Natural disasters, in particular climate related ones, are increasing in frequency. Along with this, their socio economic impacts have doubled or even tripled. These trends present important challenges to policy makers at national and international levels, especially within the context of climate change and global warming. This book focuses on the economic impact of these catastrophic events. The first part critically reviews economic tools currently available to measure and analyze impact on national economies as well as household welfare. It also examines ex-ante and ex-post mechanisms to de ... More

Natural disasters, in particular climate related ones, are increasing in frequency. Along with this, their socio economic impacts have doubled or even tripled. These trends present important challenges to policy makers at national and international levels, especially within the context of climate change and global warming. This book focuses on the economic impact of these catastrophic events. The first part critically reviews economic tools currently available to measure and analyze impact on national economies as well as household welfare. It also examines ex-ante and ex-post mechanisms to deal with the effects of disasters and the relationship between extreme natural events and climate change. The authors discuss methods related to the valuation of disaster losses and their impact on non-marketed goods like the environment as well as balancing risks, costs and benefits of disaster management. Case studies from different economic settings are then presented. Examples from industrialized countries, including Netherlands and Japan, consider cost benefit analysis, micro-level consumption and insurance patterns. Cases from developing countries such as Nicaragua and Bangladesh cover topics ranging from informal mechanisms of inter-household transfers and their relations to public aid schemes, to flood loss management for adaptation options. The book concludes with concrete research and policy priorities that are relevant at national and international levels. It opens up new avenues for thinking and debate, emphasizing the need for better evidence of the socio economic effects of disasters and better policies to reduce impact.