The impact of connectivity on information channel use in Tonga during Cyclone Gita: challenges and opportunities for disaster risk reduction in island peripheries

Foley, Aideen (2020) The impact of connectivity on information channel use in Tonga during Cyclone Gita: challenges and opportunities for disaster risk reduction in island peripheries. In: Leal Filho, W. (ed.) Managing Climate Change Adaptation in the Pacific Region. Climate Change Management. Springer, pp. 255-271. ISBN 9783030405540.

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Official URL: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-03...

Abstract

In island contexts, geographic characteristics such as remoteness and boundedness can substantially impact the capacity for connection, and how people experience the state of being connected, i.e. connectivity. Varying degrees of connectivity may, in turn, affect how island communities prepare for and respond to the impacts of climate change, including extreme weather risks. Tropical cyclone warnings are a pertinent example; vital information must reach citizens in isolated peripheral locations, where both telecommunications infrastructure and cultural contexts may differ from the island core, leading to differences in how people access information. Drawing primarily on the case of Tonga, which was affected by Cyclone Gita in 2018, this paper explores these core-periphery patterns relating to how information channels are engaged with when facing extreme weather risks. Census data and cyclone impact data are used to assess spatial patterns in the extent of material and non-material connectivities based on communications, economic and linguistic variables, and to explore the impact of connectivity on the processes of risk reduction and natural hazard response, through dissemination of hazard information. Low-value clusters, i.e. coldspots, in receipt of warnings via ‘modern’ information channels (internet and SMS) are identified on ‘Eua, while hotspots are identified in western Tongatapu. These hotspots and coldspots do not appear to be linked to the accessibility of internet and mobile phones, but do overlap with hotspots and coldspots in linguistic and economic variables, illustrating the potential for non-material differences in socio-cultural context to influence how information channels are engaged with. The implications of these results, including challenges and opportunities for disaster risk dissemination in island peripheries, are also discussed.

Metadata

Item Type:	Book Section
School:	Birkbeck Faculties and Schools > Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences > School of Social Sciences
Depositing User:	Aideen Foley
Date Deposited:	25 Jul 2022 14:37
Last Modified:	02 Aug 2023 18:16
URI:	https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/48200

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