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Natural Risk Perception and Geography Education

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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Hazards and Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2020) | Viewed by 24791

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Adélia Nunes

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Guest Editor

Department of Geography and Tourism; Centre of Studies in Geography and Spatial Planning; University OF Coimbra
Interests: natural risks; risk perception; geographical education; sustainability

Dr. Bruno Martins

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Guest Editor

CEGOT (Centre of Studies on Geography and Spatial Planning), RISCOS, University of Coimbra, 3004-530 Coimbra, Portugal
Interests: natural risks; risk perception; geographical education; sustainability; spatial analysis
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleague,

The increase in the occurrence of natural disasters has generated an overall growing interest in the subject of ‘’Natural Risk Perception and Environmental Education’’. The economic and social costs involved are substantial, relating not only to human loss and economic damage but also to the recovery/reconstruction of the affected areas. At the same time, it is acknowledged that if a portion of the population were to adopt suitable behavior in terms of either preventing or managing natural risks, this could bring about a reduction in the consequences of the occurrence of risk.
Therefore, people’s involvement is vital for more effective risk management. Perception thus plays a major part in motivating individuals to take action to avoid, mitigate, adapt to, or even ignore risks. People who are well-educated are better able to plan for and respond to risk, both individually and collectively. The United Nations Children’s Fund considers that students of all ages can actively study and participate in school safety measures and also work with teachers and other adults in the community towards minimising risk before, during, and after disaster events.
Risk reduction education is therefore one of the most important and powerful tools in forming new concepts, changing habits, and fostering intergenerational dialogue. It plays a pivotal and structuring role in the implementation of mechanisms that lead to better-prepared citizens and more resilient societies, which will help to increase awareness of risks and perceive danger better.
Thus, the present Special Issue of Sustainability intends to outline different approaches regarding risk perception and environmental education that outline the different perspectives and challenges we face in the 21st Century.

This Special Issue aims to cover, without being limited to, the following areas:

Perspectives on natural risk perception;
Natural risk perception factors;
Regional perception differences;
Natural risk in scholar/academic curriculums;
Risk reduction education;
Environmental and geographical education;
Risk education for environmental management;
Risk perception for social capacity building and risk governance.

Dr. Adélia Nunes
Dr. Bruno Martins
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

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Keywords

natural risks
risk perception
geographical education
sustainability

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

24 pages, 2175 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Study of the Training of Environmentalists through Gamification as A University Course

by Paz Fernández and Matías Ceacero-Moreno

Sustainability 2021, 13(4), 2323; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13042323 - 20 Feb 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2799

Abstract

The United Nations Agenda for 2030 lists Sustainable Development Goals which include quality education, which we have pursued in the Undergraduate Final Project of the Environmental Sciences Degree at the University of Granada (Spain). This entailed designing sustainable cities, including the management of natural hazards. We created an innovative didactic model using gamification, in which the student adopted the researcher role using the computer game Cities: Skylines as a simulation tool. Using a design-based method, we conducted a qualitative single-case study in which the professor observed the process and guided the student’s self-learning in a fun way. Under this guidance, the student made decisions alone in order to simulate a sustainable city, and afterwards to analyse the findings. Three variables were considered in order to evaluate the results concerning the quality of the student’s learning: (1) the experiment using the game, (2) motivation, and (3) the skills acquired. In all three, the student earned a high score. Of the 12 skills established as the specific goals of the teaching plan, the student reached a very high level in 10, and a high level in two, implying the overall success of the learning process. The study achieved its main goal, as an innovative didactic methodology was established based on student’s research, using gamification and simulation with a technological tool. Moreover, the case study gave positive results, with the student proving capable of developing scientific and professional competencies at an optimal level. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Natural Risk Perception and Geography Education)

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15 pages, 996 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Earthquake Hazard Knowledge, Preparedness, and Risk Reduction in the Bangladeshi Readymade Garment Industry

by Edris Alam

Sustainability 2020, 12(23), 10147; https://doi.org/10.3390/su122310147 - 04 Dec 2020

