Accommodating coastal flooding: Collective action, social capital, and spatial prerequisites – examples from Jakarta and Semarang Bay, Indonesia

Abstract

Worldwide, coastal populations have to respond to coastal hazards and sea level change. The adaptive capacity of communities, especially in urban agglomerations of the Global South, strongly correlates with their social capital and their ability to organize collective action. We analyze social capital on different geographical scales, with a perspective on both local socio-spatial practices and translocal networks. We present the results of focus-group discussions and a large-scale household survey collected in the megacity, Jakarta, and the regional urban area of the Semarang Bay (Indonesia) to answer the questions how households and local communities respond to coastal hazards and how they can self-organize and act collectively. Rather than retreating or gaining permanent protection, people find ways to live with their multi-hazard environment. This finding adds a new dimension to the theorization of coastal adaptation. Accommodating strategies are much more important to maintaining peoples’ livelihoods than recognized in much of the academic literature. Moreover, social capital is significantly shaped by the spatial layout and urban form of neighborhoods. Bonding ties, attachment to place, and social belonging are important factors for adequate flood responses. However, long-term adaptation and proactive measures also require translocal linkages and networks. These empirical findings contribute to advancing the conceptualization of collective adaptation processes, and offer new insights into how to better align community-based and traditional top-down approaches in (urban) hazard management.