The CLIMAAX team from the Institute of Environmental Studies (IVM) at VU Amsterdam and Deltares have recently published a study in the International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction entitled “Comparing spatially explicit approaches to assess social vulnerability dynamics to flooding”. The study compares three social vulnerability assessment methods that integrate population characteristics such as education levels, income, age, and housing situation.

Madagascar is one of the poorest countries in the world, and therefore highly vulnerable to tropical cyclone-induced coastal and inland flooding. Using Madagascar as a case study, the team assesses its social vulnerability to flooding resulting from tropical storms, in a spatially explicit manner, accounting for dynamics in vulnerability over time. Researchers conclude that the analyzed approaches have different strengths and weaknesses and raises the need to focus future research on model validation.

This case study application can provide valuable insights into the social vulnerability assessment methods to be used in the CLIMAAX toolbox.