Andra-Cosmina Albulescu and Iuliana Armaș , University of Bucharest

Powered by young researchers and practitioners for their peers

October 2024 ended with a landmark international scientific event dedicated to Early Career Researchers and Practitioners in the field of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR). Centered on the theme From Methodological Diversity to Collaborative Research, the DRR Academy reunited in Barcelona 46 ECRs and more than 20 senior scientists from over 10 countries, from the 23rd and the 26th of October 2024. The event stands out among scientific events spotlighting natural risks, hazards, vulnerability, resilience, and disasters, as it was proudly designed by young researchers and practitioners, specifically for their peers.
As one of the founding members of the DRR Academy, Paratus has significantly contributed to its design, implementation, and funding, as well as on the scientific level. Representatives of the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) ensured a smooth organisation of the event, while over 15 Paratus members from the ITC University of Twente (ITC UT), University of Bucharest (UB), University of Vienna (UNIVE), Istanbul Technical University (ITU), and German Aerospace Center (DLR) actively participated in all the scientific sessions.

The posters presented by young researchers involved in Paratus touched on the integrated management for urban flood mitigation using nature-based solutions, culture of disasters and disaster maps, and tropical cyclone rainfall asymmetries inferred from GPM-IMERG (ITC), enhancing Impact Chains to capture multi-hazard vulnerability dynamics (UB), the compounded impacts of the Gloria storm, and a regional scale cascading models for landslides(UPC), geomorphologic challenges in the Brenner Corridor (UNIVE), a virtual reality and agent-based simulation approach to evaluate the impact of behavioural factors in multi-hazard risk research (ITU), and geospatial extrapolation of time-series data with deep learning (DLR).
The highlight of the Paratus contribution to the DRR Academy was a workshop hold by professor Armas Iuliana and young researcher Cosmnina Albulescu on how to extend the scope of classical Impact Chains and turn them into new tools (Enhanced Impact Chains) for analysing and predicting vulnerability within multi-hazard contexts.

Workshop on Enhancing vulnerability prediction using Impact Chains

One of the problem-solving sessions proposed for the DRR Academy revolved around the latest research work conducted by the Paratus team of the University of Bucharest, Romania. Co-organised by Prof. Dr. Iuliana Armaș and Dr. Cosmina Albulescu, the workshop Enhancing vulnerability prediction using Impact Chains aimed to 1) introduce participants to the conventional and enhanced versions of Impact Chains on vulnerability (EICs), and 2) provide them with the skills to use these tools to analyse vulnerability dynamics. It drew the attention of 14 young researchers and 10 senior scientists who actively engaged in solving the proposed Impact Chain-based exercises and participated in fruitful discussions on vulnerability dynamics.

The session was designed to meet the pressing needs to develop tools that can analyse multi-hazard vulnerability dynamics and to integrate them into mainstream research. This is especially relevant to the current multi-hazard context, as effective multi-risk management is contingent on properly understanding, integrating, and addressing vulnerability changes across time and space, particularly as multi-hazards have become more frequent and severe. Against this background, the session provided early career scientists and practitioners training in the conceptual framework of augmented vulnerability and the EICs developed at the Center for Risk Studies of the University of Bucharest.

Snapshots from the workshop on Enhancing vulnerability prediction using Impact Chains

EICs build on the structure of conventional Impact Chains, broadening their scope to analysing vulnerability dynamics within multi-hazard context. Integrating new connection and element types to reach this goal, EICs give visibility to shifts in vulnerability across space and time. They can be further used to diagnose past or present multi-hazard risk management and predict the transformation of certain vulnerabilities into drivers of vulnerability. EICs dwell on the conceptual framework of augmented vulnerability, wherein vulnerability can be increased as a result of hazard impacts (expressed through deepens or shifts connections) and/or adaptation options that have unintended adverse effects (expressed through rebounds or creates negative externalities connections) (Albulescu and Armaș, 2024).

The workshop consisted of two theoretical presentations, each followed by practical activities where participants constructed EICs working in teams on a multi-hazard scenario involving extreme hydro-meteorological events (floods and droughts). As part of the theoretical presentations, young researchers explored how EICs can be used to study multi-hazard systemic vulnerability, a promising area for future research. This blend of theory and hands-on activities equipped the next generation of researchers with the tools to tackle the ever-changing vulnerability to multi-hazards, setting the premises for enhanced vulnerability and multi-risk analyses and management.

Hopeful outlooks in DRR research and practice

Upon attending the DRR Academy and organising a workshop on state-of-the-art methodology on analysing vulnerability dynamics, we conclude with a hopeful outlook regarding the future of DRR research and practice. The continuous exchange of ideas and collaborative efforts convinced us of the growing potential of young generations of scientists and practitioners, while their enthusiasm and commitment inspired us to continue our own research work.
At the same time, we were glad to have the opportunity to contribute with recent research results from the Paratus projects to this event. We believe the wide range of scientific topics pinpointed by Paratus team members, along with the insights provided by the Pratus leaders during the proposal-writing workshop, provided young researchers and practitioners with valuable guidance on conducting research that meets international standards and on approaching future career steps.

This collaborative environment marked by diversity, inclusion, and friendliness sets the stage for more integrated and effective DRR strategies in both research and real-world applications. As we move forward, we are optimistic that the DRR community of researchers and practitioners is well-equipped to address the complexity of multi-risk and can prevent them from turning into disasters.

References

Albulescu, A.-C. and Armaș, I. (2024). An Impact Chain-based exploration of multi-hazard vulnerability dynamics. The multi-hazard of floods and the COVID-19 pandemic in Romania, Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-2024-5