Disaster Preparedness and Climate Change in Cuba

Emily J. Kirk is research fellow in the Department of International Development Studies and adjunct professor at Dalhousie University. Isabel Story is senior lecturer in visual communications at Nottingham Trent University.Anna Clayfield is a senior lecturer in Spanish and Latin American studies at the University of Chester, UK.

• Table of ContentsList of Acronyms AcknowledgmentsIntroduction Chapter 1: Disaster Preparedness and Management: What Makes the Cuban Approach Different?Emily J. KirkChapter 2: Disaster Management in Cuba: Formal, Semi-Formal, and Informal Procedures Jessica HirtleChapter 3: First and Last Bulwark against Natural Disasters: Cuba’s Revolutionary Armed ForcesHal P. KlepakChapter 4: Cuba-Russia Cooperation: The History of Fraternal Disaster Management CollaborationIsabel Story Chapter 5: Bastión: the Shaping of a Pueblo Combatiente and Natural Disaster ManagementAnna ClayfieldChapter 6: Meteoro: The Impact of Education on Disaster Preparedness and Risk ReductionEmily J. KirkChapter 7: Post-graduate Education Concerning Natural Disasters and Climate Change in the Cuban Health SectorGuillermo Mesa Ridel Chapter 8: People Power: Cuba’s Path to Effective Disaster ManagementLauren CollinsChapter 9: Cuba’s Tarea Vida: Sustainable Development and Combating Climate ChangeHelen

Cuba’s uncanny ability to weather natural disasters with minimal loss of life is a continual source of wonderment to outside observers. An island in hurricane alley, Cuba recognized risks of climate change early and has developed the most detailed, long-term plan to confront it of any nation in the world. This collection by an international team of scholars is a deep dive into Cuba’s relationship with its environment—disaster preparedness, the tension between development and conservation, and adaptation to climate change. Cuba’s exceptional efforts to live in harmony with its environment is a subject that has not received the attention it deserves—a knowledge gap for which this book is an important remedy.