Using ClustOfVar to Construct Quality of Life Indicators for Vulnerability Assessment Municipality Trajectories in Southwest France from 1999 to 2009

Climate change is increasingly accepted as a major worldwide issue, bringing with it a host of long-term consequences for both human beings and ecosystems. To more effectively limit the damage caused by natural hazards and global change, it is essential that we gain a greater understanding of the complex question of social vulnerability—a subject that has been widely discussed in the literature. This paper examines the use of a conceptual “human wellbeing” framework to analyse vulnerability. It also proposes an innovative statistical method (ClustOfVar) to capture the multidimensional nature of that vulnerability. Using our approach, it is possible to construct composite indicators of residents’ living conditions at municipality level. To test our methodology, we carried out a comprehensive evaluation of the development of residents’ quality of life for two specific years (1999 and 2009) in areas close to the Garonne and Gironde rivers in southwest France. The results reveal different municipality trajectories in terms of quality of life profiles. This study helps to understand the multivariate characteristics of communities with higher social vulnerability.