Assessing Community Resilience in Disaster-Prone Char Lands of Bangladesh: A Capital-Based Empirical Approach

Bangladesh is prone to disasters, so community resilience is crucial. This study experimentally assesses and develops a conceptual framework for quantifying rural community resilience in Kurigram District, Bangladesh. Assessing community disaster resilience requires five capital types: natural, social, economic, human, and physical. After collecting quantitative and qualitative data, statistical and qualitative analysis provide insights. The study measures rural community resilience in disaster-prone Bangladesh at the local level. Uttar Dahldanga and Shaljor settlements in Kurigram's Shilkhuri union have different disaster resistance scores. Uttar Dhaldanga has higher Weighted Average Index (WAI) values for natural (0.8 vs. 0.72), social (0.68 vs. 0.59), human (0.57 vs. 0.49), economic (0.61 vs. 0.54), and physical capital (0.5 vs. 0.42). Shaljor requires more capital to close the gap. Well-managed natural resources positively correlate with social and economic capital, but poorly with physical and human capital. These findings show the necessity to address multiple dimensions and bridge gaps for catastrophe resilience. The co-benefits of resilience-building activities depend on strong capital capacity interactions. This study shows that using a multi-capital approach is crucial for improving community resilience in disaster-prone areas of Bangladesh. The results reveal that properly managed natural resources strengthen social and economic aspects, but there are gaps in physical and human resources that need to be addressed.