Aims and Objectives

The aim of this project is to undertake a real-time longitudinal study using an action research model to document and understand the everyday experiences of individuals following the floods of June 2007 in interaction with networks of actors and organisations, strategies of institutional support and investment in the built environment and critical infrastructure.

The specific objectives will be to:

  • Identify and document key dimensions of the longer term experience of flood impact and flood recovery, including health, economic and social aspects.
  • Examine how resilience and vulnerability are manifest in the interaction between everyday strategies of adaptation during the flood recovery process, and modes of institutional support and the management of infrastructure and built environment.
  • Explore to what extent the recovery process entails the development of new forms of resilience and identify the implications for developing local level resilience for flood recovery in the future.
  • Develop an archive that will be accessible for future research. By developing an archive that will provide an ongoing public resource, researchers will be able to bring different perspectives to the analysis of peoples' experiences of the flood recovery process.