Earth Science as Social Science

When one hears the words "earth science," usually mountains, lakes, and plateaus come to mind. Social science doesn't seem like part of the discussion, but there has recently been a push to include social aspects in the research done by earth scientists. What researchers are realizing is that it isn't accurate to keep human factors out of the equation when doing research because humans have made such a large impact on the earth. There has been a shift in the ways that scientists are viewing issues and research topics.
We see this type of shift here in the L'Aquila area after the large earthquake in 2009. This 6.3 earthquake killed 309 people in the community and damaged countless homes, shops, churches, and monuments. This quake took the entire community by surprise. While there had been small tremors in the area, and a warning from a local scientist, Giampaolo Giuliani, commissioners in the community deterred the alarmed questions they received at a press conference. After the earthquake hit, the community needed people to blame, and the attention turned to the local scientists in the area. The community sued them for the lives and property lost in the quake. It did not take long for the situation to appear in national news. Some viewed this as a war on the science community. After this long debate and intense series of trials, the real issue came to light. It was not whether or not the scientist could predict these natural disasters, it was an issue of their obligation to publish and communicate findings to the public if they are in danger. So, while this is technically an earth science issue related to earthquakes, the scientific publications and expectations are changed when humans become factors.
Though we have seen an abundance of this intersection between human factors and natural factors here in the L'Aquila area (as seen in the photos below), there are many issues that can be viewed from this dual perspective. One example is the fishing market in Italy. Because of the increase in demand for fish, and therefore the increase in the amount of fishing boats in the area using fishing equipment, the erosion rates in the bed of the fishing areas are increasing at an alarming rate. While this is an earth science issue related to erosion, it is also a social science issue because the erosion is caused by fisherman. The hope is that as scientists continue in their reearch, they begin to look into the social side of the issue more often. It would open up discussion, widen perspectives, allow for a wider range of solutions, and, perhaps most importantly, increase communication.
Below are images of earthquake damage and reconstruction projects in the L'Aquila area.