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Social Vulnerability

Social Vulnerability. Sandy A. Johnson, Ph.D. 2006 Summer Colloquium on Climate & Health Boulder, CO. Definitions. Risk – probability that a negative outcome will occur Risk factor – increases probability of a negative outcome Vulnerability – Ability to mitigate risk.

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Social Vulnerability

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  1. Social Vulnerability Sandy A. Johnson, Ph.D. 2006 Summer Colloquium on Climate & Health Boulder, CO

  2. Definitions • Risk – probability that a negative outcome will occur • Risk factor – increases probability of a negative outcome • Vulnerability – Ability to mitigate risk “In a time of drastic change it is the learners who inherit the future. The learned usually find themselves equipped to live in a world that no longer exists.” - Eric Hoffer

  3. Vulnerability Physical Environment Socioeconomic Agency Political Environment Sociocultural

  4. Vulnerability • Climate Pattern • Relationship of climate pattern to well-being • Identification of vulnerable populations • Building sustainable adaptation

  5. Effects of climatic events on malaria incidence Source: Sutherst 2004

  6. Increased Poverty Decreased Productivity Social welfare Healthcare Health Resources Lost work Lost income Lost resources Health care expenses Death rites Increased poverty Higher reproduction

  7. Vulnerability Resources Exposure Risk

  8. Mitigating health impacts • Scale • Accurate identification of the vulnerable • (Mis)match of priorities • Communication • Sustainable, culturally competent strategy • Time perspective • Change in vulnerability over time • Ethical considerations

  9. Scale • Population • Neighborhood • Household • Individual

  10. Identify the vulnerable • National Vulnerabilities • Low income, especially rural • Women • Haitians • Vulnerabilities in La Altagracia • Sugarcane workers, but less so than construction workers • Construction workers • Permanent residents near construction/tourist facilities

  11. Priority Mismatch

  12. Communication • Know the audience • Frame the issue • Cultural competency • Semantic networks • Priority match • Appropriate messenger • Build trust • Positive communication Source: Moser 2006, Rogers 1962

  13. Sustainable, Culturally Competent Strategy

  14. Time Horizons To a man, a butterfly has but a short life. To a tree, a man’s life is but the blink of an eye. Taoist adage

  15. Vulnerability in Flux Incidence Time Sources: Aral 2002, Suthrest 2004

  16. Vulnerability in Flux

  17. Ethical Dimensions • Who are the winners and who are the losers? • Will desired outcomes be achieved? What are foreseeable consequences? • Are we harming anyone? • Are we reducing suffering? • Who is driving the agenda? • Is the solution equitable and just?

  18. Louisiana’s Katrina Mortality, July 20, 2006 Source: State of Louisiana Dept. of Health and Hospitals

  19. Age over 50 145 per 100,000 Female 47% Male 53% African American 53% Caucasian 39%

  20. Source: Times Picayune, Oct. 2006

  21. Tools • Mixed methodologies • Translational research • Community-based Participatory Research / Participatory Action Research

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