Social practices in community responses to disasters in Fiji

When a disaster strikes, citizens are expected to respond by following carefully prepared procedures implemented by emergency services and personnel that run in tandem, and at times in conflict with, their established social practices. This paper examines how disasters in Fiji impact community gender norms, which are rapidly unsettled during an emergency. Communities under duress are compelled by government interventions to interact with the standardised routines and behaviours requisite for a disaster setting. The role obdurate social practices play in disaster management is the focus of this paper. A novel reinterpretation of obduracy as resilience is made through an appraisal of the reflections and insights of NGO and charity workers interviewed in Suva, Fiji about community responses across the gendered social practices of comfort, convenience and cleanliness as these are negotiated during emergencies. We conclude by emphasising the need for emergency workers and policymakers alike to be abreast of cultural and community norms and to be attuned to the underlying social practices communities adhere to during disasters.