Rebuilding Communities after Disasters: Lessons from the Tsunami Disaster in Sri Lanka

Disaster management literature is inundated with rhetoric about ‘community participation’ or ‘community‐led recovery’, yet the studies on how to achieve this have been unconvincing, displaying a shallow understanding of what ‘community’ means. Development scholars often argue that better preparation for ‘extreme events’ can prevent them from becoming ‘disasters’, but a string of recent disasters – from Haiti to Japan – reminds us that the world community will continue to be called on to help rebuild shattered communities. This article reflects the findings of a major study of social recovery from the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka that set out to identify and analyse examples of good practice with regard to community‐led recovery. It aims to elaborate what a community development approach to disaster recovery might look like as part of a more ‘deliberative’ and patient approach to long‐term social recovery.