Books & ideas

Writing the History of “Natural” Disasters

Lukas Schemper — 2019-12-30T08:00:00Z

Though they are called “natural”, disasters such as earthquakes have a social, political and economic dimension; it is therefore possible to write their history. The 111^th anniversary of the Messina earthquake is an opportunity to reflect on the multi-dimensionality of the event and to outline avenues for historical research on natural disasters.

All Vulnerable

Cécile Lavergne — 2019-10-14T07:00:00Z

Can we think of social transformation from the perspective of vulnerability? Yes, explains Marie Garrau, but for this we need to define the meaning of this notion differently, and to describe all the forms of inequality that weaken us and subject us to multiple forms of violence in our societies.

The Right to Live in the City

Marie Loison-Leruste — 2016-11-28T08:00:00Z

Sociologist Marie Loison-Leruste shows how address registration is for homeless persons the key to gaining access to rights. She suggests that, beyond reflecting on the question of non-take-up, the state must urgently back the professionals who support the homeless.

The Ethnography of Disasters

David Bornstein & Florent Guénard — 2012-06-18T05:36:44Z

For Sandrine Revet, we need to move beyond statistics to see the ethnographic side of disasters. It is a necessary step if we are to understand their effects not only on public policies, but also on the behaviors and beliefs of the populations they affect. In the following interview, she examines the current revival in Disaster Studies and explains how they have come to be structured as a field.