Defining Disaster Diplomacy

Disaster Diplomacy

In this course, Professor Ilan Kelman (UCL) discusses the concept of disaster diplomacy. Do international efforts to deal with disasters foster peace, harmony and cooperation, or instead does it lead to conflict? We begin by: (i) defining disaster diplomacy; (ii) thinking about examples where disaster diplomacy does not work; and then (iii) look at the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami and see its effects on diplomacy on surrounding regions; then (iv) Hurricane Katrina and the international response to it; (v) the COVID-19 pandemic; (vi) defining formal and informal disaster diplomacy; and finally (vii) see how disaster diplomacy could work in the future.

Defining Disaster Diplomacy

In this lecture, we explore the concept of disaster diplomacy: whether dealing with disasters fosters peace, harmony, and cooperation, or instead leads to conflict. We delve into various historical instances, such as the 1999 in Greece and Türkiye, and the long-standing scientific collaboration between Cuba and the USA, analysing how pre-disaster activities and post-disaster responses influence international relations.