TY - JOUR
T1 - From state agencies to ordinary citizens
T2 - reframing risk-mitigation investments and their impact to disrupt urban risk traps in Lima, Peru
AU - Allen, Adriana
AU - Zilbert Soto, Linda
AU - Wesely, Julia
AU - Belkow, Teresa
AU - Ferro, Vladimir
AU - Lambert, Rita
AU - Langdown, Ian
AU - Samanamú, Amaru
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2017, © 2017 International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED).
PY - 2017/10/1
Y1 - 2017/10/1
N2 - The understanding of linkages between disaster risk and urban development has seen important advances in recent decades. However, it falls short in addressing the production and reproduction of so-called urban “risk traps”, which are accumulation cycles of everyday risks and small-scale disasters with highly localized impacts, particularly on impoverished urban dwellers. Drawing on the action-research project cLIMA sin Riesgo, this paper examines risk-mitigating investment actions of state agencies, residents and communities in Barrios Altos, in the historic centre of Lima, Peru, and José Carlos Mariátegui, in the periphery. The analysis shows that residents tend to be caught in risk traps not necessarily due to lacking investments, but paradoxically despite them and their unintended effects. Furthermore, accumulated fragmented investments erode the capacity to act of those at risk and perpetuate risk accumulation cycles. The paper argues for a re-assessment of risk-mitigation investments and their intended and unintended consequences, and suggests routes to address current shortcomings in order to disrupt “risk traps”.
AB - The understanding of linkages between disaster risk and urban development has seen important advances in recent decades. However, it falls short in addressing the production and reproduction of so-called urban “risk traps”, which are accumulation cycles of everyday risks and small-scale disasters with highly localized impacts, particularly on impoverished urban dwellers. Drawing on the action-research project cLIMA sin Riesgo, this paper examines risk-mitigating investment actions of state agencies, residents and communities in Barrios Altos, in the historic centre of Lima, Peru, and José Carlos Mariátegui, in the periphery. The analysis shows that residents tend to be caught in risk traps not necessarily due to lacking investments, but paradoxically despite them and their unintended effects. Furthermore, accumulated fragmented investments erode the capacity to act of those at risk and perpetuate risk accumulation cycles. The paper argues for a re-assessment of risk-mitigation investments and their intended and unintended consequences, and suggests routes to address current shortcomings in order to disrupt “risk traps”.
KW - capacity to act
KW - everyday risk
KW - just and resilient cities
KW - Lima
KW - risk-mitigation investments
KW - urban risk traps
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85019020691&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/0956247817706061
DO - 10.1177/0956247817706061
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85019020691
VL - 29
SP - 477
EP - 502
JO - Environment and Urbanization
JF - Environment and Urbanization
SN - 0956-2478
IS - 2
ER -