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3192

Abstract

The Bangladeshi readymade garment (RMG) industry is considered the main driver of economic transformation, as it employs many unskilled and underprivileged people. However, recently, the RMG industry has faced international concern because of several building collapses and fire incidents, indicating inadequacy in the structural design and preparedness measures in the factory buildings. This research aims to understand earthquake hazard knowledge, preparedness, and emergency response, which may contribute to earthquake risk reduction in the RMG industry in Bangladesh. A survey using the methods of structured and semi-structured interviews and field observations was carried out to achieve the aims of this research. The findings suggest that 43% of these workers perceived their workplace as being a highly fire-prone environment, while 55 respondents believed that they were at risk of both fires and earthquakes. Only two percent believed that the workplaces are only at risk of earthquakes because the industries they work for have a zero-tolerance policy toward fire hazards. It was noted that the preparedness and improvement strategies were exclusively focused on fire hazards and related safety programs. Finally, the research suggests that the RMG industry may strengthen its earthquake risk reduction program by improving preparedness within the current workplace safety manuals without incurring extra effort and cost. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Natural Risk Perception and Geography Education)

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19 pages, 743 KiB

Open AccessArticle

How Geography Textbook Tasks Promote Comparison Competency—An International Analysis

by Marine Simon and Alexandra Budke

Sustainability 2020, 12(20), 8344; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12208344 - 10 Oct 2020

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3401

Abstract

Comparison is an important competency for gaining and linking knowledge. It can be learned in geography classes to help students understand complex concepts and develop autonomous geographical thinking. However, we do not currently have any model to assess comparison as a competency in geography classes. In addition, little is known about how textbook tasks promote comparison competency. Therefore, in this study, a competency model for comparison in geography education was developed. It consists of four dimensions of comparison competency, which relate either to the mastering of comparison processes or to content-related elements of comparisons. Then, via a qualitative content analysis and descriptive statistics, the competency model was used to assess which dimensions of comparison competency were featured in 981 tasks from 20 German, English and French textbooks. Results showed that comparison tasks largely failed to promote autonomous and argumentative comparison process planning. However, numerous tasks performed better on the content-related aspects of comparison. Thus, the competency model presented in this study is a valuable tool to assess and enhance comparison competency in geography education and to promote students’ autonomous geographical thinking. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Natural Risk Perception and Geography Education)

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13 pages, 17887 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Partial Grazing Exclusion as Strategy to Reduce Land Degradation in the Traditional Brazilian Faxinal System: Field Data and Farmers’ Perceptions

by Valdemir Antoneli, Manuel Pulido Fernández, Taís de Oliveira, Javier Lozano-Parra, João Anésio Bednarz, Michael Vrahnakis and Ramón García-Marín

Sustainability 2020, 12(18), 7456; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12187456 - 10 Sep 2020

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2444

Abstract

Land degradation is becoming a serious concern for the sustainability of traditional agrosilvopastoral systems such as the Brazilian faxinal. The IAP (Environmental Institute of the Federal State of Paraná) is favoring the partial exclusion to grazing for 10 years as strategy both to recover degraded lands and to reduce negative effects. Nevertheless, this strategy is being followed by a reduced number of owners (faxinalenses) and little is known about the effectiveness of these measures due to either lack of field data and knowledge on faxinalenses’ perceptions. We have identified one out of few farms that have followed this official strategy and, within the same farm, we have compared values of some soil properties (bulk density, porosity, water holding capacity, penetration resistance, soil organic matter and root density) from an excluded area to grazing for 10 years, with some areas that represent a gradient of grazing intensity (natural forest, secondary forest, degraded forest, grassland and a degraded area by pigs). In addition, we have interviewed some faxinalenses (one faxinal farm is owned by several farmers) in order to better understand how the risk of land degradation is perceived by them and their opinions about the usefulness of partial grazing exclusion as a strategy to improve the management of their farms. The results have shown that soil quality increases considerably as a consequence of grazing exclusion, in spite of land has been used for cropping yerba mate during the exclusion time, but faxinalenses are not mindful of these benefits and they are no longer interested in excluding other areas of their farms. They think this strategy is simply an obligation imposed by the environmental authority. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Natural Risk Perception and Geography Education)

