The analysis of societal impacts of natural hazards has an increasing interest day by day and many national and international projects have created specific working groups to cope with them. Accurate data are needed on economic, human and social impacts of extreme weather events to assess the cost and the efficiency of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) policies. The different expertise of scientists involved makes such a topic a very example of multidisciplinary approach. Observing and assessing the societal impact constitute major tools for improving DRR, including climate change adaptation and community’s resilience to storm risks in the framework of sustainable development. The objective of this session is to provide a multidisciplinary forum for presentations and discussions of our current state of knowledge about the societal impacts of Mediterranean Storms and their evolution in a context of global change. Many studies are developed to assess the vulnerability of societies facing hydrometeorological hazards, especially through the back analysis and the modelling of damage. The last issue deals with the assessment of risk management and different responses developed from different societies and cultural backgrounds, including the ways the citizens react in front of failures of the authority in charge of their protection. The session also addresses how we communicate and educate population, policy makers and relevant stakeholders about natural hazards and disaster risk reduction through medias and social networks. Furthermore, the session intends to address innovative means and mechanisms developed to achieve effective participation of the citizens in the different phases of the risk prevention and management. This session aims to be a meeting point between experts on these matters from universities, civil protection, mass media and so on.
This session is co-organized with the MISTRALS/HYMEX (http://www.hymex.org/) program.