Nexus of Human Security and Digital Media in Mitigating Environmental Security Challenges: An Analysis of Floods in South Punjab

Abstract

Amidst the relentless threat of climate change, the Southern Punjab region of Pakistan is confronted with a persistent human vulnerability to environmental adversities, particularly recurrent flooding events. The study endeavours to explore the nexus between human security and digital media, focusing how social media applications like X and Facebook became distinct yet complementary channels of interventions and narratives during the 2022 Monsoon-induced floods in the region. Grounded in the conceptual framework of human security, the research examines the digital discourse through the technique of qualitative content analysis, unravelling how disaster response and community resilience are shaped in the digital age, with a particular focus on the geographical dynamics of the flood-affected regions of District Rajanpur, District Dera Ghazi Khan, and Tehsil Taunsa Sharif within South Punjab. The research objectives are threefold, aiming to evaluate digital media’s overall contribution to the broader human security framework, stakeholder engagement, and narrative-building. The findings of the paper paint a vivid picture of the digital ecosystem, integrating the perspectives of government departments, humanitarian organizations, and everyday citizens, to posit that digital media enhances human security during environmental security challenges like natural disasters, by serving as a conduit of information dissemination, stakeholder coordination, resource mobilization, and community engagement.