Resilience As a Process: Understanding the Spatial and Temporal Reconfigurations of Communities Affected By Repeated Annual Floods

This paper attempts to reimagine resilience as a process as opposed to a quality. The paper indicates how both resilience and vulnerability are continuously shifting processes. Based on ethnographic research, the paper explores how riverine communities affected by annual floods configure and reconfigure their living spaces before and after disasters. For the community outside space is an extension of the inside. The loss of these spaces, coupled with the need to relocate to crowded camps with limited privacy, highlights both the community's vulnerability and resilience. Through detailed observations and personal narratives, this paper illustrates how the occupation and reconfiguration of space are critical markers of both the community's vulnerability and their adaptability in the face of floods.

In addition to spatial reconfiguration, there is a significant temporal reconfiguration as well. The paper looks at the concept of ‘flood time’ in operation. The routine activities of daily life are disrupted during floods, and time that would normally be spent on work (daily wage earning through construction work, food delivery), education and leisure is redirected towards cleaning and reorganizing the living space. This shift in temporal priorities adds another layer of stress and adaptation, as families struggle to balance immediate recovery efforts with the long-term needs of their community. The interplay between spatial and temporal reconfigurations underscores the profound impact of disasters on everyday life, highlighting the resilience and resourcefulness required to navigate these challenges.