Water

In Marigot, two spring-fed water systems faced the same storm. One continued delivering water while the other failed completely, showing how early investment in source protection and disaster risk reduction can strengthen resilience.

Climate vulnerability is often associated with cyclones and disappearing coastlines, but major climate risks are also affecting landlocked countries, where climate change is altering glaciers, lakes and rivers that sustain lives and livelihoods.

This scoping review maps peer-reviewed evidence on drought adaptation in the SADC region, which exhibits an observed downward trend in precipitation, making it a valuable case to study diverse approaches to managing changing risk.

Currently, water samples must be transported to a laboratory to reveal pollution. But new sensor technology is enabling researchers to measure pesticides in the water on site – and get the results right away.

WFP’s community-supported initiative is restoring degraded ecosystems in five sub-Saharan African countries – building food security, incomes and bonds in the process.

Some of the most impactful changes have come in the stressed Colorado River basin.

Statement on the disaster in Nepal and China by Kamal Kishore, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction and Head of UNDRR

Climate change has amplified Europe’s heatwaves and increased the severity of the 2026 drought . With these effects expected to intensify, Europe can learn a lot from African leaders – and share resources and knowledge in turn. They have been here before.

This document maps global water-related risks facing coastal populations by combining six water stressors, exposure and vulnerability. It identifies major risk hotspots in Asia and highlights the need for integrated, high-resolution risk assessment.

Emerging research shows that a drier world is often a sicker one, too. A new study takes stock of nearly 100 scientific studies of diseases found throughout the animal kingdom to reveal how drought can help deadly infections and parasites spread.

Recent rainfall has improved river flows in the Rhine and Meuse basins, but drought conditions persist. Deltares experts warn that groundwater recovery will take longer and call for structural measures to make Dutch landscapes more resilient to drought.

This study shows how the global population exposed to water-related risks is disproportionately contained in two reference regions and reflects on the implications for future IPCC assessments.

Adapting to the new hot dry summers is not difficult. Many countries deal with these sorts of extreme conditions ever single year. But it takes planning and investment in basic infrastructure, not just another emergency Cobra meeting.

Runoff from a high-intensity storm during the 2022 McKinney Fire depleted oxygen in the Klamath River to levels lethal to fish, killing aquatic life along nearly 60 miles of one of California's most culturally significant waterways.

” Compared to normal warm spells or heat waves, researchers have determined that "snow-eaters" happen when temperatures stay above freezing through both day and night for multiple days, typically three to five.

Coastal groundwater responds to sea level rise in different ways. Where the water table is free to rise with the sea, it does exactly that, rising toward the surface and increasing the risk of groundwater flooding.

While there are many safety concerns after a wildfire, three deserve particular attention: chemicals in surviving buildings, the safety of drinking water and whether burned lots are ready for rebuilding.

The EU launched the Water Resilience Strategy in June 2025 to make the EU water-resilient. It protects the water cycle, promotes a water-smart economy, and ensures access to clean, affordable water.

Rising sea levels may already be affecting the quality of Guam's groundwater, according to a study led by researchers at the University of Guam that used artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze more than 40 years of water quality data.

Water is indispensable to Arizona and Greater Phoenix. Through Colorado River canals, 100-year groundwater framework, and water storage systems, the state has built a resilient water portfolio that is reliable despite the Southwest’s 25-year drought.

WMO community is stepping up coordination, climate information services and early warning support to help governments, humanitarian agencies, climate-sensitive sectors like agriculture and health, and vulnerable communities prepare for potential impacts.

Globally, river deltas are sinking and shrinking due to altered freshwater and sediment flows. Relying solely on structural interventions and engineered adaptations may be counterproductive.

The European summer of 2026 has so far been characterised by exceptional heat and widespread dryness.

Mountain snow and meltwater from glaciers in the Himalayas determine how much water is available for drinking, farming and hydropower for millions of people in India, Pakistan, Nepal, China and Afghanistan.

This briefing paper presents key findings from a semi-quantitative climate risk assessment of Syria's urban drinking water and sanitation, intended to support the country's reconstruction efforts.

This policy brief examines the provision of water in the arid and semi-arid lands of eastern Africa, offering a different way of addressing a long-standing problem.

This report shares evidence on climate-related hazards that could worsen conflict and security risks in Yemen, in order to inform stabilisation, peacebuilding, and security interventions

Forecasters expect the El Niño now underway in the tropical Pacific to strengthen into a strong or very strong climate driver later this year.

Rapidly growing cities face water security challenges due to rising demand and limited freshwater supplies.

In India and Bangladesh, two recent changes of government on either side of the border have brought two shared river systems into focus: the Ganges and the Teesta.

Beyond helping emergency managers better alert downstream communities to flooding events, tracking rapid runoff allows water managers to improve reservoir management.

Too little rain and snow, too little water in the rivers: An interview with SLF hydrologist Manuela Brunner on the causes of the ongoing drought in Switzerland.

In conflict-affected Bukavu, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, nature-based solutions are reducing flooding, protecting hydropower dams and creating green jobs, providing lessons for rapidly urbanizing cities across sub-Saharan Africa.

This paper examines water risks for agriculture and outlines a typology of tools to support public authorities in anticipating, monitoring and assessing these risks.

A collaboration of scientists from NASA and Brazilian research institutions has produced a detailed picture of groundwater change across Brazil.

Dutch cities are increasingly facing foundation problems as a result of low groundwater levels, shrinking clay soils and land subsidence. Climate change is exacerbating these effects.

World Resources Institute asked four experts how this year’s El Niño may differ from past events.

As part of the NCCS-Impacts research programme, a research team led by the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL) is developing new tools to better assess risks and adapt planning.

Arsenic-contaminated groundwater affects more than 230 million people living in 108 countries. About 180 million of these people live in the Indian subcontinent (which includes Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan, in addition to India) and Southeast Asia.

Designed to assess and diagnose irrigation systems, the platform provides water managers actionable data to boost performance and agriculture sustainability.

When people think about wildfires, they usually think about flames, smoke and evacuations. However, for many communities, some of the most important damage begins after the fire has passed.

This report explores how the private sector can accelerate participation and financing for Adaptation through Water (AtW). It highlights the key enablers of bankable AtW solutions globally, including translating resilience into financial value.

The volume of water drawn from Scotland’s rivers and lochs by the agricultural sector surged by more than 500% during periods of water scarcity in recent years, new research has found.

Property flood resilience (PFR) measures could play a far greater role in helping communities adapt to rising flood risk across the UK, but major gaps in evidence, public understanding and long-term performance data continue to limit uptake.

El Niño is a natural climate pattern influencing global weather. Learn why it is increasingly important to understand in a warming world.

Concerns over water access are poised to consume summer in the U.S., as crises in Corpus Christi and across the Colorado River threaten to boil over.