The attributes of resilience: A tool in the evaluation and design of earthquake-prone cities

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to propose the concept of resilience as a way of aligning these disciplines. Theories of recovery planning and urban design theories have a common interest in providing for the health and safety of urban communities. However, the requirements of safe refuge and recovery after a disturbance, such as an earthquake, are sometimes at odds with theories of urbanism.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper analyses the data from two case studies: the earthquake and fire of 1906 in San Francisco and the Chile earthquake of 2010. It uses a set of resilience attributes already embedded in the discourse of urban theory to evaluate each city’s built environment and the way people have adapted to that built environment to recover following an earthquake.

Findings

The findings suggests that resilience attributes, when considered interdependently, can potentially assist in the design of resilient cities which have an enhanced capacity to recover following an earthquake.

Originality/value

They also suggest that the key to the successful integration of recovery planning and urban design lies in a shift of thinking that sees resilience as a framework for the design of cities that not only contributes significantly to the quality of everyday urban life but also can be adapted as essential life support and an agent of recovery in the event of an earthquake.

Citation

Allan, P. and Bryant, M. (2014), "The attributes of resilience: A tool in the evaluation and design of earthquake-prone cities", International Journal of Disaster Resilience in the Built Environment, Vol. 5 No. 2, pp. 109-129. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJDRBE-05-2012-0013