Due to climate change combined with urban concentration of population, the frequency and intensity of urban flooding and its risks have been increased. In most cases, such disasters pose impediments to sustainable economic and human development. Because of heavy precipitation caused by climate change exceeding the current capacity of infrastructure as well as the concentration of population by urbanization, the damages of urban floods on humans and property losses have become more serious among natural disasters.
The social impacts of flood disasters vary by different people as some people have limited access to the means of preparedness, response, and recovery. Experiencing extreme flooding events in recent years, the City of Seoul put forth much effort into tackling the flood damages, including preparing disaster risk maps, improved infrastructure such as capacity-enhanced sewages, rainwater pumping facilities, rainwater storage tanks and permeable pavements. Despite these efforts to improve infrastructures there have been vulnerable populations who are easily exposed to the climate risks and easily become the victims of floods, and sometimes become more likely to go into vicious cycles of vulnerability both socio-economically and in terms of disaster resilience. By looking into the historic disaster data and flood hazard maps for cases of heavy flooding events in recent years in Seoul, and comparing them with the demographic data by social categories, this report tries to focus on the disaster resilience of the vulnerable classes.
Finally and more importantly, this report discusses on how to further improve the resilience for those who are identified to be more vulnerable. To protect and support the vulnerable populations countries and cities have developed their own policy measures, manuals and guidelines. Through the comparison of policy measures in representative cities including Tokyo, London, and New York this study finds more room for further policy improvements for vulnerable populations in Seoul. The central and local government, relevant agencies and communities need to cooperate in addressing adaptation to disasters with target-specific welfare for the vulnerable people, which will enhance social inclusiveness in climate resilience.

• Hyeon-Sook Shim(Global Green Growth Institute)