The Moral Imperative for Intervention Post-Natural Hazard

The Institute of World Politics

About the book, "Ethics, Law, and Natural Hazards: The Moral Imperative for Intervention Post-Natural Hazard": This book argues that the international community has a moral duty to intervene on behalf of a population affected by a natural hazard when their government is either unable or unwilling to provide basic, life-saving assistance. The work draws on law, international relations theory, and political philosophy to articulate that non-response to a natural hazard is unethical. In providing policy suggestions the author articulates what should happen based on an ethical analysis. Readers will thus gain an ethical lens with which to view intervention in the aftermath of a natural hazard. The book encourages readers to consider the nuances of arguments from various disciplines about whether or not intervention is appropriate. Whilst arguing throughout that an intervention policy in response to natural hazards should be developed by the international community, the study also accounts for why intervention should only be used in very limited situations. This interdisciplinary approach makes the book essential reading for researchers, academics, and policy-makers working in the areas of international law, humanitarian studies, human rights, international relations, and political science. About the speaker: Dr. Lauren Traczykowski is an American living in Birmingham, England. She started her education at Boston University studying International Relations. Whilst completing her undergraduate degree, she studied American Foreign Policy at IWP for one summer. After completing her degree and with three internships under her belt – the U.S. Department of State, Fine Gael HQ (Dublin), and Demos (London) – Dr. Traczykowski moved to Washington, D.C. to work for the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to contribute to the Hurricane Katrina response and recovery from within the Office of International Affairs. Dr. Traczykowski then moved to the U.K. to do an MA in International Studies: Globalisation & Governance. Later, she completed a Ph.D. in Global Ethics focusing on the research she will present. Whilst still working on her Ph.D., Dr. Traczykowski taught modules on Bioethics, Contemporary Ethics, Politics and the State, Professional Ethics, and Medical Ethics at institutions around the West Midlands of the United Kingdom. Dr. Traczykowski now teaches at Aston University (Birmingham, U.K.) as a Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor). Her main teaching is in Business Ethics and Ethics in a Crisis. Dr. Traczykowski is also editing a collected work on Interdisciplinary Learning and Teaching to be submitted to Edward Elgar Publishing later this year.