I. Besarra MPhil BEng (Isaac)

Research profiles

The increasing frequency and severity of hazards have led to widespread damage to the built environment of vulnerable communities. These challenges have been exacerbated by pre-existing and additional funding restrictions in 2025, constraining humanitarian recovery efforts. As a result, the vast majority are left to self-recovery, rebuilding homes with limited resources, without formal guidance. Despite its prevalence, self-recovery remains poorly represented in policy, and academic discourse, particularly in how households make priorities over time. This research investigates how hazard-affected households self-recover during reconstruction processes in the absence of formal assistance, and what conditions influence housing-related livelihood outcomes over time. Drawing from a longitudinal study of self-recovery efforts in the Philippines, this study adopts a mixed-methods longitudinal approach through four research objectives. Firstly, this study synthesises key factors influencing self-recovery processes and their causal relationships between housing, settlement, and sustainable livelihood outcomes. Secondly, the study will examine how livelihood obstacles influence housing recovery trajectories. Subsequently, we will identify decision-making factors that influence resilient housing and settlement, as well as sustainable livelihoods. Finally, this study explores household decision-making processes through behaviour modelling to better inform future humanitarian interventions. This thesis generates new knowledge about housing reconstruction processes and aims to inform future humanitarian and development interventions for a more context-driven response.

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University of Twente

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