Social Vulnerability Mapping Considering Hurricane Hazards in a Changing Climate

Traditional hazard vulnerability indices often quantify shock (hazard occurrence) and exposure (physical composition of the building stock), but fail to include resilience (recoverability from the hazard) in the assessment. This paper proposes the coastal community social vulnerability index (CCSVI) to address these limitations. Accounting for resilience within a vulnerability index is becoming crucial as coastal communities experience an influx in population and are exposed to the potential impacts climate change may have on hurricane patterns. This paper presents the methodology for developing the CCSVI, while accounting for the dynamic impact of climate change. This paper quantifies the exposure and resilience of a community and presents intermediate results for the development of the CCSVI. Ongoing work will address the quantification of shock. The CCSVI has the potential to aid in identifying communities that are in need of structural retrofit as well as ensuring that governmental resources for hazard preparedness are being allocated effectively.