V S Ramamurthy & Dinesh K Srivastava 
ART AND SCIENCE OF MANAGING PUBLIC RISKS 

The COVID-19 and the onslaught of Climate Change have exposed the fragility of our lives and ecosystem. Natural disasters like asteroid impact, earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, floods, cyclones, etc., and pandemics like plagues, smallpox, cholera, tuberculosis, malaria, etc., have been man’s nemesis from the beginning of time. This list of public risks has now expanded to include pollutions, industrial disasters, and very many new, confusing and emerging technologies.How have governments handled these public risks? How have they convinced people to take precautions under such emergencies? What measures does one take for managing them, and for the rescue, relief, and rehabilitation of the masses? And most importantly, how does one prepare the masses to face the risks without panicking? It is argued that sermons, dictates, and discourses may not work in democratic societies. Rather, one needs a new breed of risk communicators who can enter into a dialogue with the people to prepare them for these challenges and to welcome truly beneficial new technologies.The book takes a panoramic view of the issue of risks and illustrates the challenges and opportunities of the Art and Science of Managing Public Risks. It celebrates the indomitable spirit of man, who has leveraged science to predict — where possible, and provide solutions for managing these risks.
Contents:

• Foreword


• Preface


• About the Authors


• List of Figures


• List of Tables


• Prologue


• Extreme Natural Events


• Infectious Diseases


• Industrial Accidents


• New and Emerging Technologies


• Environmental Disasters


• Managing Public Risks


• The Way Forward


• Epilogue


• Index

Readership: : Students, policy makers, public risk managers, and the general public.Risks;Public Risks;Asteroid Impact;Earthquakes;Tsunamis;Volcanic Eruptions;Floods;Dam Failure;Land Slides;Plague;Smallpox;Polio;Tuberculosis;Malaria;Dengue;Cholera;Influenza;COVID;Vaccines;GM Crops;Industrial Disasters;Bhopal Gas Tragedy;Deep Horizon Oil Spill;Pollution;Plastics Waste;Water Pollution;Air Pollution;Climate Change;Combatting Climate Change;Risk Management;Risk Perception;Risk Communication;Discourse;Debate;Dialogue;Celebration of Scientific Methods This is a most timely book. The book provides a summary of the different possible threats, from natural dangers to industrial accidents caused by established and by new technologies, and on to environmental disasters caused by human interference with climate, and to man-made pollution of air and water. It discusses the measures taken, often too late and too half-hearted, to prevent or reduce the damage to humans.’
See full review – Helmut Satz Professor of Physics University of Bielefeld, Germany

‘The book celebrates deployment of science, empathy, and equity in managing public risks, and emphasizes the role of dialogues to communicate the problems and strategies to people at large, so that they welcome the efforts of authorities in handling disasters. The authors have used their vast and varied expertise and experience to come up with an unbiased and refreshing look at the problems in which mankind finds itself. The timely discussions of the art of management and of the science of the solutions will be a valuable resource material.’ See full review – Horst Stoecker Judah M Eisenberg Professor Laureatus for Theoretical Physics Goethe University Frankfurt

Key Features:

• Recommends governments to manage public risks — large-scale health emergencies and natural disasters — without trauma by handling the perceptions of people by informing them appropriately about the risks


• Suggests a truthful and scientific dissemination of information to the masses, by preparing them to welcome measures and being active collaborators and partners in combating the public risks, thus unleashing a vast potential


• Emphasizes the need to keep the masses aware of the risks facing them so they can apply pressure on their governments to initiate urgent action


• Takes a holistic view of the risks and strongly recommends frank dialogue with people worldwide to collaborate by using scientific methods in general and science in particular