In this section, we explore definitions of “culture” and what natural hazard scientists can do to maximize the impact of their work in established cultures. There are many definitions of culture, but most characterize it as something that is widely shared by members of a social group and shared in virtue of belonging to that group. This general characteristic, however, needs to be refined by taking into account what kind of shared items qualify as culture and what kind of transmission qualifies as social (all of which can be matters of controversy). 

Here, we follow the UNESCO’s definition of culture: 

‘as the set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features of society or a social group, that encompasses, not only art and literature, but lifestyles, ways of living together, value systems, traditions, and beliefs’ (UNESCO, 2001:3)

Now let's take a look at the components of culture as explained in Kulatunga (2010). Culture can be divided into two components: material and nonmaterial. While material culture includes physical or tangible creations people make, use or share that influence their behavior (e.g., crafts, historical buildings and locations), nonmaterial culture consists of abstract and intangible creations such as beliefs and behavior and comprises of symbols, language, values and norms. In the next page, we will give two examples of nonmaterial culture and explain how they influence disaster risk.

Complete the Optional Reading below or click Next Page to continue this module. 

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Optional Reading: 

Kulatunga, U. (2010). Impact of culture towards disaster risk reduction. International Journal of Strategic Property Management, 14(4), 304-313.