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Accepted Paper:
Silvia Pitzalis (University of Milano-Bicocca)
Paper short abstract:
This proposal will show how the Covid-19 Pandemic has compounded the effect of the earthquakes in central Italy (2016-2017), an area already characterised by uncertainty, suspension and temporariness, revealing how 'crisis' and 'emergency' are increasingly everyday conditions rather than exceptions.
Paper long abstract:
In recent years, 'crisis' and 'emergency' have become key concepts to define the experiences and configurations that characterise the contemporary era, assuming particular importance in contexts affected by disasters. In Italy, repeatedly hit by different catastrophes, these terms are essential in the signification of such events.
As underlined by the anthropology of disasters, the catastrophe's outset has significant repercussions not only on an economic, social and political level but also on a historical and existential one. However, what happens when one disaster is compounded by another? What effects do the concatenation and interrelationship of catastrophic events have on the lives of the people involved? How do they influence the institutional management of this 'double disaster'?
Starting from research conducted between 2018 and 2022 through qualitative methods, including ethnography - the use of which, unfortunately, was compromised by restrictions during the lockdowns - I will show the effects that the spread of the Covid-19 Pandemic has had on the population affected by the earthquakes that struck central Italy between 2016-2017, mainly Marche region.
Specifically, I propose to examine the interrelationships between the earthquake and the pandemic emergencies, their effects on the relocation and the reconstruction processes, how people reconfigured their sense of location and belonging, and how they rethink their interpersonal relationships.
In short, I will show how the Pandemic has compounded the situation of the earthquake-affected population, already characterised by uncertainty, suspension and temporariness, revealing how 'crisis' and 'emergency' are more and more everyday conditions rather than exceptions.
Compounding crises: confronting the complexity of disaster through anthropological inquiry
Session 1 Wednesday 12 April, 2023, -