THE EQUATION OF DISASTERS

Earthquakes, prolonged drought, extreme events and strong tides that

destroy everything in their path: why are these phenomena

increasingly frequent? Whose fault is it? Antonello Pasini analyses the

case of Italy, from the landslides and floods that affects Piedmont and

Liguria to the umpteenth occurrence of high water in Venice, and

identifies the main factors at stake, putting them into relation with one

another in what is provocatively defined the ‘equation of disasters’: the

dangerousness of weather- and climate-related events, the vulnerability

of the Italian landscape and what we, our homes and our property, are

exposed to. The conclusion is that it is not about an evil nature, but an

environment that has been disfigured by man, from the point of view of

climate and territory, to the abuses on a landscape that was already

fragile. It is a study that leads to the conclusion that only by becoming

aware of the human impact on climate and on landscape can we do

something to change course. Because not only the political decisionmakers

but citizens as well have to know.