We are glad that this special issue takes up the activities of The Resilience Research Council of Japan (RRCJ). Twelve years have passed since the founding of the RRCJ. In addition to regular meetings at which experts from various fields participate in disseminating information, one of the RRCJ’s main activities is holding study groups to delve deeply into specific aspects of disaster preparedness.

To respond to the intensification and frequent occurrence of disasters in recent years, it is urgent to review existing measures against disasters and business continuity plans (BCPs). Furthermore, comprehensive and flexible strategies should be developed to enhance disaster resilience. Each study in this special issue provides new perspectives and clues on this problem.

First, the existing BCPs lack concrete measures from the perspectives of individual corporate departments and employees. To tackle this problem, new procedures are proposed to formulate BCPs based on the questions “What if?” and “What when?” This is expected to increase the effectiveness of BCPs.

Second and third, comprehensive methods for evaluating resilience are lacking. As a result of an examination of the 13 current indexes of “Resilient Organizations” and the “Organization Resilience Index” of the British Standards Institution, it is revealed that some important elements are absent from the evaluation of corporate resilience. By complementing the corporate resilience model with these elements, the model can be improved.

Furthermore, local governments must implement effective disaster countermeasures for those with limited resources in their disaster management plans.

The fourth study evaluates disaster management measures from the point of view of both local governments and residents, and proposes innovative solutions to collaborate and organize, adapt to the environment, and manage for the next generation. This reveals the problems faced by local governments and residents’ lack of knowledge, and provides a roadmap for future improvements.

Overall, these studies indicate that creating a resilience strategy involving all stakeholders is an urgent matter, provide valuable insight into the limits of current strategies, and offer guidelines for strengthening the important aspects of resilience so that corporations and local governments can respond to disasters more effectively. We expect that the effectiveness of disaster measures will be enhanced through incorporating these proposals and methods into practical policies and actual works. We sincerely thank all the contributors for their contributions to this special issue and the reviewers for their valuable comments.

Since 2011, disasters have evolved into events that cannot be imagined from past experiences, and typical business continuity plans (BCPs) in Japan are unable to effectively deal with them. Through analysis of a questionnaire survey on BCPs in Japan, we found in this study that, typically private company-owned BCPs have focused on disaster response measures or plans for business itself, and are not directly relevant to the business units of individual employees and, as a result, have low feasibility. To focus on the continuity plans for business operations, which should be the original objective of a BCP, we propose a procedure to develop BCPs by moving from the perspective of “what if” (KAMO) to that of “what when” (TARA).

“Resilience” is the ability to recover after being affected by a disaster or accident. Companies are expected to be resilient against accidents and disasters; however, no method comprehensively evaluates corporate resilience. As a preparation for developing such an evaluation method, this study examines the 13 Resilience Indicators developed by “Resilient Organisations” as one of the models for organizational resilience to assess whether it comprehensively covers the factors that contribute to corporate resilience. This study compares the indicators with past accidents and disaster cases. Consequently, the study determined that the 13 Resilience Indicators do not explicitly cover the following four factors: (1) risk diversification related to external resources such as suppliers, (2) prompt decision-making and action, (3) countermeasures to protect corporate reputation, and (4) a never-give-up attitude. It cannot be said that this is a definitive conclusion, as subjectivity intervenes in various ways in the examination process. However, this study identified factors that should be considered while developing a model that comprehensively includes factors that contribute to corporate resilience.

“Resilience” is the ability to recover from the effects of a disaster or accident. Companies are expected to be resilient against accidents and disasters; however, at present no method comprehensively evaluates corporate resilience. This study examines some models of organizational resilience already published as a preparation for developing such an evaluation method. This study examines the “Organizational Resilience Index” developed by the British Standards Institution to assess whether it comprehensively covers the factors that contribute to corporate resilience. This study compares these with cases of past disasters and accidents. The results suggest that the following six factors are not explicitly covered by the Organizational Resilience Index: (1) attitude toward fulfilling responsibilities to customers, (2) external cooperation/assistance, (3) prompt decision-making and action, (4) practitioners empowered with discretion, (5) loyalty of employees to the company, and (6) a never-give-up attitude. Although this cannot be considered a definitive conclusion because of the various forms of subjectivity involved in the examination process, this study identifies factors that should be considered while developing a model that comprehensively includes factors that contribute to corporate resilience.

With the intensification and rising frequency of disasters in recent years, implementing disaster preparedness measures has become increasingly important. However, local governments must be prepared for disasters, with their limited resources of personnel and budget, to make the redressal plans relevant for facing problems such as population decline. This study aims to enhance resilience in the field of disaster management by facilitating identification of problems in the disaster management plan of local governments, and promotion of mutual understanding among those involved. For this purpose, a tool has been developed to evaluate local disaster management measures from the viewpoints of both local governments and residents, and to promote smooth communication and coordination among the stakeholders. A questionnaire survey was conducted using an index for self-assessment by local government officials, which was formulated based on the literature of the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction. Based on the survey results, the elements of resilience were classified into three groups depicting the abilities to collaborate and organize, adapt to the environment, and manage for the next generation. The evaluation was conducted in four local governments. In two regions, the residents’ awareness and preparedness for a disaster were surveyed. The survey results revealed that the questionnaire should be improved; nevertheless, the authors were able to identify the problems of local governments and the fields that the residents do not know sufficiently about. The results indicate the possibility to apply this method in other regions in the future.

