UNDRR News

A major initiative to examine climate risk stress testing for banking and securities regulation and accounting practices was unveiled at the UN Climate Summit in New York by public and private sector organisations working together in response to the increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather events.

Software developers from around the world were recognized today at the UN Climate Summit for their ingenuity in devising life-saving apps for use in reducing the impact of extreme weather events on cities and coastal communities.

Heavy rains have caused major devastation over the weekend in the Philippines, France and Italy and may be further indications of the “new normal” that the world will have to deal with, if no accelerated action is taken to keep global warming within 2˚C.

As part of the build-up to the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Sendai, Japan, next March, Geneva Airport is offering passengers the chance to engage with the planet through an inter-active digital globe, the Tangible Earth, developed by the Earth Literacy Programme at Kyoto University, Japan

One of the high points of this week’s Arab Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction came when a 19-year-old medical student took centre stage to read out a strong declaration on behalf of one of the region’s most endangered groups, children and youth.

The 19 Arab States meeting in Sharm-El-Sheikh, Egypt, this week have made a sweeping series of recommendations for inclusion in the post-2015 framework for disaster risk reduction which will be adopted next March in Sendai, Japan, at the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction. The Sharm-El-Sheikh declaration calls for a strong focus on water and food security, the effects of climate change and extreme weather events, including drought, on dry lands and arid zones which are home to two billion people around the world.

There were calls today for gender to be mainstreamed into the post-2015 framework for disaster risk reduction in a major debate on the role of women as change agents for resilience at the 2nd Arab Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction.

Agricultural drought and climate change are changing the landscape of the Arab region with enormous implications for food security, rural-urban migration and social stability, an expert told the 2nd Arab Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction yesterday.

The Egyptian governorate of South Sinai yesterday advanced a proposal to raise funds from the private sector and other donors, to combat flash floods such as those which destroyed exclusive parts of the Taba Red Sea resort area on May 8 last.

UNISDR Chief, Margareta Wahlström, yesterday described the post-2015 development agenda as a “once in a lifetime opportunity” when she addressed the opening day of the Second Arab Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction.