Title: Women in Disaster: A Vulnerability Analysis and Ideas for Resiliency
Abstract: Women represent a population more likely to suffer from the damaging effects of disasters. This adversity can be observed in mortality rates, sexual violence, access to healthcare, and mobility throughout the disaster cycle. Vulnerability of women has been widely documented in the emergency management realm. A variety of dynamics influence this vulnerability. In order to increase women’s resiliency to disaster, it is crucial to understand the cultural, socioeconomic and gender inequalities that impact the different experiences of women on a global scale. This project focuses on what it means to be a woman before, during, and after a disaster event. What are the factors that drive vulnerability? What barriers do women face in advancing their experiences? What role do emergency managers play in the proliferation of women’s resiliency? This project will examine how gender impacts vulnerability and what we can do to improve the experiences of women during disaster.
Keywords: women, vulnerability, disaster, resiliency