All hazards are multihazards, few of them are natural

Natural hazards cause widespread damage and mortality. While fatalities from natural hazard-related disasters have decreased substantially over the past century, effective risk reduction still faces many challenges. In today’s world, many hazards reflect complex interactions between one or more natural processes and human activities, calling the relevance of the term “natural hazards" into question. Here, I propose a redefinition to remove the divide between natural and human processes and emphasise the importance of a multihazard perspective for effective disaster risk management.

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Publication Details

Journal
npj natural hazards.
Published
2025-02-21
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s44304-025-00071-w
Citations
11
Primary Topic
Tropical and Extratropical Cyclones Research
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
14.31

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article

All hazards are multihazards, few of them are natural

Maximillian Van Wyk de Vries
11 citations
npj natural hazards.
Tropical and Extratropical Cyclones Research
14.31
article

All hazards are multihazards, few of them are natural

Maximillian Van Wyk de Vries
article en
11 citations

Abstract

Natural hazards cause widespread damage and mortality. While fatalities from natural hazard-related disasters have decreased substantially over the past century, effective risk reduction still faces many challenges. In today’s world, many hazards reflect complex interactions between one or more natural processes and human activities, calling the relevance of the term “natural hazards" into question. Here, I propose a redefinition to remove the divide between natural and human processes and emphasise the importance of a multihazard perspective for effective disaster risk management.

npj natural hazards.Vol. 2(1)
University of Cambridge (GB)
Isaac Newton Trust
Climate action
Openalex Percentile: Top 1%
Tropical and Extratropical Cyclones Research
14.31
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