Local Urban Communities and Extreme Weather Events: Mapping Social Vulnerability to Flood

Abstract

Interest in the impacts of climate change and extreme weather events on regions throughout the world has taken on a new and more urgent focus in recent years. As attention has turned to understanding climate change adaptation, researches have begun considering the ways in which social vulnerability to climate related events can be understood and analysed so as to aid in policy development. This paper continues this growing research theme by developing a social vulnerability index for flood using the Gold Coast region as an example. Using data from a variety of sources the paper illustrates how when the social dimension of flood vulnerability is incorporated into an understanding of the physical threat of flood, a more meaningful focus on potential adaptation measures is attained.