Social Vulnerability in Affluent Contexts

This report develops a comprehensive view of the specific social situation in Zürich, and of the potentially important dynamics that could have an influence on social vulnerability in the city. To better understand social vulnerability in Zürich, CSS’s research team conducted interviews with experts working with very different social groups in the city of Zürich on a day-to-day basis. Three hazards were chosen for detailed spatial analysis: chemical accidents, flooding, and heatwave. A first key finding of this project has been the observation that locally specific social vulnerability characteristics can be difficult to represent cartographically. Second, the project demonstrated that while disasters incite extreme impacts, vulnerability in everyday lives translates to vulnerability in the context of a disaster. Last, given society’s dynamism, disaster managers must also adopt adaptive and flexible approaches to understand how societal changes might influence social vulnerability. The results suggest that social vulnerability can most effectively be addressed by a network of various governmental and non-governmental actors.