vulnerability

Presently, half of world population lives in cities and in many countries such as Iran, most of people live in cities and metropolitans. The city evolution and new conditions in metropolitans are considered uncontrollable and it is believed that the future base of mankind forms in cities as Park points the city as the natural habitat of human in modern age. The urban population deals with various and somehow annoying problems as it can be said that most of social damages are appeared in cities. The urban management faces with difficult responsibility of controlling these damages. This paper attempts to study the citizen's social vulnerability in Tehran according to urban social space approach. Here, different views such as Chicago school, Dickens theory, Castells theory and social approaches such as Chicago school and social disorganization theory are applied. The paper is a survey and questionnaire is the tools of data collecting. The results showed the high rate of citizen vulnerability in relation with research variables such as self-alienation, rationalism, less emotional relationships, less social integration and more individualism.

Purpose - Land subsidence is caused by natural factors and human activities around the world. Fars Province, located in the south of Iran, is subject to land subsidence due to the uncontrolled exploitation of groundwater, causing damages to the population and human settlements and also environmental, social and economic areas. Design/methodology/approach - The present research is descriptive in terms of describing land subsidence in the case study region, whereas it is also analytical as time series analysis techniques based on Radar Interferometry (InSAR) is applied to monitor temporal changes in subsidence in Darab and Fasa Plains, including 470 rural points. Using 8 ENVISAT ASAR images spanning between 2005 and 2010, nine Interferograms were processed. In the study area. Geographic Information System (GIS) is then used to study groundwater level decline at the well locations in a 24-year period (from 1991 to 2015). Findings - The results of the research confirm that there is a significant correlation between groundwater water level decline and land surface subsidence. Time series analysis of the processed Interferograms indicate the mean displacement velocity map, demonstrating the maximum subsidence rate of 25 cm/yr. The InSAR analysis reveal within the study area subsidence rate of 25 cm/year in 24 years period and locally exceeding 30 cm/yr in the last decade. This area of significant subsidence is limited in its spatial extent to the agricultural land and is partly influenced by the large-scale over-exploitation of groundwater resources in the region study. The temporal and areal relationships of subsidence and groundwater level data suggest that a significant part of the observed subsidence in the Darab region is caused by intense groundwater extraction which has led to widespread compaction within the upper parts of the up to 300m. Socioeconomic analysis and the subsidence hazard map show that 105523 people are generally at risk of subsidence, of 65068 who are at high risk. In addition, there are 2679 socioeconomic infrastructures such as public service at risk of damage by land subsidence. Research limitations/implications - Limitation in In SAR data access, especially for long-term data was one of the main limitations in land subsidence research and also in this research. Practical implications - Integrated water resource management and the observed extraction of groundwater could influence the subsidence rate in the regions exposed to land subsidence. Originality/value - This research will be important to provide vulnerability in regions with groundwater overexploitation.

Disaster Management and current approaches in this field in one hand only has focused to physical vulnerabilities and in the other hand has included consequential action to reduce vulnerability and improve physical preparation as well as resistance institutional insignificant during the disaster. Therefore, these approaches usually have ignored the capabilities and capacities of residents to reduce vulnerabilities and consequently losses and damage. While recent approaches have entered, the field of disaster management emphasized that at first vulnerability is beyond the physical vulnerabilities and second vulnerabilities have an inverse relationship with the resident’s capacity in the face of disaster. So, community-based disaster risk management need to recognize indicators of vulnerability and community capacity and its relationship is essential. Accordingly, in the first step, the indicators of community capacity and community vulnerability are provided and in the second step based on these indicators, community capacity and vulnerability have been assessed. The assessment of community characters is based on GIS capabilities, spatial analysis tools and SPSS and correlation regression is used for analyzing the relationship of the variables. The results and findings of this research indicate that the vulnerability of urban areas is not only influenced by physical factors, but also social and organizational factors like community organizing and community educating have affected strongly the vulnerability.

