(An) exploratory study of community-based disaster management in korea

Abstract

Climate change increases unusual weather events and community-based disaster management (CBDM) was suggested as a more effective way of managing natural disasters than the traditional top-down way in disaster prone countries such as Japan and developing countries. Korea too faced unusual weather and major loss events since late 1990's and adopted Citizen Corps Active in Disaster (CAIND) in 2006 to facilitate engagement of community members with local knowledge and local disaster experiences. However, activities of CAIND are hardly known today and there has been very little research done until now. Therefore, this research serves as an exploratory study to provide primary information on the current status and issues of CAIND for further study through the Gimpo-Si case. The result shows that CAIND needs significant improvements in all aspects in terms of four key components of CBDM which are participation, empowerment, partnership and organization.