Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia
Overview
Covering 55 countries, UNDRR Europe and Central Asia supports the development of policies and actions towards a more resilient future. We assist countries to monitor and track achievements towards implementing the Sendai Framework, support the development of national and local DRR strategies, build greater engagement with the private sector, and provide policy advice, particularly around sustainable finance and climate security.
These statistics show live data about municipalities in this region that have joined the Making Cities Resilient 2030 initiative. The villages, towns, and cities have made a commitment to move along the resilience roadmap to better protect their citizens.
UNDRR Europe & Central Asia
37 - 40 Boulevard du Régent
Brussels 1000, Belgium
Phone: +32 22 902 588
Fax: +32 22 904 950
@UNDRR_ECA
undrr-roeca@un.org
Countries
Albania 
Andorra 
Armenia 
Austria 
Azerbaijan 
Belarus 
Belgium 
Bosnia and Herzegovina 
Bulgaria 
Croatia 
Cyprus 
Czech Republic 
Denmark 
Estonia 
Finland 
France 
Georgia 
Germany 
Greece 
Hungary 
Iceland 
Ireland 
Israel 
Italy 
Kazakhstan 
Kyrgyzstan 
Latvia 
Liechtenstein 
Lithuania 
Luxembourg 
Malta 
Moldova 
Monaco 
Montenegro 
Netherlands, the 
North Macedonia 
Norway 
Poland 
Portugal 
Romania 
Russian Federation 
San Marino 
Serbia 
Slovakia 
Slovenia 
Spain 
Sweden 
Switzerland 
Tajikistan 
Türkiye 
Turkmenistan 
Ukraine 
United Kingdom 
Uzbekistan
News and Events
Publications
The “Strengthening disaster resilience and accelerating implementation of Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction in Central Asia” 2019-2022 Action is a three year initiative supported by the European Commission. This joint initiative between the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) and the European Commission aims to build disaster and climate resilience in the five countries of Central Asia – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The Initiative will embed an approach that shifts from managing disasters to managing risks and will allow investments to be risk-informed and livelihoods and growth to be sustainable. This initiative takes a relevant place in the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. It directly supports the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 and contributes to the progressive achievement of the following SDG Goals:
- End poverty in all its forms everywhere (SDG1)
- Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation (SDG 9)
- Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable (SDG 11)
- Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts (SDG 13)
This initiative builds on the recommendations, principles, concept, tools and processes offered under the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, and the UNDRR-coordinated Making Cities Resilient (MCR) Campaign, focusing on increased use of risk knowledge and disaster data in decision and policy making. The initiative aims to set the foundation for greater resilience to disaster in Central Asia through improved data management, strengthened risk governance and increased cooperation and experience sharing at the regional, national and local level.
The expected results are:
- Disaster losses are measured and aligned with international agreements (the Sendai Framework for DRR and the Sustainable Development Goals)
- National Disaster Risk Reduction Strategies are developed, renewed or further aligned with the ten core requirements developed by the Sendai Framework for DRR.
- Increased commitments to build local-level resilience are triggered through the resilience assessment of the five capital cities
European Science & Technology Advisory Group
The European Scientific and Technical Advisory Group (E-STAG) is a voluntary group of experts providing scientific and technical support to European and Central Asian countries on the implementation of the Sendai Framework - and other relevant frameworks in the EU in close collaboration with the European Commission's Disaster Risk Management Knowledge Centre (DRMKC).
The current membership of E-STAG includes 14 national experts and 7 thematic experts, all with rich scientific, research or technical backgrounds from national platforms, science institutions, academic institutions, or technical agencies in European and Central Asia countries.
You may find the list of current members below, and more detailed biographies here.
National Experts |
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Armenia |
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Dr. Lilit Gevorgyan Researcher at the Institute of Geological Sciences at the Armenian National Academy
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Mr. Christian Resch Managing Director Disaster Competence Network Austria |
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Prof. Debarati Guha-Sapir Professor at University of Louvain, School of Public Health
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Dr. Svonko Sigmund Teaching assistant, University of Zagreb
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Prof. Myriam Merad National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), France |
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Prof. Reimund Schwarze Head of Climate Change and Extreme Events RG, Leipzig |
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Dr. Alexander Altshuler Head of the Research and Development Department at the Israel National Emergency Management Authority |
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Professor Fausto Guzzetti Head of the DPC Office for technical and scientific activities for risk forecasting and prevention |
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Dr Nina Serdar Assistant professor at the Faculty of Civil Engineering University of Montenegro, scientific-research expert in Earthquake Engineering and Seismic risk assessment |
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Dr. Elena Arefyeva Chief researcher of the All-Russian Research Institute for Civil Defense
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Dr. Blaz Komac Head of Department of Natural Hazards at the Anton Melik Geographical |
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Dr. Urbano Fra Paleo Professor in Human Geography at the University of Extremadura
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Dr. Jorgen Sparf Department of Social Sciences of the Mid Sweden University
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Prof. Mark Pelling Professor in Geography at the King’s College of London |
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Thematic Experts |
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Disaster Risk Management |
Multi-hazard risk assessment, climate risk assessment |
Risk modelling, wild fires |
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Prof. Dilanthi Amaratunga Global Disaster Resilience Center, University of Huddersfield |
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Dr. Jaroslav Mysiak Director of the Risk Assessment and Adaptation Strategies division, the Euro-Mediterranean Centre on Climate Change |
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Dr. Jean Louis Rossi Professor and coordinator of the risk modeling research group part of the project “Fire” of the University of Corte
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Data management |
Earth Observation & GIS |
Liaison with JRC |
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Mr. Massimo Migliorini Data interoperability expert |
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Prof. Alexander Siegmund Professor of Physical Geography and its Didactics at the Heidelberg University of Education and Honorary Professor of Geography at the University of Heidelberg
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Mr Ian Clarke |
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Young scientists |
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Cecilia Skarne Delivery Consultant at 4C Strategies International (London) and representative in the UN Major Group for Youth and Children (UNMGCY). |
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Dr. Signe Mikulane |
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A green and resilient recovery for Europe
COVID-19 has caused great devastation in Europe and internationally. Governments worldwide are now spending vast sums of money on the economic recovery which will significantly influence our ability to deliver a green and resilient recovery. In this report, experts who are part of the European Science and Technology Advisory Group (E-STAG), analysed the COVID-19 recovery stimulus packages in the European Union through the Next Generation EU (NGEU) program. The analysis examines the steps taken to deliver a green and resilient recovery and indicates that current action is not commensurate with the sheer scale of the challenge – the rapid accumulation of disaster risk that is systemic, interconnected and cascading.
