From fragile to resilient territories: the reconstruction after earthquakes in Central Italy

Increasing resilience is a necessary part of risk coping and management strategies; it may involve vulnerability reduction, including disaster prevention and mitigation measures at community levels. It can also be regarded as one of the most stressful and frustrating tasks for both community members and urban planners. The latter, along with local administration representatives, are working under great stress as far as emergency management is concerned. It makes it either neglected or insufficient. Communities, on the other hand, hardly ever perceive the risk they are facing by living in disaster-prone areas. In this context, the paper presents a multidisciplinary approach and cross-sectional collaboration that allows for a successful reconstruction process. The importance of risk information, communication and management in order to help communities to utilize their urban spaces in a more playful and proactive way in an emergency are highlighted. The approach is primarily one of a self-experience reflection, and the case studies are introduced in order to expand the discussion on disaster-resilient communities and how to build them.