Disaster by Choice: How our actions turn natural hazards into catastrophes

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Ilan Kelman is Professor of Disasters and Health at University College London, England and a Professor II at the University of Agder, Kristiansand, Norway. Disasters arise when we fail to build suitable housing capable of withstanding 400 kph winds, fail to shun places subject to lava flows or tsunamis, or do not create a culture of warning and safe shelter for all – including for those with disabilities. A thin, invisible layer of air surrounds the Earth, sustaining all known life on the planet and creating the unique climates and weather patterns that make each part of the world different.

In this provocative book, Ilan Kelman argues that the true disaster is not caused by natural phenomena, but by human choices which leave people unprepared and at terrible risk. In a story that resonates with the moorland fires in England, three people in July 2016 chose to camp in the woodlands around Nederland, Colorado, and did not properly extinguish their barbeque.An] engaging book filled with rich examples and details of specific historical events Kelmans succinct and generally lucid account of the state of knowledge within the field, will likely be useful to a wide range of readers. assume is ours, and to protect ourselves from what we perceive to be wrath from outside our communities.

The Pgak’yau people in northern Thailand must survive solastalgia (mental distress from forced environmental change). The Geological Society of London is the UK's national society for geoscience, providing support to over 12,000 members in the UK and overseas.Indigenous people in northern Sweden experience the mental health impact of losing their land, heritage, and livelihood. In ‘Firmament’, atmospheric scientist and science communicator Simon Clark offers a rare and accessible tour of the ins and outs of the atmosphere and how we know what we know about it. The thing that makes a natural hazard a disaster is when it impacts on human populations, taking assets or (worse yet) lives. This attitude distracts us from the real causes of disasters: humanity’s decisions, as societies and as individuals.

Dr Christian Busch has spent a decade exploring how unexpected encounters can enhance our worldview, expand our social circles and create new opportunities. Games can help change our psychology about disasters, creating confidence that we can and should prevent them.Life is full of the unexpected: chance encounters, changing plans, delayed journeys and other mishaps.