At the end of September 2021, Tropical Storm Dianmu caused catastrophic floods in Thailand, placing thousands of lives, properties, infrastructure, and other things, in danger. These circumstances provide an opportunity to learn how to respond to tropical storm situations in the future. Our investigation reveals that Thailand has access to a wealth of data, including geospatial, radar, satellite, and sensor information. Thus, these data could be utilized for an urgent alert system and communication channel to mitigate and reduce the potential for large-scale destruction by tropical storms and floods in the future.

Goma, the capital of the North Kivu Province in the Democratic Republic of Congo, is a transborder and conflict-affected city that is also chronically vulnerable to volcanic eruptions. Using the extended version of the Pressure and Release model, this study examines Goma’s progressive vulnerability over the course of three volcanic disasters—the eruptions of Mount Nyiragongo in 1977, 2002, and 2021. We find that the rich natural resources and weak governance are the root causes of Goma’s chronic vulnerability to volcanic eruptions. In the first phase (1977–2002), an influx of ethnic groups seeking land as well as conflicts between them and natives over the land and natural resources can be regarded as dynamic pressure, generating unsafe conditions. In the second phase (2002–2021), the conflict added a global dimension, with the influx of global businesses and humanitarian organizations increasing the population pressure. It caused a gentrification process, in which the urban poor were pushed out to the marginal area of the city, which resulted in significant damage from the 2021 eruption. We find that globalization produces two opposing forces in the increased vulnerability; it accelerated economic prosperity in the region, on the one hand, but also caused a rapid population increase and increased progression, on the other.

This study examines the results of an online survey on the impact of the global food crisis on Germany’s food aid measures. The global food crisis has left Germans food insecure, leading them to seek additional financial support to increase food production, including lower sales tax and aid for vulnerable groups. Perception of the causes of the food crisis differ across socio-economic groups, such as age, education, and income. Older participants were dissatisfied with the measures taken by the government and European Union to secure the functioning of the food security system. This group was also supportive of reduced consumption tax on food and increased charitable assistance for vulnerable groups. In Germany, where the birthrate is steadily declining and the population is aging, social security system reform is underway, with hope for stable and sustainable food assistance supported by older generations.

In the aftermath of the devastating Palu disaster in September 2018, communities, especially children, suffered deep psychological trauma. At the request of faith leaders, local NGO Wahana Visi Indonesia (WVI), in partnership with Krida Wacana Christian University (UKRIDA), conducted a psychosocial support training program for volunteers, including Qur’an recitation teachers and Sunday school teachers in Palu. These trained volunteers then initiated a psychosocial support initiative for children in the area. Years later, WVI and UKRIDA conducted a reflective study of the program, collecting data from 40 volunteers through focus group discussions and surveys. The study identified key themes, including the effectiveness of the training, reflections on program implementation, lessons learned, and recommendations for future programs. The study underscores the importance of multi-stakeholder involvement, particularly that of faith-based organizations, in providing psychosocial support in disaster-affected areas. Given the recurring threat of disasters in the region, the study advocates for transparent collaboration among various social stakeholders. To build community resilience, disaster management strategies need to be widely disseminated, and the need for continuous training to strengthen community preparedness is emphasized. In addition, the development of culturally sensitive training modules tailored to the community’s language, age, and religious background is essential. Such a comprehensive commitment will ensure the community’s ability to deal effectively with future disasters. Detailed findings are discussed further in this paper.

Climate change will increase the frequency of extreme weather events, alter rainfall patterns, and exacerbate flood disasters in Ulaanbaatar City. Here we combine aerial and satellite imagery with cadastral data, to scrutinize the historical trajectory of rainfall patterns and flood disasters in Ulaanbaatar over the past six decades. The study focusses on the causative factors behind historical floods, current flood conditions, the geographical distribution of floods, land ownership in floodprone areas, and the spatial allocation of fences and buildings based on social conditions. Over the last 60 years, Ulaanbaatar received a total of 16,780 mm of precipitation, with a staggering 80.5% of this total occurring during the summer season. Over this period, the city has endured about ten significant flood disasters. The most severe and destructive events occurred in 1966, 1982, 1994, 2003, 2009, and 2023 as river basins and mountain flash floods. These flood events claimed at least 220 lives, affected around 46,000 households, and caused economic losses of ca. 3.3 million U.S. dollars. Our study identifies several flood hazard areas along the Tolgoit, Selbe, Uliastai, and Tuul River valleys, which define a flood buffer zone extending 200 m from their banks, encompassing 59 khoroos of 7 districts in Ulaanbaatar. There are 27,970 fences and 12,887 buildings in the 200 m buffer zone, which is 66.5% of all fence unit area, and 46.3% of the total building, situated within the identified flood risk areas. In response to these findings, we emphasize the urgent need for comprehensive long-term strategy for sustainable flood management based on disaster resilence.