title: Flood protection based on historical records is flawed – we need a risk model fit for climate change

authors: Fu, Xinyu

abstract: Flood-related disasters are on the rise, exacerbated by the worsening climate crisis, despite substantial investments in protective measures. Recent extreme weather events have demonstrated that even areas considered relatively safe can be susceptible to flooding. This calls into question the adequacy of our existing flood management strategies.

Historically, flood management has focused heavily on constructing higher levees and expanding drainage systems. While these measures contain water effectively most of the time, they can lead to catastrophic floods when they exceed their original design capacity. Moreover, they operate under the flawed assumption that future flooding can be reliably predicted based on historical flood data. This false sense of security encourages development in flood-prone regions.

The increasing unpredictability of rainfall patterns and intensities due to climate change has rendered these historical design assumptions inadequate. As a result, a significant "residual risk" persists, even after infrastructure improvements and plans for future enhancements.

To illustrate this, consider wearing a seatbelt while driving. The seatbelt reduces harm in the event of an accident but doesn't guarantee complete protection from injury. Now imagine road conditions deteriorating, weather becoming more unpredictable, and traffic volumes increasing. Some might opt not to drive due to the heightened risk, but for those already on the road, it's too late. This parallels how many countries continue to manage floods—often by constructing higher levees or larger drainage systems. However, this incremental development often lacks the strategic investment and infrastructure capacity required to safely manage excess water volumes during failures.

While housing development is essential, current flood risk assessments often neglect both current and future flood risk. Planning controls and additional infrastructure costs are frequently criticized as "red tape," further increasing residual risk. Recent weather-related disasters, such as Cyclone Gabrielle in New Zealand and wildfires in the northern hemisphere, have underscored the need to understand and manage residual risk. However, the recognition and incorporation of residual risk management in planning policies vary from one country to another, with many lacking clear national directives.

In New Zealand, for instance, there is limited national-level guidance on flood risk management. Still, flood risk professionals are increasingly aware of the rising residual flood risk, primarily due to climate change and continued development in flood-prone regions designated as "protected." There is consensus that current flood risk management practices need improvement.

Overcoming these challenges requires acknowledging and managing the growing residual risk linked to climate change. A more informed approach involves implementing robust guidelines against ill-advised development in flood-prone areas unless accompanied by infrastructure investments that reduce residual risk. Resilience-building measures, such as creating "sponge cities" and increasing space for water in flood risk management, are gaining traction. To break the cycle of disaster recovery and financial losses, planning must prioritize residual risk considerations in response to more frequent flooding and inevitable infrastructure failures.

text: Flood protection based on historical records is flawed – we need a risk model fit for climate change Flood-related disasters are on the rise, exacerbated by the worsening climate crisis, despite substantial investments in protective measures. Recent extreme weather events have demonstrated that even areas considered relatively safe can be susceptible to flooding. This calls into question the adequacy of our existing flood management strategies.

Historically, flood management has focused heavily on constructing higher levees and expanding drainage systems. While these measures contain water effectively most of the time, they can lead to catastrophic floods when they exceed their original design capacity. Moreover, they operate under the flawed assumption that future flooding can be reliably predicted based on historical flood data. This false sense of security encourages development in flood-prone regions.

The increasing unpredictability of rainfall patterns and intensities due to climate change has rendered these historical design assumptions inadequate. As a result, a significant "residual risk" persists, even after infrastructure improvements and plans for future enhancements.

To illustrate this, consider wearing a seatbelt while driving. The seatbelt reduces harm in the event of an accident but doesn't guarantee complete protection from injury. Now imagine road conditions deteriorating, weather becoming more unpredictable, and traffic volumes increasing. Some might opt not to drive due to the heightened risk, but for those already on the road, it's too late. This parallels how many countries continue to manage floods—often by constructing higher levees or larger drainage systems. However, this incremental development often lacks the strategic investment and infrastructure capacity required to safely manage excess water volumes during failures.

While housing development is essential, current flood risk assessments often neglect both current and future flood risk. Planning controls and additional infrastructure costs are frequently criticized as "red tape," further increasing residual risk. Recent weather-related disasters, such as Cyclone Gabrielle in New Zealand and wildfires in the northern hemisphere, have underscored the need to understand and manage residual risk. However, the recognition and incorporation of residual risk management in planning policies vary from one country to another, with many lacking clear national directives.

In New Zealand, for instance, there is limited national-level guidance on flood risk management. Still, flood risk professionals are increasingly aware of the rising residual flood risk, primarily due to climate change and continued development in flood-prone regions designated as "protected." There is consensus that current flood risk management practices need improvement.

