LOOKING ABRUPT NATURAL DISASTERS IN THE EYE: HOW SHOULD WE DEAL WITH THEM IN THE CONTEXT OF SUSTAINABILITY?

Water, air, fire, earth – four agents that bring upon us disastrous events with little warning and cause significant loss of human life, damage to property, disruption of social and economic infrastructure, and wreak havoc on habitats. Such sudden onset events are often categorized as “Acts of God”, thereby implying no human responsibility. But we are implicated by our overpopulation, by where we build, and by our ignorance or denial of reality. The prospects for sustainability are dimmed by our responses if we allow ourselves to be distracted from more formidable longer-term challenges; if we evade our complicity in damage to the natural ecosystems that support us; and if we allocate resources to rebuilding and rebuilding without paying heed to nature, often at the expense of investment needed to mitigate the large and pervasive threats of creeping megadisasters.

How can the science community, broadly defined, and the media, working together, more effectively serve the public and policy-makers and decision-makers in a timely, credible, and balanced way with information about the consequences of potential actions against natural disasters that have severe social consequences? How can the inevitable uncertainties associated with short- and long-term warnings be understood? How can the media help scientists deal with suppression, misuse, or distortion of scientific inferences for political or economic advantage? We need to deal with these issues together. A good place to begin is to recognize that sudden natural disasters are not simply “Acts of God” but have a large component of human contribution. Without a long view many of our current responses are misguided or cosmetic.