The Emerald Group has now published a special issue in the series Studies in Law, Politics, and Society.  The issue, called ‘Cassandra’s Curse The Law and Foreseeable Future Disasters’:

… examines the relationship between law and disasters… The volume addresses the ‘myths’ of contemporary disaster law and policy, such as that of society’s “invincibility”. The papers examine specific cases such as the Fukushima Nuclear Disaster, bushfire management in Australia and wildfire prevention in the Mediterranean, as well as providing broader analysis and comment on global disaster law and policy.

I’m pleased to report that I wrote the contribution ‘Bushfires And Australian Emergency Management Law And Policy: Adapting To Climate Change And The New Fire And Emergency Management Environment’.  This contribution draws on research conducted for the former Bushfire CRC.  The abstract reads:

Modern emergency management policy is built around the concepts of shared responsibility and the development of resilient communities. Drawing on the Australian context, this chapter argues that giving effect to these policy directions will require negotiation between stakeholders and an inevitable trade in values, interests and resources. The chapter identifies an apparent contradiction at the heart of modern disaster management: that improvements in establishing professional emergency and risk management services may have reduced the capacity of individuals and local communities to take responsibility for disaster preparation and response.

If anyone’s interested in obtaining a copy of this volume, they can do so from the Emerald online bookstore.