, 2021). and engage with different kind of stakeholders to enhance risk governance (Gallmetzer et al, 2021;Pedoth et al, 2021).…”

“…The project was coordinated by the Agency for Civil Protection of the Province of Bolzano. It was structured in six Working Packages (WP's), which included a representative survey on risk perception in South Tyrol and Carinthia, a series of interviews to design and implement the official Platform of the Province of Bolzano to inform on natural hazards, an empirical research on the barriers of risk communication (object of this contribution), and many different actions to communicate risk, understand the role of hazard zone planning in risk communication, and engage with different kind of stakeholders to enhance risk governance (Gallmetzer et al, 2021; Pedoth et al, 2021).…”

How to Use Scientific Information: Road Map for Tailoring Your Own Natural Hazard Risk Management Solution

“…Tailored campaigns or public debates may also be a channel for spreading information. It is, for example, known from recent research that appropriate risk communication can trigger adaptive behavior (see chapter [30] of this book). Yet, for triggering such effects, you have to bear in mind that the inputs and research products used for risk communication need to be carefully considered.…”