From Identification to Implementation: The Use of Local Knowledge in Disaster Management : A case study on the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescents Societies response to the Nepal earthquake 2015-2019

Abstract: This thesis examines how local knowledge is identified and implemented in disaster responseand recovery programmes conducted by international aid organizations. The case that isexamined in the analysis is the International Federation of Red Cross and Red CrescentSocieties response and recovery operations conducted in the aftermath of the Nepalearthquake 2015-2019. Using the method of content analysis, the final report of the Nepaloperation is analyzed using categorizations of local knowledge and informed by previousresearch on local knowledge in disaster operations, along with international aid organizations'engagement with local knowledge.The main findings of this study shows that the implementation of activities that utilize orseeks to identify local knowledge is heavily concentrated to the recovery phase of theoperation, with no activities informed by local knowledge found in the response phase. Allcategories of local knowledge are found throughout the operation, with socio-culturalknowledge being the most prominently utilized, whilst environmental knowledge andorganizational knowledge remains underrepresented. Activities that were not informed bylocal knowledge, or utilized local knowledge to some degree created unintendedconsequences, suggesting that for a productive utilization of local knowledge, it has to beconsidered in all steps of the operational planning.