Building Back Better

In spite of their tragic nature, and notwithstanding the human suffering they create, emergency situations are also opportunities to build better mental health care. The surge of aid, combined with sudden, focused attention on the mental health of the population, creates unparalleled opportunities to transform mental health care for the long term. By publishing this information, the World Health Organization ensures that those faced with emergencies do not miss the opportunity for mental health reform. Emergencies are not only mental health tragedies, but also powerful catalysts for achieving sustainable mental health care in affected communities. We do not know where the next major emergency will be, but we do know that those affected will have the opportunity to build back better. Reading this publication is an excellent way to prepare for and respond to that eventuality. The ten cases that form the core of this report show how it can be done. Early commitment towards a longer-term perspective for mental health reform is key to success. The report summarizes lessons learned and key overlapping practices emerging from these experiences.

International society led by the United Nations has been working to improve and standardize every country's post-disaster recovery policy. In particular, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction adopted at the UN World Conference at Sendai, Japan, in 2015 declared the slogan "Build Back Better (BBB)." In this book, the BBB is considered an essential common criterion for evaluating recovery status, but BBB variations in each individual country's context are pursued. In contrast to a governmental approach to recovery evaluation focusing mainly on physical structures and macro indicators, this volume focuses more on the affected societies, communities, economies, and especially victims' livelihoods. The authors are academics from diverse fields, including governance, law, economics, and engineering, so that the book is truly interdisciplinary. This collection results from an international collaboration by scholars from "disaster-affected universities" in global-scale mega-disasters occurring in the Asian region in recent decades. The universities include Kobe University in Japan; Iwate University in Japan; Syiah Kuala University in Aceh, Indonesia; Sichuan University in China; and the University of the Philippines.

This book asks whether large-scale reconstruction can be participatory and developmental; can rebuilding be truly people-centred, contributing to breaking the cycle of poverty and dependence? Can reconstruction reduce people's vulnerability to disasters and other shocks?

"Building Back Better" (BBB) has been a popular slogan in disaster recovery efforts around the world, including the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, the 2009 Samoan Tsunami, the 2010 Haiti Earthquake and the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. BBB has recently been identified as one of four priorities of action for disaster risk reduction globally in the next 15 years by the United Nations Sendai Framework. However, there has consistently been a mismatch and confusion in the interpretation of the phrase and what BBB encapsulates which has made proper implementation difficult and unsuccessful at times. This book explains the concept of "Building Back Better" as an innovative holistic approach to rebuilding a community following a disaster event in order to develop resilience. It begins by exploring the background, development and definitions of BBB. The theory behind establishing BBB as a holistic concept is explained and the internationally recognised BBB Framework developed by the authors is introduced and described. Each of the components of the Framework are explained in detail with findings from international research and case studies from the US, Haiti, Indonesia, Samoa, Sri Lanka, Vanuatu, Gaza, China, Australia, UK and New Zealand, providing practical recommendations for implementation in recovery projects. There is a focus on the translation of BBB theory into practice to assist implementers to use the BBB Framework and BBB Indicators introduced in this book as an effective tool to plan and implement disaster recovery projects. This publication can be used as a handbook by government, non-governmental and private industry practitioners to prepare for and implement post disaster recovery projects that benefit and strengthen local communities and as a core text on international Disaster and Energy Management courses.

“The ‘Revolution’ – if that can be taken to denote the fundamental changes that are required to shift from an economic system propelled by the profit motive of large corporations to an economic system premised on solidarity – is still as necessary as ever.” In this selection of essays, Dr Jeyakumar gives fresh insights into several of the major issues affecting Malaysia, including the failure of the reform initiative, persistent rural poverty, the widening ethnic divide, the role of free trade agreements in promoting the race to the bottom among ASEAN countries, the financing of political parties, youth unemployment and the shortage of federal funds to finance anti-poverty measures, while suggesting out-of-the-box solutions for these issues. A must-read for Malaysians keen on building back better.

"Critically examines the role of humanitarian aid and disaster reconstruction"--

The central theme of this book is national land and infrastructure design in the age of the declining population and the recovery from the Great East Japan Earthquake in the affected regions in Japan. Based on the theory of spatial economics and evidence from Japanese history, the authors show that the growing economy with a population increase develops into a multi-cored and complex structure. In the population decline phase, however, such construction will be destabilized because of agglomeration economies in the central core. Then, a catastrophic shock that strikes may provoke the decline of the lower-rank-size provincial cities and their eventual disappearance if they compete only in lower prices of staple products. Not only is the practice bad for the residents; it also leads to lower national welfare resulting from the loss of diversity and overcrowded big cities. The authors argue that small local towns can recover and will be sustained if they will endeavor in innovative production by making good use of local natural resources and social capital. Under the ongoing declining population in Japan, an undesirable concentration in Tokyo will proceed further with increasing social cost and risk. The recent novel coronavirus pandemic has highlighted that concern.

The Latin American Economic Outlook (LEO) 2020 focuses on the role of digital transformation in helping to navigate through challenging times. The Covid-19 pandemic is having a profound impact on socio-economic conditions, accentuating the already complex scenario faced by a region with significant structural weaknesses. This unprecedented crisis comes at a time of high aspirations and reinforces the need to transform the very foundations of the development model in the region.