Utilizing Population Distribution Patterns for Disaster Vulnerability Assessment: Case of Foreign Residents in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area of Japan

Abstract

Foreign residents in Japan are amongst the vulnerable groups at risk to disasters in the country. Improvement is crucial in meeting Japan’s vison of zero casualties in major disaster events. If the case of the 2005 Hurricane Katrina is to offer an insight into migrants’ characteristics in mega-disaster situations, then a broader analysis of vulnerabilities is needed to avoid mass casualties should the anticipated megathrust earthquake occur. Hence, this study analyzes the vulnerabilities of foreign residents by utilizing their spatial distribution attributes in the Tokyo metropolitan area. This study uses multiple approaches that combine geographic information systems to analyze secondary and primary datasets. The results reveal that foreign nationals are spatially clustered in some parts of the metropolis, especially within a 7 km radius of Minato city. The densities in these areas alter the earthquake community vulnerability levels from 1.23% to 2.8% and from 5.42% to 13.46%, respectively. Although only 11% of foreign residents are prepared for any disaster, there is a high sense of interaction amongst them and Japanese nationals, which almost eliminates isolation within communities. This study therefore proposes the utilization of some of these attributes in mobilizing specifically targeted evacuation procedures, management of evacuation centers, and disaster risk information dissemination.

Characterizing Risk Communication and Awareness for Sustainable Society: The Case of Foreign Residents in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area of Japan

“…Entropy or diversity indexes measure the "average difference between a unit's group proportions and that of the system as a whole" and can show the spatial distribution of multiple ethnic or cultural groups simultaneously [36]. The use of this approach in a previous study gave an indication of unique locations of foreign residents in Tokyo [11], and again became relevant in this study to understand the risk and communication issues of different categories on foreign residents. Thus, Equation (1) shows the calculation of the diversity index.…”

The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on public engagement approaches to disaster preparedness for foreign residents: case of Tokyo Metropolitan Area, Japan

“…The increasing number and the changing composition have already been researched to create challenges to risk information dissemination and accessibilities (Adu-Gyamfi and Shaw, 2021a). Furthermore, their agglomeration in certain communities in the metropolis is also a potential element to exposing their risk levels in event of an earthquake (Adu-Gyamfi and Shaw, 2021b). These and many have initiated calls for a broader engagement of foreign residents in risk preventions and information that consider language, lifestyles and other factors of vulnerabilities (Ikuyo, 2020).…”

Disaster preparedness among foreign residents in a rural area of Japan: A qualitative pilot study

“…At the individual household level, helping foreign residents effectively access disaster preparedness information is of major importance. Disseminating disaster preparedness information in a way that people from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds can understand may require various approaches, a conclusion reached by other studies on this topic (Green et al, 2020;Adu-Gyamfi & Shaw, 2021). PHNs can tailor their approach when working with different foreign resident groups to link them with existing resources, such as disaster preparedness information in their native languages.…”

“…In 2020, an estimated 2.93 million foreign residents lived in Japan, growing in recent years to 2.25% of the country's total population (Adu-Gyamfi & Shaw, 2021). Foreign residents in Japan face barriers in regards to accessing health care and experience higher mortality from diseases as compared to Japanese citizens (Yasukawa et al, 2019).…”