Golding, Cyrus (2019) Humble geopolitics: rethinking natural hazards in South Iceland. University of Oxford, Doctoral Thesis.
Abstract
This thesis is concerned with the ways that communities in South Iceland are negatively affected by their geologically active environment. I argue that contemporary theorisations of hazards in human geography retain a militaristic preoccupation with catastrophe, antagonism and annihilation that actively impedes a fuller attention to the ways that communities live with hazards. In this thesis, I develop a new set of theoretical concepts which together map out the dimensions of what I term a ‘humble geopolitics’ of natural hazards. Humble geopolitics draws attention to the complex spatio-temporal, non- catastrophic dimensions of geo-tectonic hazards and brings into relief the partialities of official programmes of hazard management in Iceland. I show the value of this reformulated geopolitics by working this concept through three empirical case studies that explore the role of a museum, citizen science and local community groups in catalysing experiences of earthly volatility and configuring modes of public response to it. These case studies illuminate the different space-times in which hazards are experienced, the diverse practices through which public participation is expressed and the different logics that underpin everyday modes of hazard governance. In the conclusion, I argue that this work opens up important new avenues for the geographical study of natural hazards, human geography more broadly, and for disaster risk reduction policy.
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