Twenty years of community-based disaster risk reduction experience from a dryland village in Indonesia

Abstract

Academics and practitioners often argue indirectly that all the roads to community resilience should be paved with community-based disaster risk reduction (CBDRR) approach. Community-based approach to resilience building has been a discursive material that appeals many disaster management players including international donors, non-governmental organisations and high-level government officials as well as politicians. Some researchers argue that CBDRR is the foundation of disaster risk governance. Unfortunately, globally, there is lack of studies on long-term and real-world experience of CBDRR. This article addresses this research gap by providing insights of CBDRR activities from a village in eastern Indonesia based on long-term studies. The adoption of CBDRR approach in Indonesia took place in the late 1990s and the authors have been part of the early adopters of the framework. Using longitudinal participant observations, this research combined qualitative and quantitative data collected during 1998–2017. It shows the rise and fall of a community responding to disaster risks over time. The article further highlights stories of frustrations and celebrations that surround CBDRR activities implemented by one local community in a dryland village in eastern Indonesia.

Breaking Through Barriers and Building Disaster Mental Resilience: A Case Study in the Aftermath of the 2015 Nepal Earthquakes

“…An integrated community-based risk reduction (ICBRR) approach was implemented in Indonesia, which has enabled those communities to become the first responders to disaster risks [70]. Such community-based programs are incredibly relevant to rural and remote Nepalese communities, because they are mostly inaccessible due to geographical, infrastructural, or climatic challenges and human resource constraints, which are also the common excuses reiterated by the Nepal government for falling short in any disaster response [46].…”

Indonesian nurses’ perception of disaster management preparedness

“… 6 Another study focused on disaster risk reduction by relying on community-based initiative addressed the lack of resources faced by communities. 7 Knowledge among adolescents on tsunami-vulnerable coastal areas needs to be improved through education and training. 8 …”

“…Recent studies conducted in one province in Indonesia showed that the disaster preparedness level among Community Health Nurse Coordinators needed to be leveraged 6 . Another study focused on disaster risk reduction by relying on community-based initiative addressed the lack of resources faced by communities 7 . Knowledge among adolescents on tsunami-vulnerable coastal areas needs to be improved through education and training 8 …”

Roles of Non-Government Organizations in Disaster Risk Reduction

“…NGOs' proximity to vulnerable communities has inspired them to appreciate and promote community participation in reducing disaster risk where local communities can be in charge of community disaster preparedness and mitigation. Historically, the earliest publication of community-based DRR came mainly from NGO in the 1980s and 1990s (Lassa 2018). It is therefore safe to say that non-governmental organizations such as Oxfam have been pioneers and trend-setters in the earlier formation of CBDRR frameworks (Maskrey, 1989;Von Kotze & Holloway, 1996).…”

“…One of the NGOs' comparative advantages is operability at grassroots level, where they work with the most at-risk and vulnerable communities. NGOs often take inclusive and consensual approaches to local disaster planning and resilience building (Maskrey, 1989;Lassa, 2018). Such operability often allows NGOs to understand and respond to the priorities and agendas of vulnerable communities.…”