Centre Marc Bloch: Isabelle Desportes

Isabelle Desportes | Chercheuse associée

Environnement, climat, énergie : les sociétés face aux défis écologiques

Centre Marc Bloch, Friedrichstraße 191, D-10117 Berlin

Email: isabelle.desportes ( at ) cmb.hu-berlin.de Tél: +49(0) 30 / 20 93 70700

Institution principale : Freie Universität Berlin | Position : Chercheuse associée | Discipline : Science Politique , Géographie |

Sujet de recherche

Changement climatique; catastrophes; conflit, gouvernance des risques; études humanitaires

Titre de la thèse

Repression Without Resistance: Disaster Responses in Authoritarian Low-Intensity Conflict Settings

Projets

2021-2024: 'TsunamiRisk: Multi-risk assessment and cascade effect analysis in cooperation between Indonesia and Germany - Joint research on tsunamis induced by volcanoes and landslides', funded by the German Ministry of Research BMBF

2016-2020: 'When Disaster meets Conflict', funded by the Dutch Research Council NWO

2013: 'Flooding in Cape Town under Climate Risk', funded by the British and the Canadian International Development Research Centre IDRC

The politics of disaster creation, prevention and response

My research approaches disasters such as deadly floods or wildfires as socio-politically constructed and as symptoms of our currently unsustainable societies. It specifically deals with how various actors materially and discursively draw back on disasters to advance their own agenda - for instance, through the (depoliticised) framing of disaster root causes and solutions. I am particularly intrigued by the puzzle of why disasters currently do not play a more substantial role in bringing forward socio-ecological transformation processes.

Publications

Book and special issue editorships

Desportes, I., Corbet, A., Siddiqi, A. (Eds.) (in press). Depoliticising Humanitarian Action – Paradigms, Dilemmas, Resistance. Oxford: Routlege.

Corbet, A., Desportes, I. (Eds.) (2022). Politique de l’humanitaire, humanitaire politique?Cahiers d’Outre-Mer, 75(286).

Peer-reviewed book chapters and journal articles

Desportes, I. (in press). ‘Theories of power: Disaster paradigms and what they aim to stifle’. In Principles and Concepts of Disaster Risks, Vol.1., edited by I. Kelman. New York: Springer.

Wicaksono, W., Desportes, I., Sopaheluwakan, J. (2024). Disaster Cultures and the Indonesia Tsunami Early Warning System: (Mis)Alignments revealed by the 2018 non-tectonic tsunami in Labuan. Australian Journal of Emergency Management 39(1), 34-40.

Wicaksono, W., Sopaheluwakan, J., Desportes, I. (2023). Optimizing Subnational Warning Mechanisms: Community and Practitioner Perspectives on the 2018 Anak Krakatau-Induced Tsunami in Pandeglang, Indonesia. International Journal of Disaster Management 6(2), 209-226.

Desportes, I. (2022). Craindre le politique: La réponse humanitaire aux catastrophes dites « naturelles» en Birmanie (2015), Éthiopie (2016) et au Zimbabwe (2016-2019).Cahiers d’Outre-Mer, 75(286), 335-371.

Corbet, A., Desportes, I. (2022). Introduction au numéro spécial. Politique de l’humanitaire, humanitaire politique?Cahiers d’Outre-Mer, 75 (286), 313-328.

Desportes, I. and Moyo-Nyoni, N. (2022). Depoliticising disaster response in a politically-saturated context: The case of the 2016-2019 drought responses in Zimbabwe. Disasters, 46(4), 1098-1120.

Desportes, I. and Hilhorst, D. (2020). Disaster governance in conflict-affected authoritarian contexts: The cases of Ethiopia, Myanmar and Zimbabwe. Politics and Governance, 8(4), 343-354.

Desportes, I. (2019). Getting relief to marginalised minorities: The response to cyclone Komen in 2015 in Myanmar. International Journal of Humanitarian Action, 4(7), 1-16.

Desportes, I., Mandefro, H., and Hilhorst, D. (2019). The humanitarian theatre: Drought response during Ethiopia's low-intensity conflict of 2016. The Journal of Modern African Studies, 57(1), 31-59.

Kuipers, E.H.C., Desportes, I., and Hordijk, M.A. (2019). Of locals and insiders: A ‘localized’ humanitarian response to the 2017 Mocoa mudslide in Colombia?Disaster Prevention and Management, 29(3), 352-364.

