Who Manages Space? Eco-DRR and the Local Community

Abstract

Abstract:The notion of ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction (DRR) has only recently emerged in Indonesia. The Indonesian central government now adopts some policies related to ecosystem-based DRR with formal commitments from local administrations. At the implementation level, various activities have taken place, such as mangrove planting and restoration along the coastline to address the rising sea level and the "one billion trees" program to address the urgent issue of deforestation. These governmental activities have involved local communities that reside in the high-risk area, while nonlocal actors, particularly from the private and the nongovernmental sectors, have contributed as a third element to development. This paper examines space management in the context of Eco-DRR, paying special attention to uncertainty and anxiety in the local communities as the government and private sectors engage in development activities that have significant impacts on their present and future lives. The present study pursues this purpose by means of in-depth interview and focus group discussions (FGD) with local leaders in mangrove planting and restoration programs. The study took place in a small island community in a part of the Jakarta Megapolitan Region, Indonesia. The results point out that the community feels left behind due to lack of trust in managing the conservation space. Another issue to be addressed is how to improve the democratization of environment management and livelihood base of the local community. Therefore, building confidence and ameliorating relationships between actors within/without the local community should lead to a better Eco-DRR initiative.

Reducing Hydro-Meteorological Risk by Nature-Based Solutions: What Do We Know about People’s Perceptions?

“…Trust between stakeholders facilitates the exchange of information and strengthen relationships [32]. By doing so, it enhances stakeholder's acceptance of vulnerability to project implementation [84,86] and can ease conflicts of interest between actors [85]. In addition, participation can also increase ownership among local communities of the realization of NBS projects [84].…”

“…By doing so, it enhances stakeholder's acceptance of vulnerability to project implementation [84,86] and can ease conflicts of interest between actors [85]. In addition, participation can also increase ownership among local communities of the realization of NBS projects [84]. Furthermore, trust in responsible organizations and institutions (as exemplified in the Room for River Program in the Netherlands and people's trust in Dutch safety standards) brings more support for new solutions [87].…”

Experimental Investigation of Flood Energy Dissipation by Single and Hybrid Defense System

“…Currently, ecological, natural methods are widely considered in many developed and underdeveloped countries [19][20][21][22][23]. Ecosystem degradation is a major cause of increasing water resources management challenges [24][25][26][27][28]. In the floodplain of rivers, vegetation may increase the hydraulic resistance by dragging and turbulence to safeguard the ecosystem [26].…”

Enhancing post-disaster resilience by ‘building back greener’: Evaluating the contribution of nature-based solutions to recovery planning in Futaba County, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan

“…Nature-based solutions and Eco-DRR approaches will not automatically bring post-disaster benefit to citizens at greatest risk of harm (Dalimunthe, 2018). It has also been argued that enhancing resilience ought to be at most an aid to recovery (Cho, 2014 Site visits to recovery-related landscape features in Futaba County were undertaken in summer 2017, to gain contextual understanding of the role of green infrastructure in the locale.…”

“…Available research illustrates potential of ecosystem approaches to deliver multiple ecological and social benefits in post-disaster recovery, but also shows challenges to realising these benefits. It has been argued in the Indonesian context that flood-and tsunami risk reduction benefits from mangrove restoration have been offset by poor understanding by the government and private sector of the community's own needs (Dalimunthe, 2018). By contrast, studies from both north-east Japan (Takeuchi et al, 2014) and the USA (Tidball, 2014) indicate post-disaster restoration of natural systems can symbolise recovery, support citizens' recovery from loss of traditional and familiar surroundings, and enhance communities' capacity to organise, act and respond to future shocks.…”