Overcoming these challenges requires acknowledging and managing the growing residual risk linked to climate change. A more informed approach involves implementing robust guidelines against ill-advised development in flood-prone areas unless accompanied by infrastructure investments that reduce residual risk. Resilience-building measures, such as creating "sponge cities" and increasing space for water in flood risk management, are gaining traction. To break the cycle of disaster recovery and financial losses, planning must prioritize residual risk considerations in response to more frequent flooding and inevitable infrastructure failures.

year: 2023-08-31

title: Exploring the antecedents of intentions to leave the job: The case of luxury hotel staff

authors: Mohsin, Asad

subjects: staff turnover

abstract: The aim of this study is to assess the antecedents of employee’ intentions to resign from their jobs in luxury hotels in India. Two aspects are considered in this context: firstly, the employees’ enthusiasm for the profession and organisation, the nature of the work and its impact on social and family life. Secondly, their level of satisfaction with the job in terms of organisational loyalty, relationship with supervisors, job security, earnings and additional benefits. A theoretical model (see Fig. 1) and seven hypotheses are tested to indicate whether the employees’ level of agreement with statements about the job and their level of satisfaction with the job will impact their intentions to quit. The study further examines if any current employees intend to leave their job. The term luxury hotel is used to represent 5 star and 4 star hotels of India.
Findings from the analyses of 884 responses suggest that, when considering intentions to resign from the job, a negative relationship is found between professional and organisational enthusiasm and perceptions about the work being stimulating. No support was found for a positive relationship between the extent work impacted social and family life and the intention to quit. However, results supported the notion that the employee's organisational loyalty has a negative effect on his/her intention to resign from the job. Our findings contradict several other studies in that they suggest the employee's intention to resign from the job increases as job security and earnings improve. The study is distinctive as it explores intentions luxury hotel employees in India to leave their jobs; three is little evidence in the wider literature of similar attempts in the context of the Indian hotel industry. The outcomes have implications for both theory and practice as this is the first such major study in the context of the hotel industry in India where there is a population of over a billion people and an expanding hotel industry.

text: Exploring the antecedents of intentions to leave the job: The case of luxury hotel staff The aim of this study is to assess the antecedents of employee’ intentions to resign from their jobs in luxury hotels in India. Two aspects are considered in this context: firstly, the employees’ enthusiasm for the profession and organisation, the nature of the work and its impact on social and family life. Secondly, their level of satisfaction with the job in terms of organisational loyalty, relationship with supervisors, job security, earnings and additional benefits. A theoretical model (see Fig. 1) and seven hypotheses are tested to indicate whether the employees’ level of agreement with statements about the job and their level of satisfaction with the job will impact their intentions to quit. The study further examines if any current employees intend to leave their job. The term luxury hotel is used to represent 5 star and 4 star hotels of India.
Findings from the analyses of 884 responses suggest that, when considering intentions to resign from the job, a negative relationship is found between professional and organisational enthusiasm and perceptions about the work being stimulating. No support was found for a positive relationship between the extent work impacted social and family life and the intention to quit. However, results supported the notion that the employee's organisational loyalty has a negative effect on his/her intention to resign from the job. Our findings contradict several other studies in that they suggest the employee's intention to resign from the job increases as job security and earnings improve. The study is distinctive as it explores intentions luxury hotel employees in India to leave their jobs; three is little evidence in the wider literature of similar attempts in the context of the Indian hotel industry. The outcomes have implications for both theory and practice as this is the first such major study in the context of the hotel industry in India where there is a population of over a billion people and an expanding hotel industry.

year: 2013

title: Inspiring national indigenous legal education for Aotearoa New Zealand's Bachelor of Laws Degree: Phase One

authors: Ruru, Jacinta

subjects: tikanga Maori, LLB law degree, legal education in New Zealand, bilculturalism, bilinguaiism, bijuralism

abstract: This Issues Paper is the result of the first stage of a multi-year, three-phase national project. In it we review the literature and consider some of the preliminary opportunities relevant for the teaching
of Māori law as a foundation source of the Aotearoa New Zealand Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree for the benefit of the legal profession and Aotearoa New Zealand society. We present ten key messages
as integral to this Issues Paper.

text: Inspiring national indigenous legal education for Aotearoa New Zealand's Bachelor of Laws Degree: Phase One This Issues Paper is the result of the first stage of a multi-year, three-phase national project. In it we review the literature and consider some of the preliminary opportunities relevant for the teaching
of Māori law as a foundation source of the Aotearoa New Zealand Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree for the benefit of the legal profession and Aotearoa New Zealand society. We present ten key messages
as integral to this Issues Paper.

year: 2020-09-01