Hilhorst, D., Desportes, I. and de Miliano, C. (2019). Humanitarian governance and resilience building: Ethiopia in comparative perspective. Disasters, 43, S109-S131

Desportes, I., and Colenbrander, D. (2016). Navigating interests, navigating knowledge: Towards an inclusive set-back delineation along Cape Town’s coastline. Habitat International, 54(2), 124-135.

Desportes, I., Waddell, J., and Hordijk, M. (2015). Improving flood risk governance through multi -stakeholder collaboration: A case study of Sweet Home informal settlement, Cape Town. South African Geographical Journal, 98(1), 61-83.

Blogs and newspaper editorials

Dittmer, C., Desportes, I. et al. (2022). Katastrophenforschungsstelle zum Bundesweiten Warntag. (blog). Disaster Research Blog – A blog by the DRU. (accessible 7 December 2022).

Desportes, I. (2020). Disaster response: Why democracy matters. (blog). European Association of Development Institutes Blog – Debating Development Research. (accessible 14 July 2020).

Desportes, I. (2020). Another top priority in times of crisis: Keep democratic life up and running. (blog). blISS – The ISS Blog on Global Development and Social Justice. (accessible 26 Mar 2020).

Hilhorst, D. and Desportes, I. (2019). Counter-terrorism laws are undermining humanitarian relief, and are set to get worse today. (blog). Oxfam Blogs. (accessible 12 November 2019).

Hilhorst, D. and Desportes, I. (2019). De anti-terrorisme wet heeft een lelijk neveneffect. (journal editorial). Trouw. (accessible 12 November 2019).

van Voorst R. and Desportes, I. (2018). (How) should scholars say what humanitarians can't? (blog). blISS – The ISS Blog on Global Development and Social Justice. (accessible 16 May 2018).

Selected publications for policy and practitioner audiences

Desportes, I. Dalimunthe, S.A. Surtiari, G.A.K. and Reksa, A.F.A. [in press]. Applying a ‘cascading disasters’ approach across silos and epistemic cultures? The challenge of warning of non-seismically induced tsunamis in Indonesia. Words into Action Series on Science and Policy. Geneva: United Nations for Disaster Risk Reduction.

Desportes, I. & Voss, M. (2023). Kurzstudie über die Kommunikation des Auswärtigen Amts und ausgewählter westlicher Geberländer zum Thema humanitärer Hilfe (Bericht nicht öffentlich). Berlin: Akademie der Katastrophenforschungstelle.

Hilhorst, D., Vervest, M. J., Desportes, I., Melis, S., Mena, R. and van Voorst, R. (2020). Strengthening community resilience in conflict: learnings from the Partners for Resilience programme.ISS Working Papers - General Series, no 666. The Hague: International Institute of Social Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam.

Hilhorst, D., Desportes, I., Melis, S., Mena, R., and van Voorst, R. (2020). When Disaster Meets Conflict: A scenario-based approach to the politics of disaster governance in conflict settings. ISS Research brief. The Hague: International Institute of Social Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam.

Desportes, I. (2020). Politics of disaster response in authoritarian low-intensity conflict settings. ISS Research brief. The Hague: International Insitute of Social Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam.

Hilhorst, D., van Voorst, R., Mena, R., Desportes, I. & Melis, S. (2019). Disaster Response and Humanitarian Aid in Different Conflict Scenarios. Geneva: United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction.

Desportes, I. (2019). Myanmar: The controversial issue of minorities in responding to cyclone Komen in 2015. ISS Research brief. The Hague: International Institute of Social Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam.

Desportes, I. (2019). Ethiopia: Responding to the 2016 drought amid political protest and a state of emergency. ISS Research brief. The Hague: International Institute of Social Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam.

Desportes, I. (2015). Partners for Resilience in Ethiopia, Country Case for the Qualitative Process and Impact Study. Groningen: University of Groningen.

Doctoral and Master thesis

Desportes, I. (2020, November 5). Repression Without Resistance: Disaster Responses in Authoritarian Low-Intensity Conflict Settings. EUR (153 pag.) Ipskamp: The Hague. Prom./coprom.: prof.dr.ir. D.J.M. Hilhorst & dr. R. Van Voorst.

Desportes, I. (2014, February 7). We’ve got to address the underlying causes. A case-study of stakeholders ́ initiatives to increase resilience to flood risk inSweet Home informal settlement, Cape Town. University of Amsterdam (114 pag.). Amsterdam. Supervision: dr. M. Hordijk.