INITRODUCTION: The passive defense approach is one of the approaches in planning and organizing cities and residential complexes with the aim to reduce environmental hazards. Given the vital and sensitive position of cities, while preparing against military invasions, this approach provides special capabilities to cope with natural and human crises to a large extent. METHODS: This was an applied study conducted with a descriptive-analytical method. Data were collected reviewing the relevant texts, sources, books, and articles, as well as examining maps, interviews, and observations. The data were then analyzed using the geographic information system (GIS) software. In the next step, the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis technique was employed to investigate the strengths and weaknesses as well as the opportunities and threats of Rasht City, Iran. FINDINGS: Rasht City accounts for a considerable part of the population, facilities, and services of Guilan Province, Iran, which will experience great damage in case of occurrence of a natural or human disaster. The SWOT analysis results revealed that the strategy obtained was of a defensive nature. CONCLUSION: On the basis of the results obtained from the investigation of the sensitive land uses, it can be stated that the location of the land uses (particularly, sensitive and important ones) in Rasht does not follow the passive defense principles. In addition, the central areas of the city are more vulnerable due to the density of the important and sensitive uses in these areas. This implies that the city center is the most vulnerable area of Rasht in terms of the passive defense approach

INTRODUCTION: Nowadays, due to population growth and resource constraints, cities are more vulnerable towards the crisis. Reducing the vulnerability of urban land use, with utilizing new approaches of crisis management such as passive defense, can be useful in creating a secure environment in cities. This is of the most important goals, planners and city managers are going to implement in cities; and how to deal with natural disasters, is of the major concerns of societies. This study aimed to evaluate city vulnerability in Mahabad City, Iran, based on the passive defense approach. METHODS: In this applied descriptive-analytical research, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) model was used to analyze the data, and Geographic Information System (GIS) software was used to draw the maps. Then, to clarify the positive and negative features, or the opportunities and the threats, the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) technique was applied. FINDINGS: Based on the AHP model, the highest records were given to vital factors such as networks, fuel storage, water, and electricity, while the lowest records were given to higher education centers. Moreover, based on the SWOT analysis, the most important weaknesses of Mahabad City were as the compact and dense texture of the city, the low width of the most of the passageways, and the aggregation of major activities in the city center. CONCLUSION: Research results show that in Mahabad City, there is no comprehensive plan to secure citizens. Urban planning by relevant institutions and administrative councils does not fit the physical and human components of the city.

INTRODUCTION: Resilience is considered a way of strengthening societies using their capacities which can be defined as the ability of systems to adapt to changes without collapsing at the incidence of disasters. To understand resilience and the way it is analyzed at the community level, it is necessary to study the society's current condition and policies, as well as the measures adopted to reduce risk and how the risks in society are dealt with. This study aimed to assess the resilience of urban communities in the face of an earthquake. METHODS: This descriptive-analytical study was conducted using a questionnaire to collect the required data in Semnan, Iran, in 2019. The statistical population of this study (n=384) consisted of the citizens of Semnan selected using the Cochran formula and random sampling method. The collected data were analyzed in SPSS software (version 23) using mean and percentage for descriptive analysis and Pearson correlation coefficient and one-sample t-test for inferential statistical tests. FINDINGS: Based on the results, the sociocultural, infrastructural-physical, economic, and institutional-organizational dimensions showed the current condition of resilience in Semnan with the mean scores obtained as 2.59, 3.05, 2.17, and 2.56, respectively. It was also revealed that resilience had a significant relationship with age, education, income, accommodation ownership, employment, calculated by the Pearson correlation coefficient (P-value=0.99). CONCLUSION: The mean scores and significance level of the economic resilience in Semnan revealed that this city lacked economic resilience. In this regard, it can be noted that residents' lack of skills in other fields and jobs, lack of possessions outside the city, the vulnerability of residents' properties and assets, level of economic poverty in the city, citizens' limited financial ability to participate economically, and low level of household savings to compensate for earthquake damage have made returning to pre-crisis conditions highly difficult for citizens, and consequently, they cannot be economically resilient.

