De‐Homogenising Space for Effective Management of Slow‐Onset Hazards

ABSTRACT

Disaster management frameworks have traditionally prioritised sudden‐onset hazards that have immediate and visible impact. In contrast, slow‐onset hazards such as climate warming, sea‐level rise or land degradation usually receive less attention, even though their long‐term effects can be very serious. In this commentary, I argue that one major reason for this gap is the way policymakers sometimes treat large areas as if they are all the same. Such a homogenised approach ignores the local nature of slow‐onset hazards. By using ideas from geography, especially the growing field of regional political ecology, I suggest that the concept of ‘region’ can help us understand these local differences better and thereby prepare a multi‐scale strategy that works for both slow and sudden hazards.