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Displaying 15 of about 129 resultsThe terminologies—natural disasters and natural hazards—have been in debate as experts in various fields offer diverse perspectives in their definitions. Sometimes these terms seem interchangeable at first glance, but the nuances in their definitions highlight the complexity of understanding and mitigating the impacts of environmental events.Traditional…
GENEVA, 16 October 2013 – Disaster risk management should be a key component of poverty reduction efforts, focusing on protecting livelihoods as well as saving lives, a major report launched today urges.
The post-2015 development goals must include targets on disasters and climate change, recognising the threat they pose to the headline goal of eradica…
GENEVA, 25 April 2013 - The Head of the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), Margareta Wahlström, today extended condolences to the families of those who have lost loved ones in the collapse of an eight-storey building in Dhaka, Bangladesh, and reiterated that Dhaka is also in a high risk earthquake zone.
In meetings last year in Dhaka, Ms.…
GENEVA, 18 July 2012 - UNISDR's 2011 Annual Report is now available online and reveals that its two landmark Global Assessment Reports on Disaster Risk Reduction Reports (GAR) for 2009 and 2011, have had over 200,000 chapter downloads over the last three years.
It also demonstrates that, "despite some degree of unpredictability in its voluntary funding…
RIO DE JANEIRO, 21 June 2012 - The UK's Chief Scientific Adviser, Sir John Beddington, used yesterday's UNISDR "Resilient Cities" event at Rio+20 to make an urgent appeal for scientists to use plain language if they are to play a larger role in policymaking on climate change.
"The next fifteen years are really problematic. We'll have a billion more peo…
NEW YORK, 23 September 2014 – 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.
Entries to the Esri Global Disaster Resilience App Challenge included apps which allow communi…
GENEVA, 4 July 2011 – As Europe and North America move into the summer season, the risk of wildfires will increase. While these natural hazards may not get the attention of earthquakes, tsunamis and cyclones, their destructive potential is considerable and reducing the risks they present should be a priority for countries who face this threat.
Over two…
UNISDR press release 2010/17
United Nations to release “Natural hazard fact sheets for Kenya” and draft “Training for Trainers” toolkit to strengthen disaster management in Kenya
Nairobi – On 25 to 26 August, the UNISDR Regional Office for Africa will hold a pilot workshop on “Training of Trainers” in the Rift Valley Province to test a toolkit to “tra…
Geneva – Some 373 natural disasters killed over 296,800 people in 2010, affecting nearly 208 million others and costing nearly US$110 billion, according to the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED).
The top two most lethal disasters -- the 12 January earthquake in Haiti, which killed over 222,500 people, as well as the Russian hea…
Over a short period in May and June, intense rains lashed Assam, in northeastern India, and Bangladesh. As well as landslides, several rivers in the Ganga-Brahmaputra basin burst their banks. The swiftness with which floodwaters submerged towns and villages caught residents and officials off-guard.
Scientists say the problem will only in…
The present systematization carried out by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) compiles Good Practices in Post-disaster Recovery in Latin America and the Caribbean, with the aim of spreading and highlighting the work and recovery processes that are coming taking place in different countries of the region. This systematization compiles some goo…
This report explores the challenges associated with acquiring and using scientific evidence during a disaster response, focusing on the 2015 Gorkha earthquakes in Nepal.
It examines the extent to which scientific information was used during the diaster response and sets out the key actors involved in the response effort, their information needs and how…
Continuing drought brings food insecurity and a risk for emerging or ongoing conflict in Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia, as well as Iraq, Iran and Afghanistan, according to a new quarterly update that analyses finds from a global early warning tool. Meanwhile, floods in South Sudan and South Africa contributes to a risk of conflict there.
The update, issu…
This publication explores the contributions of science and technology in Asia. The first part evaluates the advancement of the science and technology in disaster risk reduction in 11 countries.
The second part of the report features 28 case studies and good practices on applying science and technology in different field of disaster risk reduction…
Speed read
Last year, a deadly storm hit nations in Southern Africa including Zimbabwe
But Zimbabwe is now fighting drought that is leaving millions on the brink of starvation
Big data holds key to tackling floods and droughts resulting from climate change
By Claudia Sadoff, Director-general of the International Water Management Institute…