Richard Hodgkins (LU), Paul Wood (LU)
Apply for this project here. https://www.lboro.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/research-degrees/phd-opportunities/community-voices-in-flood-vulnerability-mapping/ Under the programme name, select Geography and Environment. Please quote reference FCDT-24-LU8 in your application. Please contact Edwin Baynes (E.Baynes@lboro.ac.uk) if you have any problems applying.
Rationale:
Climate-change vulnerability mapping is growing in importance, given the magnitude of expected 21st-century temperature and precipitation changes and associated impacts. Such mapping acknowledges that the effects of climate change on society are not solely a function of exposure to physical environmental changes or increases in the frequency or magnitude of extreme events, but that the vulnerability and adaptive capacity of societies to these changes play a crucial role in influencing outcomes. Leicestershire County Council (LCC), with statutory responsibilities as a Category 1 emergency responder under the Civil Contingencies Act (2004), attaches high importance to the mapping of community vulnerabilities, the significance of which was strongly underlined by the disruptive flooding that accompanied Storm Henk in January 2024. Addressing the Community Engagement, Policy and Regulation theme, this project will support the mapping of vulnerability to future events by combining established flood mapping resources with open-source data on social indicators of vulnerability, and especially with new research into the understanding of changing weather, climate and risk among a range of local communities, which LCC has identified as a priority research area in Civic University Agreement work.
Methodology:
Climate-change vulnerability mapping approaches and frameworks for adaptation have been outlined in UNDP (2010), and Arnell et al. (2021) have shown how regional-scale risk mapping for the UK can be based on UKCP18 climate projections (https://uk-cri.org/). Priorities for improving contemporary vulnerability mapping identified by de Sherbinin et al. (2019) include increasing the degree of collaboration with end users, greater attention to map communication, moving beyond the map as the final product, and greater justification for mapping based on the value of information research. This is all the more important as decision makers look to commit tightly constrained sums of money to adaptation, and to justify their choices based on data-led tools such as vulnerability maps. In addition to a fundamental GIS approach, probable data collection methods will include semi-structured individual or focus group interviews; work observation; think aloud protocols (in which subjects verbally express what they are thinking as they explore maps); online focus groups; and task analysis. This project can support effective adaptation, as the current Loughborough Surface Water Management Plan notes that “Education and Social Awareness” is cost-effective vis-à -vis physical infrastructural adaptations.
Location:
Loughborough University
Background Reading:
- Arnell, N.W., et al., 2021. Changing climate risk in the UK: A multi-sectoral analysis using policy-relevant indicators, Climate Risk Management 31, doi:10.1016/j.crm.2020.100265.
- de Sherbinin, A., et al., 2019. Climate vulnerability mapping: A systematic review and future prospects. WIREs Climate Change 10, doi:10.1002/wcc.600
- UNDP, 2010. Mapping Climate Change Vulnerability and Impact Scenarios. A Guidebook for Sub-National Planners. New York, United Nations Development Programme.
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