Bureaucratic and Political Leadership for Disaster Resilience: Case Studies and Analysis

Six case studies focus on political and bureaucratic leadership towards building disaster resilience through state initiatives. The analysis of these initiatives provides an understanding of the structured actions of actors within the system and the latter's interface with the exogenous context of random forces and disasters. Unlike the adaptive and transformational governance perspective which emphasises the involvement of the community and their gradual induction into the process, the traditional managerial perspective affixes accountability on individual actors for managing a transition, remaining ignorant of the power struggles behind any real change. We argue that disaster resilience leadership cannot be limited to formal positions of power but should come from within the government, at the boundary, outside government organisations, and the grassroots, to find solutions to complex socioecological problems. It is not the individuals but the institutions within which they operate that need a change in their approach to address more complex issues like disaster resilience, climate change, and sustainable development.