Communication, Science, Technology, and Innovation in Disaster Risk Management : Recent Trends and Approaches in South Asia

This book presents the three pillars of Disaster Risk Management (DRM): communication, innovation, and science and technology. These three pillars are applied across five dimensions, namely risk identification and reduction, preparedness, financial protection, resilient recovery, and risk-informed investments in South Asia. In the coming decades, the region will experience rapid economic development and population growth, which, combined with the effects of climate change, will increase the likelihood of being affected by hazards. As hazards can negatively impact every sector of the economy and undo years of economic progress, effective measures to reduce the risk must be incorporated into development plans and poverty reduction strategies.

Technological advances have opened up previously unimaginable opportunities to strengthen resilience and improve communications. In the South Asia, it has been experienced that the prevention of hazards and the development of emergency plans enabled by advances in communications and space technology can be much more successful and significantly costly effective than in the past. The use of space technology in disaster monitoring, early warning, and emergency response and for response has shown remarkable efficiency. New approaches to Disaster Risk Management (DRM) are becoming more available due to recent advances in space and communication technology. This book focuses on the use and innovation of space technology and communication for DRM in two specific areas: the Early Warning System (EWS) and the Disaster Information Management System (DIMS).

Dr. Swapan Talukdar

Dr. Swapan Talukdar is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography at Asutosh College, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, India. He served as a Dr. D. S. Kothari Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Geography, Faculty of Sciences, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, from July 20, 2021, to February 29, 2024. He completed his Ph.D. from the Department of Geography, University of Gour Banga, West Bengal, India, in 2020. He was a Junior Research Fellow (JRF) from 2015 to 2017 and a Senior Research Fellow (SRF) from 2017 to 2019 in the Department of Geography, University of Gour Banga. Since 2023, Dr. Talukdar has been recognized as one of the top 2% of scientists in the world, according to the list published by Stanford University, USA. He has completed several international projects as a Co-Principal Investigator (Co-PI) in collaboration with King Khalid University, Saudi Arabia. Dr. Talukdar has published more than 120 scientific research articles in internationally reputed journals, such as the Journal of Cleaner Production, Environmental Pollution, Scientific Reports, Ecological Indicators, Sustainable Cities and Society, and Remote Sensing. He has also published three edited books with Springer Nature. Dr. Talukdar has served as an editorial board member for Scientific Reports (Nature Group), PLOS ONE, Discover Applied Sciences (Springer), and as a review editor for Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. His main areas of research are urban environment, urban wetlands, natural hazards, remote sensing, and AI applications in environmental management. He has served as a reviewer for several reputed international journals.

Dr. Ranit Chatterjee

Dr. Ranit Chatterjee is the visiting associate professor in Graduate School of Media and Governance at Keio University, Japan. He is also co-founder of a Delhi (India)-based social entrepreneur startup Resilience Innovation Knowledge Academy (RIKA) and RIKA Institute, a not-for-profit entity of RIKA. He is a Ph.D. in Environmental Management from Kyoto University, Japan. Trained as an architect, Ranit did his master’s in Disaster Management from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. His work focuses mainly on disaster management while spanning across architecture and heritage, governance, private sector, and ecosystem services. He has worked previously with the UN agencies, national and local Governments in Asia and India in particular, local communities, private businesses, and NGOs. In addition, he has been involved with National Institute of Disaster Management in training of engineers and architects. Ranit is a recipient of IRDR young scientist fellowship and CEM member of IUCN. He has authored several academic publications and reports on the topic of Disaster Management. He is an amateur photographer with a few publications in National Geographic.

 Dr. Somnath Bera

Dr. Somnath Bera is currently an assistant professor in the Department of Geography at the Central University of South Bihar, India. He pursued his MPhil and PhD in Disaster Studies at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. Throughout his academic journey, he extensively explored disaster-affected regions across India, Nepal, China and Japan enriching his research with firsthand experiences. Following his doctoral studies, he served as a research associate at the Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi. His scholarly pursuits revolve around disaster risk and resilience. His contributions to the field have earned him numerous fellowships, grants, and awards. He is currently leading an international project funded by the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI). He has authored a plethora of research articles published in esteemed journals like the "International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction", "Journal of Cleaner Production", "Journal of Environmental Management", "Remote Sensing Applications: Society and Environment”, “Natural Hazards," "Bulletin of Engineering Geology and the Environment," and "Progress in Disaster Science," among others. Additionally, he serves as a reviewer for prestigious international journals published by "Elsevier," "Springer," and "Taylor and Francis." Beyond academia, he finds joy in landscape painting.

Prof. Atish Prashar

Prof. Atish Prashar is a leading newspaper columnist and a well known media educator with expertise in all media platforms. He was the Dean of the School of Media, Arts and aesthetics and works relentlessly as the head of the department of Mass Communication (since 2016) at the Central University of South Bihar. He made his entry in academia in the year 2002 and since then has been associated with Delhi University, IP University and many other institutions of excellence in the country. 

He believes in maintaining high standards in media education which has led him make significant contributions in various universities and institutes as a selection committee member also he is contributing in Bihar State University service commission as a subject expert. Prof. Parashar is well known trainer and associated with Bihar institute of public administration and rural development (BIPARD) and Bihar police academy. He has been training participants from Indian Administrative Services and Bihar Administrative Services.

Prof. Parashar is a prolific writer with many reputed publications to his credit with an authorship of 6 books, 14 chapters and more than 30 research papers. Prof. Parashar is currently leading a major project as a Project Director at CUSB, funded by ICSSR. He has been closely worked with NIDM and organised many workshops on disaster management. Quite often his editorials appear in reputed newspapers and magazines. Prof. Parashar is a member of various Board of Studies like Central University of Jharkhand, Assam University, CUSB, Patna University, Amity University etc. He is also an academic council member at CUSB. 

Prof. Rajib Shaw

Rajib Shaw is a professor in Graduate School of Media and Governance of Keio University, Japan. He is co-founder of a Delhi based social entrepreneur startup, Resilience Innovation Knowledge Academy (RIKA), and chair of the board of two Japanese non-government agencies: SEEDS Asia and CWS Japan. He is the Co-chair of the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) Asia Pacific Science Technology Advisory Group (AP-STAG), and CLA for IPCC’s 6th Assessment Report. Professor Shaw has 74 books and more than 450 research papers in the field of environment, disaster management and climate change. He is the editor in chief of Progress in Disaster Science. Professor Shaw is the recipient of “Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award (PBSA)” in 2021 for his contribution in education sector. PBSA is the highest honor conferred on overseas Indian and person of Indian origin from the President of India. He also received United Nations Sasakawa Award in 2022 for his lifetime contributions in the field of disaster risk reduction.