Participatory mapping for disaster risk reduction: A review

In theory, disaster risk reduction (DRR) must be inclusive of a large array of stakeholders in order to integrate actions from the bottom up and the top down and address both the root causes of people's vulnerability and enhance their intrinsic capacities to face natural and other hazards. In practice, however, there is a significant gap between, those immediately concerned and at risk, the insiders (e.g. local communities and governments, faith groups, schools), and, on the other hand, the outsiders (e.g. scientists, national governments, international organisations, non-government organisations) who rarely coordinate and communicate (Gaillard and Mercer 2013). Amongst insiders, a further gap is observed between dominant actors (e.g. local governments, dominant ethnic and gender groups, adults) and marginalised groups (e.g. ethnic and gender minorities, youth and elderly, people with disabilities). Such gaps at different scales reflect similar difficulties in appraising and integrating different forms of knowledge and resources, the dominance of technocratic institutional frameworks, and a scarcity of appropriate tools to foster dialogue amongst all stakeholders.