Evolving Risk of Wildfires in Europe – Thematic paper by the European Science & Technology Advisory Group (E-STAG)
While the COVID-19 crisis is continuing to impact Europe, consuming a majority of attention and resources, other disaster risks still remain. For an increasing area of Europe, weather conditions are contributing to a dangerous wildfire season, exacerbated by a changing risk landscape. The European Science and Technology Group (E-STAG) thematic paper on wildfire aims to explain some key factors of this evolution for understanding the risk, reducing it, and avoiding the serious consequences of wildfires that have heavily impacted Europe in recent years.
Socioeconomic and data challenges: Disaster risk reduction in Europe
Disaster risk reduction (DRR) involves complex processes with different stakeholders at all administrative levels. Two elements in particular play a major role: the need to ensure stakeholders' interoperability through an efficient exchange of data, and the inclusion of socioeconomic factors which may influence DRR processes. This report aims at contributing to increase the global knowledge on these two elements, focusing on the related issues affecting DRR throughout the European continent. The information contained in this report would support national authorities and DRR stakeholders in the continued implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, and to address the specificities identified by the EFDRR Road Map.
Data interoperability for disaster risk reduction in Europe
Disaster Prevention and Management Journal, ISSN: 0965-3562 https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/DPM-09-2019-0291/full/html (Paper from the Data Group of E-STAG reported on the Disaster Prevention and Management Journal, ISSN: 0965-3562) (2019)
The role of data interoperability in disaster risk reduction: Barriers, challenges and regional initiatives
Modern society is facing an unprecedented revolution. As highlighted by the International Council of Science and the Committee on Data for Science and Technology (CODATA-ICSU,2018), digital technology offers profound opportunities for science to discover unsuspected patterns and relationships in nature and society, on scales from the molecular to the cosmic, from local health systems to global sustainability. It has created the potential for disciplines of science to synergize into a holistic understanding of the complex challenges currently confronting humanity; the Sustainable Development Goals are a direct reflection of this. Interdisciplinarity is obtained with integration of data across relevant disciplines.
- Contributions to specific sessions at the European Forum for Disaster Risk Reduction hosted by Portugal, November 2021.
- EFDRR Plenary on COVID 19 and Systemic Risks
- Scaling Up DRR in Civil Protection and Healthcare
- Resilient Infrastructure
- Science-Policy interface
- Contribution to the UNDRR Roadmap 2021-2030 endorsed by Member States in November 2021.
- Contribution to the Horizon Europe Research and Innovation programme, 2021
- E-STAG expert contribution to UKRI COP26 Adaptation and Resilience programme. October 2021
- Support to the UNDRR Office of the Americas and the Caribbean to finalise the Cultural Heritage Addendum of the Making Cities Resilient Campaign, 2021.
- Invited to facilitate the key theme: Urban Disaster Risk Reduction: Strengthening Risks Fragility and Resilience for Sustainable Development, at the “Disaster Risk Reduction – Local Resilience in Europe and Central Asia, Introduction to Geospatial Technologies for Achieving SDGs – Demographic Considerations, Organised by: United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction – Europe and Central Asia (UNDRR ROECA )and the Regional Secretariat for Making Cities Resilient 2030 for Europe and Central Asia Date: July 2021
- Representation at the Scoping Workshop on Crisis prevention, preparedness, response and resilience, European Commission , February 2021
- Representation as a member of the ISC-UNDRR Expert Review Group (ERG) for the Development of a new Global Disaster Risk Reduction Research Agenda towards 2030 and beyond. 2020 – 2021
- Contribution to the revision of the EU strategy for Climate Change Adaptation (European Commission, Directorate General, Climate Action - 2020)
- Input to the discussion paper: The Bank of England 2021 biennial exploratory scenario on the financial risks from climate change (input provided in 2020)
- Input at the Sendai Framework National Focal Points Europe and Central Asia meeting held in December 2020, on “Integrating Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness with DRR”
- Support to the Bulgarian government for the assessment of the Bulgaria Disaster Risk Strategy, performed in early 2020.
- Representation as a member of the MCR2030 Regional Coordination Committee for Europe, Making Cities Resilient 2030 (MCR2030) National Strategy Assessment for Bulgaria (2020)
- Contribution to the Hazard Information Profiles (UNDRR, 2019/2020).
- Invited to be a facilitator at the International Workshop on Local Disaster Risk Reduction Strategies, UNDRR Global Education Training Institute (GETI), Incheon, Republic of Korea. September 2019.
- Representation at the Science and Policy Forum for the Implementation of Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, 13-14 May 2019, Palais des Nations, Geneva. Co-organized by UNISDR Science Technology Advisory Groups (STAG), International Science, Council (ISC), and Integrated Research on Disaster Risk (IRDR
For more information about E-STAG, please contact undrr-roeca@un.org