Public Policy and Disaster Justice

Issues of unequal vulnerability to disasters, and uneven access to assistance and decision making, are core challenges in disaster policy, but not generally explored from a justice perspective. This chapter considers justice through six standard lenses of public policy: (1) whether justice-relevant decisions are a matter for public policy or more value-rich politics; (2) if the former, where in the policy process they can be attended to; (3) which entity has responsibility over the matter; (4) in addition to formal responsibilities, what actors outside of government contribute to justice or injustices; (5) whether justice is a matter of disaster policy, or another policy sector; and (6) whether enhancement of existing policies can provide remedy, or new mechanisms are needed.