INTRODUCTION: Despite the progress of urbanization, earthquake as one of the most important natural hazards threatens most cities in the world. Accordingly, managing and reducing the vulnerability of cities to this disaster, as well as the planned relief and rescue operation, are of particular importance. The city of Isfahan, Iran, is one of the areas which requires proper attention and planning due to its high population density and vulnerability. In this regard, this study was conducted to identify the physical texture vulnerability of the District 5 of Isfahan to earthquakes and its impact during rescue and relief operations. METHODS: To conduct the research, the indices of access to green space, building density, population density, distance from the fault, distance from relief centers, access to roads and arteries, and width of roads were selected due to their frequency in studies conducted on the vulnerability of cities and scores given by specialists. Finally, the critical areas of the region were determined by weighting each of the indices using the analytic hierarchy process method in Expert Choice software (version 11) and examining the vulnerability of the region in the Geographic Information System. FINDINGS: It was revealed that 68% of the area had a suitable density of green space, and 73% and 88% of the region had low building and population densities, respectively. Moreover, 76% of the area had good access to relief centers and the whole area had proper passages. Finally, it was found that no faults passed through this area, and the impact of adjacent faults caused this area to be in a moderate situation in terms of vulnerability. CONCLUSION: The critical areas were determined by overlaying each of the vulnerability layers of the city and applying their degree of importance. The results showed that 6% and 18% of the areas were in critical and highly vulnerable conditions, respectively. Therefore, rescue and relief operations would be performed with an acceptable capacity after such disasters as earthquakes.

Introduction: Natural disasters are known as one of the most important factors in the destruction of human settlements. One of the key concerns for urban planners is examining how natural disasters affect human settlements, particularly cities. Earthquake is one of these natural disasters that has always threatened human settlements and can cause a lot of damage and casualties in a short period. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the vulnerability of settlements in District 2 of Tabriz, Iran, against earthquakes. Methods: This applied research was conducted based on a descriptive-analytical approach. The primary data of existing documents and maps were collected from related organizations. The analytical hierarchy process model and geographic information system software were used for data analysis. Findings: To determine the vulnerability of the texture of District 2 of Tabriz, such indicators as the distance from the fault, slope percentage, groundwater levels, building age, building materials, building quality, building density, number of floors, plot area, and land use were employed. Conclusion: According to the results, 35% of the region was in the high-risk and 25% in the very high-risk areas. In general, it can be said that most of the region (i.e. 60%) was in the area with a high risk of earthquake, and the area with very high risk was mostly in the northern parts of the region, while the southeastern parts of the region were located in low-risk areas

Purpose- Village as a residential system has always suffered a lot of damage due to natural hazards such as drought throughout history, and due to the dependence of the rural economy on the agricultural sector, any threat against this sector leads to the weakening of the economic foundations, the village and eventually the economic stagnation of the country. Therefore, the aim of the current research is to evaluate the drought-resilient measures to reduce the vulnerability of rural households located in Rastaq district in Khalil-Abad City, Khorasan-Razavi Province.Design/methodology/approach- The type of research is applied research, and the data was collected by applying a descriptive-analytical method by using documentary sources and field studies (questionnaire). The statistical population of the research is comprised of the heads of rural households living in the study area. As a result, 337 people were selected using Cochran's method. For ranking and spatial analysis of the village, Copras and Vicor techniques were used, and Shannon technique and SPSS software were used for statistical data analysis.Findings- The results showed that among the weights obtained from the paired comparison of the dimensions raised in resilience measures with drought in reducing the vulnerability of rural households, modern irrigation measures with a score of (0.290) have the highest score in resilience measures. Avarane took over with the drought. Finally, in the study area, Niqab village performed better than other villages in terms of resilience measures in dealing with drought.Research limitations/implications- Not having access to statistical information when referring to Jihad Agriculture and Governorship, as well as filling out the questionnaire depending on the topic at the village level and the costs of conducting this research are among the challenges of the present research.Practical implications- In the end, according to the obtained results, it is considered necessary to provide solutions for the resilience of rural households at the level of the villages of this district and to implement the solutions.Originality / value- The present research is significant due to its expression and recognition of different issues surrounding the resilience of households in the face of drought. An important step can be taken in the direction of reducing the vulnerability of rural households to deal with drought in the coming years.

