This year's Hugo Raab Prize to Simon Hollis

Simon Hollis, Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science at the Swedish Defence University, is awarded the 2024 Hugo Raab Prize for the book Resilience in the Pacific and the Caribbean: The Local Construction of Disaster Risk Reduction.

“I’m honoured to be chosen for this award. The book was published during the pandemic, which placed limits on promoting my book, so I am very happy to see my research being recognized and given a spotlight”, he says.

Reasons for the award

The book is accessible yet not simplistic, philosophical but not abstract, refreshingly educational without being trivial. Moreover, this volume is exceptionally well-written, elegant, and articulate. The empirical material used for analysis is appropriate, rich, creative, and scientifically well-founded. The structure is logical and clear, the argumentation is compelling, and the findings summarised in the last three chapters carry a normative shade without being polemical. This volume exemplifies sound and much-needed research in the field of disaster risk reduction.

The book is based on research about how islanders in the Caribbean and Pacific view resilience and risk and illustrates how the ignorance of worldviews can limit outcomes of development programmes on disaster risk reduction.

“It encourages donors and recipients of development aid to form equitable dialogues for engaging in a meaningful inter-exchange of ideas that can tailor support for disaster resilience”, he explains.

A person-oriented approach is needed

The findings also emphasise personal flourishing, community and social support systems as necessary elements for sustainable disaster resilience.

“This is what I call a personalist ethics of resilience”, says Simon Hollis.

“The book is not only a contribution to the academic fields of resilience, disaster, and development studies, but it also aims to address a real-world problem”, he continues.

In this case, the research suggests how the aims and outcomes of development donors and facilitators can be enhanced by placing greater attention on alternative worldviews, especially in relation to how these worldviews animate alternative understandings of what resilience means in local contexts.

The prize is awarded at the Swedish Defence University's academic ceremony on 22 November.