Chronic crisis and nuclear disaster humanitarianism: recuperation of Chernobyl and Fukushima children in Italy

This article situates Henrik Vigh’s concept of ‘chronic crisis’ in social disaster research and humanitarian studies order to explore how child survivors experience address the prolonged consequences disasters. The rationale for mobilising chronic crisis is that it opens up possibilities exploring dynamics multidimensionality disasters responses them. Using example nuclear disasters, looks at enduring initiatives Italian non-governmental organisations recuperating Chernobyl Fukushima children Italy. It focuses on opportunities, challenges outcomes these recuperative programmes, underscores non-linearity survivor agency. argues can simultaneously contribute deterioration ruination survivors’ lives, catharsis, hope. further argued humanitarianism shape either by exacerbating already-precarious conditions human existence (through discrimination prejudice), or alleviating suffering cultural support).