The effects of natural hazards are socially differentiated, such that socially-constructed gender roles influence the various ways in which men and women perceive, experience, and respond to natural disasters (Ariyabandu 2009; Blaikie et al 1994; Ray-Bennett 2009). Post-disaster recovery efforts are generally tailored towards men, often eschewing the needs, vulnerabilities, and capacities of women and other marginalized groups. Disasters disproportionally impact marginalized social groups, and post-disaster recovery and relief efforts are not tailored to these disparate effects (Neumayer & Plümper 2007).
This research examines perceptions of post-disaster recovery efforts in the aftermath of the 2010 Mount Merapi eruption. Volcanic eruption is one of the most reoccurring and threatening natural disasters facing the Indonesian archipelago. The Mount Merapi eruption in late 2010 displaced over 350,000 people and killed over 300 people. Post-disaster recovery and relief efforts were mobilized from local and national government sources, aided by international funding. We present here results from a case study of the post-disaster recovery and relief efforts from the Mount Merapi eruption of 2010. Using a dataset of 400 survivors interviewed post-eruption, we measure differences in perceptions of post-disaster recovery and relief efforts by respondents’ gender. While much previous research has examined biophysical and social impacts of the Mount Merapi eruption (Warsini et al 2014; Siagian et al 2014), little examines these effects by gender. Our results here will provide insight into the gender dynamics of post-disaster recovery and relief efforts for the 2010 Mount Merapi eruption.
References:
Ariyabandu, M. 2009. Sex, gender and gender relations in disasters. In: Enarson E, Dhar Chakrabarti PG (eds.) Women, gender and disaster: global issues and initiatives. Sage Publications: Los Angeles. p 5–17.
Blaikie, P., Cannon, T., Davis, I., & Wisner, B. 1994. At Risk: Natural Hazards, People’s Vulnerability, and Disaster. London, United Kingdom: Routledge.
Neumayer, E. & Plümper, T. 2007. The Gendered Nature of Natural Disasters: The Impact of Catastrophic Events on the Gender Gap in Life Expectancy, 1981-2002. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 97 (3): 551-566.
Ray-Bennett, N. 2009. Multiple disasters and policy responses in pre- and post-independence Orissa, India. Disasters, 33 (2): 274-290.
Siagian, T., Purhadi, P., Suhartono, S. & Ritonga, H. 2014. Social vulnerability to natural hazards in Indonesia: driving factors and policy implications. Natural Hazards, 70:1603-1617.
Warsini, S., Buettner, P., Mills, J., West, C. & Usher, K. 2014. The Psychosocial impact of the Environmental Damage Caused by the MT Merapi Eruption on Survivors in Indonesia. EcoHealth, 11: 491-501.