INTRODUCTION: In order to increase the capacity to deal with earthquake hazards, increasing urban resilience has become a basic priority for most governments. Based on this, the current research was written with the aim of measuring the physical resilience of the peripheral part of the 20th district of Tehran against earthquakes. METHODS: The research method is applied in terms of purpose and analytical-exploratory in nature, which was used to analyze information using the AHP technique in Expert Choice software and the opinion of 25 experts. FINDINGS: The findings showed that district 20 of Tehran city will face a serious crisis due to having many worn-out and marginalized structures, short-term residential units, old buildings, high population density, small area of residential land and narrow roads. CONCLUSION: According to the obtained results, about 47% of the fabric of district 20 is highly vulnerable to the earthquake crisis. Therefore, appropriate policymaking to manage earthquake crisis, especially in strengthening buildings and land use planning in this area, is an inevitable necessity.

With increasing frequency, the developing countries and the people living there are being affected by disasters. More and more often, development efforts are being destroyed. The reason for this trend is their growing vulnerability, which in turn is the result of economic and social development processes, such as the expansion of settlements and agricultural land in risk areas. The economic and social consequences of these disasters for the people in our partner countries last for years. To break and, if possible, reverse this trend, international organizations, governments and NGOs in the developing countries are increasingly upgrading the priority of disaster risk management for policy, and taking concrete preventive measures to reduce the risk to the population. This paper examined the concept of disaster and its management in the light of sustainable development with particular reference to Iran. It enumerated the different human and natural phenomena that could be characterized as disasters. It was discovered that, while hazard and/ or disasters possess anthropogenic origins, their consequences are felt on both human and the physical environments. In all cases, the human tolls have been significant. The paper highlighted the important elements of a typical Disaster Management Information System in Iran. After presenting a typology of disasters in Iran, the paper, advocated for a workable disaster management information system.

Background: During the past few decades, landslide incidents have increased in intensity and frequency.Objectives: In this paper, we have attempted to empirically assess both the household-level vulnerability and resilience of households in Murree, Pakistan.Methodology: Variables regarding vulnerability and resilience concerning landslides were collected from the previous studies. The primary data concerning these variables were gathered with the help of a survey from 200 randomly selected households. The views of the experts of the National Disaster Management Authority about the variables were also noted. The subjective method was applied to assign weights to the variables.Results: Our analysis revealed very high values of vulnerability for the rural fringe (0.96) and urban fringe (0.94) as compared to the inner city (0.85). The overall resilience index of the rural fringe was very low (0.28) as compared to the nearly medium-level resilience index of the urban fringe (0.44) and medium-level resilience index of the inner city (0.51). Conclusion: The households in Murree were more vulnerable to landslides and had less resilience level.

Purpose- Climate change has negative effects on the economic, social, and environmental aspects of rural households. Given the importance of the impact of climate change on the livelihoods of rural people, this study was conducted with the aim of reducing vulnerability and increasing resilience and adaptation to these conditions in Mashhad Township.Design/methodology/approach- The statistical population of the study is 11,706 rural households in Mashhad Township, out of which 372 households were selected proportionally by multistage stratified random sampling based on Cochran’s formula. The main tool of the research was a questionnaire whose validity was examined through content validity, structural validity, and reliability by composite reliability and Cronbach’s alpha (a= 0.9). The data were analyzed using SPSS and LISREL software. To examine the fit of the measurement model of the effects of climate change on sustainable livelihoods, the collected data were analyzed using second-order confirmatory factor analysis with LISREL software.Findings- The results of the study showed that the greatest impact of climate change was on financial capital, including income reduction, increased costs and increased product prices, reduced productivity and employment. In addition, the greatest effects of climate change on social capital include were on reduced sense of belonging and increased dependence on government support; on human capital include a were on reduced health levels and quality of life; and on natural capital include a were on reduced land resources and pressure and occurrence of hazards; and on physical capital were on reduced services and facilities for people. The research findings also showed that the goodness-of-fit indices (AGFI=0.91, GFI=0.91), (NNFI=0.91, CFI= 0.92), and (RMSEA= 0.073, X2/df= 2.97) confirmed an excellent fit of the measurement model of the effects of climate change on sustainable livelihoods with observed data. In addition, the results of structural equation modeling showed that the greatest impacts of climate change among livelihood capitals were respectively related to physical, financial, natural, social and human capitals.