As climate-related disasters become more frequent and intense, it is important to rethink how natural resources and energy shape our societies and economies.
The main challenge lies in understanding global climate risks and turning that knowledge into effective local action that strengthens resilience and supports sustainability.
Our team participated in the VII International Congress on Risks, held from 26 to 29 May 2026 at the Faculty of Arts and Humanities of the University of Coimbra (Portugal). The congress was dedicated to the theme Natural Resources, Energy, and Society: Global Risks and Pathways to Sustainability.
Our reflection focuses on how climate and natural disasters are shaped not only by physical factors such as terrain, climate, and land use, but also by social and economic conditions, such as the resilience of communities and the preparedness of emergency response systems. The social vulnerability analysis helps explain why some communities are more affected than others and how disaster risks become more or less severe. Understanding this is essential to improve prevention, reduce risk, and strengthen the resilience of people and vulnerable groups.
Within this international conference, we bring together insights from geography and anthropology to explore social vulnerability at intra-urban scale, by focusing on how population characteristics affect resilience and how the access to infrastructure and resources can make the difference in how communities prepare for and respond to future disasters or emergencies.
