Disaster vulnerability hotspots in the Portland metro-region: Converging indices for equitable resilience

As climate-related extreme events intensify across the globe, governments, practitioners, and communities have focused on reducing vulnerability and building resilience. However, debates persist about the validity, differences, and similarities between social vulnerability and resilience indices. This study combines the Social Vulnerability Index (SoVI) (26 indicators) and the Baseline Resilience Indicators for Communities (BRIC) (52 indicators) to assess the Portland Metro region using ACS (2016–2020) and 2020 Census data. Through hotspot analysis, Pearson’s correlation, and linear regression, we identify key drivers as well as areas of convergence and divergence between the two indices. Results show a strong overlap between SoVI and BRIC, with distinct drivers across counties and census tracts. High SoVI/low BRIC hotspots were found in Clackamas and Multnomah counties. In Clackamas, vulnerability was due to limited hospital access, weak infrastructure and institutions, mobile homes, and inadequate community resources. In Multnomah, poverty, low educational attainment, and single-parent households were the primary drivers of vulnerability. While Clackamas had stronger environmental resilience, Multnomah showed higher resilience than Washington County due to better transportation, institutions, and community capital. Having a high proportion of migrant populations, institutionalized residents, and mobile homes reduced resilience in Washington County. These findings support the combined use of SoVI-BRIC indices for targeted resilience planning and equitable resource allocation for infrastructure development, environmental protection, social programs, and emergency preparedness across multiple scales.