The World Risk Index – An Approach to Assess Risk and Vulnerability on a Global Scale

Abstract

The demand for information and understanding on natural hazard related risk on a global scale has grown in recent years. Such information is crucial for stakeholders who are working in the field of disaster risk reduction, spatial planning and (re-)insurance. This article provides a new approach to assess risk and vulnerability towards natural hazards on country scale and allows the comparison of countries at global scale. The concept of the WorldRiskIndex focuses on the understanding of risk which is defined as the interaction of physical hazards and the vulnerability of exposed elements. The exposure to natural hazards was assessed by using five indicators that describe the expsoure of people towards earthquakes, cyclones, floods, droughts and sea level rise. Whereas vulnerability consists of susceptibility, coping capacity and adaptive capacity was calculated on the basis of 23 indicators which comprise social, economic and environmental conditions of a society. The method and the results of the WorldRiskIndex were validated by using statistical analysis such as reliability, sensitivity and uncertainty analysis. The results of the WorldRiskIndex were mapped and classified by means of a GIS system to show different patterns of exposure, vulnerability and risk on global scale. The global perspective of risk clearly shows that the vulnerability of a society or a country is not the same as exposure to natural hazards.

Boost resilience of small and mid-sized cities

“…We looked at around 1,600 cities with populations of more than 300,000 (see 'Urban vulnerability'). Based on a standard methodology 8 , we used UN and World Bank data on urban populations, infrastructure and socio-economic indicators. In the absence of local data, we used representative national data on insurance coverage, medical services and governance conditions.…”

Development and validation of a sub-national multi-hazard risk index for the Philippines

“…In line with the IPCC framing of risk, the global World Risk Index (BEH & UNU-EHS, 2015; Welle & Birkmann, 2015) is designed as a composite index comprising indicators for both exposure and vulnerability, in which vulnerability is viewed as a product of susceptibility, and the short-term coping and long-term adaptive capacities of a society. In the interests of coherency and scale hierarchy, the approach presented here follows the conceptual framing of the World Risk Index and aims at a down-scaling from the national to the sub-national level at the resolution of municipalities.…”

“…Indicators and components of vulnerability and risk were weighted equally. Figure 1 shows the overall concept of the index and its components (adapted from Welle & Birkmann, 2015), as well as its actual calculation. Figure 2 shows the multi-hazard risk index at municipality level.…”

“…While a range of global multi-hazard risk assessments exist at country level, such as the World Risk Index (BEH & UNU-EHS, 2015;Welle & Birkmann, 2015), the INFORM Index (INFORM, 2016), the Climate Risk Index (Kreft et al, 2016) and the Disaster Risk Index (Peduzzi et al, 2009), these indices cannot account for the spatial variability in exposure and vulnerability patterns within countries. In contrast, local risk assessments mostly focus on selective case studies and very fine spatial resolutions, e.g.…”

Social Vulnerability to Natural Hazards in Urban Systems. An Application in Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic)

“…These include: the lack of access to resources (information, knowledge and technology); the limited access to political power and delegation; social capital, social networks and links; belief and habits; the building stock and its age; vulnerable and/or physically limited individuals; the typology and the density of infrastructures [19,[36][37][38].…”