Natural Disasters and Human Security

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1. As the 2011 Great Eastern Japan Earthquake has made all too clear, natural disasters can
be very difficult to predict and fully prepare against and have incredibly far-reaching
consequences for the safety and wellbeing of individuals and communities. As in previous
natural disasters such as the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the
Australian bushfires in 2009, the 2010 Haiti earthquake and the 2010 Pakistan floods, the
impacts on people and society in affected areas are immediate and overwhelming. Such
catastrophes tend to exacerbate pre-existing problems and inequalities, with vulnerable
parts of the population often disproportionately impacted. For instance, initial estimates
suggest that 65% of the deaths from the recent disaster in Japan were of people aged 60
or over. The consequences can be felt for many years, with people suffering as refugees
or being displaced within their own country, their livelihoods destroyed, and facing long-
term health issues.
How can we best understand and respond to the threats natural disasters pose to human
safety and wellbeing?

2. One approach is to see these all as threats to “human security”. Since its appearance in
the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) 1994 Human Development Report,
the concept of human security has rapidly emerged in international politics, with the
establishment of the Commission on Human Security in 2001. Whereas a traditional
understanding of security emphasizes the military defense of state interests, human
security provides an alternative, human-centered perspective that focuses on securing and
protecting individuals’ “freedom from want” and “freedom from fear”. It offers a broader
understanding of security, by incorporating concerns of development and human rights as
well as more traditional issues.

3. Human security promotes a bottom-up, people-centered approach, which emphasizes the

needs, capacities and experiences of individuals on the ground. It has been widely applied
in a number of fields such as peacebuilding, humanitarian assistance, development,
education and health.

Applying human security to natural disasters

4. “Environmental security” was identified as a core component of the definition of human
security outlined in UNDP’s 1994 report. Nevertheless, human security debates and
policies have tended to focus more on human-made disasters, such as armed conflicts and
human rights abuses. At the same time, strategies for disaster risk reduction (e.g.
the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015) have largely avoided explicitly referring to
human security.

5. Even so, as recent catastrophes like the earthquakes in Haiti and Japan have clearly
shown, the actual threats that people struggle with following a natural disaster are similar to
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 those of a human-made crisis such as armed conflict: “fear” (such as aftershocks and
deteriorating social order) and “want” (lack of food, water and shelter). Likewise, many of
the same actors are involved in the response, notably the UN and humanitarian NGOs.
Indeed, most of the organizations involved in natural disaster relief are working to protect
human security, even if they don’t label their work as such.

6. In post-conflict situations the practical value of the human security approach lies in its
ability to focus and coordinate the efforts of many different actors on actual human needs,
by providing a holistic and bottom-up perspective.

7. Clearly, this approach would also be beneficial in the response to natural disasters—where
coordination of relief efforts has been a recurring problem, as seen in the Indian Ocean
tsunami and the earthquakes in Haiti and Japan. A human security approach would
encourage systematic information sharing, common action plans, needs assessment, and
better coordination of responses and offers of assistance.

8. A human security perspective encourages us to consider the needs of the most vulnerable
parts of the population, most notably protecting women, children, and the elderly. Human
security also emphasizes empowerment strategies, enabling people — both individuals and
communities — to act on their own behalf, and on the behalf of others. Particularly during
rebuilding, it would suggest a bottom-up approach and incorporation of the voices of all
those affected. In disaster preparedness, human security would assist in guiding policy
development by ensuring resilience measures and scenarios include consideration of
human and community needs.

9. An important distinction when applying human security to natural disasters concerns the
role of the military and the nature of civil-military relations. In civil conflicts, the military can
sometimes be a major threat to human security, but in the case of natural disasters, the
military, with its significant operational capacity and field experience, may instead be a
major provider of human security — as in the current efforts of the Japan Self-Defense
Forces.

Implications for the concept of human security

10. As a relatively young concept, human security is still being explored and debated by
academics and practitioners. Thinking about its application to natural disasters is an
important step in further developing the idea.

11. In theory, human security is a universal concept, but it has tended to focus on people in
developing and (post-) conflict countries. Natural disasters – such as Hurricane Katrina, the
Black Saturday bushfires and the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan – demonstrate
that human security remains relevant for even the most wealthy, highly industrialized
countries. As such, it is valuable to consider the similarities and differences between the
way human security can be understood and applied in different countries and contexts.

12. Natural disasters also illustrate the need for a more multidisciplinary perspective when
considering human security. While human security issues in armed conflict are primarily
understood through the social sciences, the natural sciences may provide invaluable
knowledge for preparing and adapting to the human impacts of natural disasters.

Looking ahead
13. The idea of human security has quickly come to play an important role in the way the
international community understands and responds to issues such as armed conflicts and
human rights abuses. Humans are not the only threat to human security, however, as we
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 have seen from the extensive suffering and damage caused by natural disasters. And as
the situation at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant shows, natural disasters can also
induce human-made disasters.

14. Due to population growth, poverty, and land shortages, people are increasingly living in
areas that are more exposed to natural hazards. Likewise, the economic effects of natural
disasters are long lasting and wide reaching in scope, particularly for developing countries.
Half a decade later, communities devastated by the Indian Ocean tsunami are still
struggling to resume normal, productive lives.

15. While we cannot avert all natural disasters, our preparation for, and responses to their
human impacts can and must be improved. The human security approach has much to
offer by facilitating a focus on human vulnerabilities, thereby reducing the grave
consequences of natural disasters for human safety and wellbeing.

Futamura, M., Hobson, C., & Turner, N. (2011, April 29). Natural Disasters and Human Security. Retrieved June 7,
2019, from https://unu.edu/publications/articles/natural-disasters-and-human-security.html

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