UNDRR News

Panama, 23 July 2012 - Concern about earthquakes and tsunamis brought together 33 Mayors in the Dominican Republic this month to express their support for the UNISDR “Making Cities Resilient” campaign and to demand budgetary support from central government for disaster risk reduction measures in their cities and towns.

The two largest and most destructive forest fires in Colorado’s history yesterday prompted U.S. President Barack Obama to issue a disaster declaration for the state.

The largest UN summit ever organized closes today with an urgent worldwide call for accelerated implementation of the international blueprint for disaster risk reduction agreed by all UN member States seven years ago.

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.

A meeting of 1,000 business executives gathered at Rio+20 heard a passionate plea for resilience from Aris Papadopoulos, CEO of Titan America, a large cement manufacturer, who is also chairman of UNISDR's Private Sector Advisory Group.

Around 200 legislators from 74 countries and the European Union met yesterday on the sidelines of the UN Rio+20 sustainable development conference to approve a "Legislators' Protocol," containing a set of "Rio Scrutiny Principles" to strengthen legislators' capacity to hold governments to account on promises made at development conferences including Rio+20.

As the 2012 Atlantic Hurricane Season kicks off, all 16 member governments of the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF) have committed for the sixth year in a row to renew their hurricane and earthquake insurance for 2012-2013 and earned themselves a 25% premium rebate.

Whether the discussion is on jobs, food, energy, water, oceans or sustainable cities, inclusive dialogue is key, say UN agencies on the sidelines of Rio+20, the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, as negotiators enter the last round of talks on an outcome document ahead of the conference's official start next week.

The magnitude 4.0 earthquake recorded off the coast of Antigua on 11 May is "a warning that the Caribbean should prepare for a much more severe earthquake to come," says a leading expert.

Peru launched a recruitment drive this week for UNISDR's Making Cities Resilient campaign and 14 municipalities signed up yesterday in Lima to deliver on the campaign's "Ten Essentials."