This book presents a broad range of current approaches to measuring vulnerability to natural hazards and contains concrete experiences and examples from Africa, Asia, the Americas and Europe to illustrate the theoretical analyses. This book is a unique compilation of state-of-the-art vulnerability assessment and is essential reading for academics, students, policy makers, practitioners, and anybody else interested in understanding the fundamentals of measuring vulnerability. It is a critical review that provides important conclusions which can serve as an orientation for future research towards more disaster resilient communities.