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22 pages, 379 KiB

Open AccessArticle

What are the Factors affecting Tourist Behavior based on the Perception of Risk? Romanian and Serbian Tourists’ Perspective in the Aftermath of the recent Floods and Wildfires in Greece

by Sanja Kovačić, Mihai Ciprian Mărgărint, Ruxandra Ionce and Đurđa Miljković

Sustainability 2020, 12(16), 6310; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12166310 - 05 Aug 2020

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 6082

Abstract

During the summer season 2018 and 2019, natural hazards (namely, floods and wildfires) have occurred at some of the most popular tourist destinations in Greece, endangering tourists’ safety and vacation quality. These have influenced tourists’ perception of Greece as a “potentially risky destination”, causing a decrease in the number of tourists willing to visit this country. However, the current study assumes that some tourists will show more courageous travel behavior in the aftermath of natural hazards, while others will remain cautious when deciding to travel to risky destinations. Therefore, the questionnaire on a sample group of 431 respondents from Serbia and Romania was conducted to explore the factors influencing such differences. The study aims to explore whether tourists’ individual characteristics influence tourism worries and tourist behavior based on perceived risks. The study also intends to analyze the moderating role of tourists’ nationality, considering the relationship between personality and tourist behavior based on the perceived risk. The findings provide evidence that not only tourists’ personality but also sociodemographic characteristics influence tourism worries and tourist behavior based on the perceived risk. Additionally, the study is the first to explore and confirm the role of nationality in tourist behavior based on the perceived risk, as well as the moderation role of nationality in regression between tourist’s personality and behavior based on the perception of risk. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed in the paper. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Natural Risk Perception and Geography Education)

12 pages, 1967 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Landslide Hazard Knowledge, Risk Perception and Preparedness in Southeast Bangladesh

by Edris Alam

Sustainability 2020, 12(16), 6305; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12166305 - 05 Aug 2020

Cited by 35 | Viewed by 6020

Abstract

Over the last thirty years, Bangladesh has been experiencing hill cutting problems and subsequent landslide occurrence in its southeastern hilly region. Since 2000, landslides have caused over 500 deaths, mostly in informal settlements in southeast Bangladesh. The most significant single event was the 2007 landslide causing 127 deaths in Chittagong’s informal settlements. The landslide events took over 110 people in Rangamati on 12 June 2017. In the scenario of rising deaths by landslides in the southeastern region, this research aimed to understand communities’ landslide hazard knowledge, reasons for living in at-risk areas, risk perception and preparedness. This research applied both quantitative (i.e., structural questionnaire) and qualitative (i.e., semi-structured and open-ended questionnaire and informal interviews) data collection techniques to assess hill-top and hill-side dwellers knowledge, risk perception and preparedness to landslides in southeast Bangladesh. The investigation conducted face-to-face interviews with 208 community members, 15 key informant interviews, three Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) and field observations and visits in southeast Bangladesh. The findings suggest that unplanned development activities, overpopulation, settlement along hill slopes and ineffective disaster risk reduction efforts are the anthropogenic contributories accompanying climate-change induced increased torrential rainfall are the main reasons for the increase of landslide occurrence. The results suggest that community members perceive a low-risk for landslides, despite the community’s location in high-risk areas. The community’s perception of low risk results in a lack of preparedness and an unwillingness to relocate a comparatively safer place. It was noted that landslide disaster preparation depends on the communities’ development maturity, house ownership, ethnicity, gender and economic status of the residents. It is suggested that the place of relocation for residents living in the high-risk areas should be selected with full consideration of psychosocial aspects of the community, particularly providing acceptable livelihood options. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Natural Risk Perception and Geography Education)

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