Structural Adjustment and Community Resilience: The Case of Postdisaster Housing Recovery After the Canterbury Earthquakes of 2010 and 2011

Abstract

Background This project is a case study of postdisaster housing recovery in Christchurch, New Zealand, after the Canterbury earthquakes of 2010 and 2011. Aims In this qualitative study, we analyzed the statutory framework governing the process of postdisaster housing recovery and its impact on local democracy. We also explored the role of communities and the third sector in housing and urban renewal. This aim was to contribute to the development of a critical theoretical understanding of community resilience as an inherently political concept. Community resilience is influenced by causal factors or generative mechanisms that affect the relations between people in a particular social context. Method We completed a narrative synthesis of textual data from the thematic analysis of in-depth interviews with key informants, related policies, media, and fieldwork. Results A centralization of government authority over housing recovery resulted in an erosion of democracy and representative government at a local level. This centralization had major impacts on communities and their voice in the process of postdisaster housing recovery. Communities, however, never relented and worked tirelessly among themselves and with other social sectors to make a positive impact on postdisaster housing and urban recovery against difficult odds and stretched resources. This immense social capital and inspiring sense of community must be fostered and given the opportunity to democratically participate in the development of recovery policy as a key element of community resilience.