Seismic risk communication: An opportunity for prevention

Abstract

Risk communication is a major opportunity to turn scientific knowledge into preventative actions. In order to understand to what extent and how such opportunity is caught by the academia and supported by funding programs in Europe, we scanned recent international projects that had risk communication as a major target. We focussed on seismic hazard and retrieved a data sample of nine research projects, funded by major European Programs over the time span 2010-2017. We analysed the following three parameters: the public rated crucial to foster prevention; the approach used to reach the public, and the interaction with recipients. According to our results, the academia rates schools be the most relevant public to implant preventative action that foster a more resilient society. Face-to-face is chosen as the most efficient approach to trigger preventative actions. The acknowledgment of recipients’ needs contributes to better tailor communication campaigns. Our study highlights two major constraints to the implementation of risk communication campaigns: the assessment of campaigns’ efficacy and the still low relevance that communication has within funding agencies. Often communication is limited to a publicity task and, when it is set as a major goal, it can count only on little resources.