The assessment of vulnerability is an essential component of natural risk analysis. Commonly, these assessments pertain purely to the stability of buildings or to chances that people will be affected. These investigations relate in particular to natural and engineering science approaches, but other types of vulnerability are also inherent, yet are often not covered but need also to be assessed. Similarly, resilience is a comparatively new and reapidly developing concept in risk assessments and needs to be explored. These relate among other things to coping capacities and strategies of affected people and communities; to intangible and indirect economic losses; and to communication and education networks. In addition to partially addressed aspects of vulnerability there is neither a uniform and well-excepted technique or method or standard available to assess vulnerability within its multifaceted nature. Different approaches and disciplines often remain in their corner and interdisciplinary approaches are rare.

This session aims to summarize assessments of different types of vulnerabilities (e.g. social, personal, structural, economic, political, environmental) and resilience, and to present applications for different natural phenomena. The main focus herein is to present different strategies based on developments from different disciplines and to discuss these according to similarities, but also differences. The role of vulnerability assessment within risk analysis is of particular importance. Researchers as well as practitioners are encouraged to present case studies and applications, conceptual ideas and new methods on the analysis of vulnerability to natural hazards. In order to allow a fruitful discussion and exchange between the different disciplines we encourage a particular focus on the demonstration of the employed methodology and the databases available for respective research or application.