Natural-hazard Risk Assessment in Developing Countries

Developing countries are disproportionately affected by natural hazards and lack of coping capacities. This combination sets back progress on poverty alleviation and slows long-term development. Probabilistic risk assessment models are increasingly popular tools for estimating potential human and economic loss due to natural hazards. Risk modeling for developing countries presents specific challenges in terms of quantity and quality of the available input data at all levels: hazard, exposure, and vulnerability. Widening the types of hazards and ensuring models are contextualized to local needs is also crucial and may require innovative approaches that tackle the well-known deficiencies in this context.

This research topic aims at bringing together researchers from different fields of probabilistic risk assessment, with emphasis on applications with high scientific and practical interest for developing countries, with a particular focus on the physical vulnerability of existing buildings and infrastructure. We welcome contributions dealing with both individual and combined (e.g. cascading and multiple) natural hazards, at different spatial scales (from a single asset to a portfolio of buildings and spatially-distributed infrastructure). The presented research studies should describe in detail and demonstrate how specific challenges of the targeted developing country(ies) have been addressed and how the outcomes contribute to a better understanding or an increased level of their resilience.

We welcome manuscripts that address aspects of single/multi-hazard and risk assessment, specifically targeting developing countries and their unique characteristics. The main focus is on earthquakes but other perils, such as tsunami, hydrogeological, or other weather-related hazards, are also welcome within a multi-hazard perspective.

This Research Topic includes, but is not limited to, the following themes:
• Characterization of hazard or multi-hazard models in developing countries, with a view to risk analysis of existing structures and infrastructure;
• Innovative data collection exercises, for creation of quantitative exposure models at different scales, including approaches to overcome limited or poor data;
• Impacts on vulnerable structures and critical infrastructure, including the development of advanced physical vulnerability models to incorporate damage from single or multiple hazards to networks;
• Mitigation measures for natural-hazard risk, including optimization of retrofitting campaigns;
• Loss estimates to single and/or multi-hazards.

All article types accepted by Frontiers in Built Environment are welcome, and we particularly encourage Original Research, Reviews, and Perspectives.

Keywords: Natural hazards, Exposure, Vulnerability, Risk, Developing countries

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.