The Roles of Children and Youth in Communicating Disaster Risk

Disaster management is dominated by top-down relief efforts that assume children and youth are passive victims with no role in communicating risks or preventing and responding to disasters. This article challenges these assumptions and critically assesses prevailing theoretical models of risk communication using two case studies that highlight the unique needs and potential roles of children and youth as resources or receivers of disaster management information. These studies in El Salvador and New Orleans used various participatory and qualitative techniques with young people, parents and policy makers. The findings suggest that the roles of children and youth as potential informants within informal and formal risk communication networks have been significantly underestimated, but their positive role in disaster risk reduction must also be seen in light of its possible burdens.