Dutch resiliency in the coastal Delta, by alert people (post PhD questionnaire research among Zaandam citizens)

The Wester coastal Delta zone of the Netherlands is the relatively more crowded area of the country where ten of the seventeen million people live. The governmental prognosis is that this number of people will increase to thirteen million three-times more. This is the picture in more Delta zones globally. In the light of climate-change this asks for a growing alertness on the topic of resiliency for this and comparable areas. Approaches of resiliency are often dominated by governmental rescue planning and believe in technology solutions. By comparing the float disasters of the 20015 Katrina and 2012 Sandy thunderstorms that hit respectively New Orleans and New York we can learn that the behaviour of people can make the difference in overcoming climate change impact disasters. Post-PhD research with focus on the Dutch Zaanstreek-Waterland area near the city of Amsterdam where in 1916 a severe flood happened proved such. The outcome from focus group sessions was that the alertness and availability to act of the people makes the positive difference, if the memory of the area inhabitants is kept alert. The result is that the definition of resiliency could be improved into: the interplay in a triangular relationship of civil servants, technicians and residents. This Zaanstreek-Waterland research showed that the disaster from 100 year before still kept the inhabitants alert into resiliency. Therewith the question arose: ‘how alert are the people of other Dutch Delta areas without such stored memory’. To prevent difference between theory and practice advanced questionnaire research among Zaandam citizens will be done, special for the IFoU 2018 conference. The results will be presented in Barcelona. An Old Dutch saying is ‘God created the world, but the Dutch created the Netherlands’. The question is can the Dutch people continue this message in the future too.