Disaster awareness, consciousness and culture for sustainable communities: A study of Çanakkale city

Abstract

Today’s urban fabric is more difficult to manage due to the complexity of uncontrolled and growing systems. Disasters, which tend to increase in frequency and severity, are the main beneficiaries of this difficult situation in urban areas. The damages and losses caused by disasters on urban areas threaten the future of communities more than ever before. It can be argued that an important obstacle to creating sustainable communities and livable urban areas that can cope with the devastating effects of disasters is local communities that do not have disaster awareness. In this study, the hazards and risks of disasters are discussed in general terms, the disaster vulnerability of Çanakkale province is briefly discussed, and the awareness and consciousness levels of urban dwellers that will build their capacity to cope with disasters are tried to be understood. The study claims that people living in the city of Çanakkale are not able to participate in disaster risk reduction and preparedness activities within the framework of a collective and participatory disaster management model to create a coping mechanism for disasters. A survey was conducted to help reveal this and to assess the level of disaster awareness of local communities. The answers given by the participants to the questions confirm the claim of the study. Further interdisciplinary and interdisciplinary studies are needed to assess disaster awareness in local communities and to better understand the deficiencies in this regard in Çanakkale.