The roles of participatory monitoring in reducing risk around volcanoes

This thesis examines the roles of participatory monitoring in reducing disaster risk around volcanoes, by the production of knowledge, enhancing the provision of early warnings, and stimulating risk reducing adaptations. Citizen participation in processes that manage and reduce risk is thought to be essential for building resilient and sustainable development. This thesis addresses gaps in theoretical and practical understanding of the roles of citizens in the production and use of knowledge through participatory monitoring, and the roles of participatory monitoring in reducing risk. Findings are presented from a global survey of citizen participation with volcano monitoring institutions, comparing across different volcanic, cultural, and risk governance settings. It describes how many of the institutions’ motivations are focused on knowledge production and relational trust benefits, but that most initiatives are ad-hoc and reactive to eruptive events, and thus unlikely to quite deliver the expected benefits. Using an in depth case-study on risk reduction through a community-based monitoring network around volcan Tungurahua, Ecuador, the roles of participatory monitoring at a community scale are analysed. The network grew organically and has multiple risk reduction roles through knowledge production, early warning, enhanced risk awareness, fostering trust-based relationships between scientists and communities, facilitating risk reducing adaptations at community and district levels to multiple hazards. The contextual influences on participatory monitoring are identified using in depth case-studies of participatory monitoring through long-lived eruptions at two volcanoes: Soufriere Hills Volcano, Montserrat; and volcan Tungurahua. Findings show the importance of the risk context, how risk is managed, the ways that monitoring institutions learn, and the effect of these influences on each other and on the agency of citizens. The thesis demonstrates that participatory monitoring and participating citizens can have multiple risk reducing roles through knowledge production, knowledge communication, and the actions that can be taken based on knowledge.