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Displaying 15 of about 32 resultsGENEVA, 21 May 2013 - Senior government officials from developing small island states and climate change experts have warned of a massive increase in human, economic and material losses in these countries if risk reduction measures are not taken urgently to mitigate the impacts of major hazards and climate change.
The warning was issued by repres…
CANCUN, Mexico, 25 May 2017 – Efforts to reduce disaster death tolls in Portugal, Iran, Brazil and Fiji have been honoured by an international award from the United Nations and Japan’s Nippon Foundation.
Issued at the 2017 Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction, the biennial Sasakawa Award recognised projects that have made a substantial contribut…
Geneva, 11 January 2012 - Estimates of between $350 billion to $380 billion in global economic losses from disasters have made 2011 the most expensive year in history for catastrophes, according to the insurance industry.
The earthquakes in Japan in March and New Zealand in February accounted for the bulk of these losses, according to estimates issued…
Stuart Mawbey is an emergency service volunteer worker and manager as well as a person living with disabilities. He has spent the last 15 years assisting in emergencies in the Australian States of South Australia and New South Wales. Here he reflects on the immense personal satisfaction he derives from his volunteerism as well as the ongoing challenges…
On 8 February 2023, the Making Cities Resilient 2030 (MCR) Regional Coordinating Committee (RCC) for Asia-Pacific met virtually to review progress made in 2022 and identify priority areas of work for 2023. Among the MCR2030 success stories of 2022 are numerous cities like Kulhuffushi City in the Maldives and Ormoc and Baguio City in the Philippines that…
Press release 2012/02
302 human impact disasters claimed 29,782 lives; affected 206 million and inflicted record economic damages of $366 billion in 2011
Geneva – For two consecutive years the long-term disasters trend has been bucked by major earthquakes which claimed thousands of lives and affected millions in both 2010 and 2011, according to new st…
BANGKOK – The UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) launched an online Quick Risk Estimation (QRE) Tool to help small businesses and enterprises, including those in the informal sector, to better understand their exposure and vulnerability to disaster risks, especially in the context of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Business resilience an…
BANGKOK - The COVID-19 pandemic poses unique challenges in response and recovery. Governments are trying to manage the shock in the face of existing societal threats like poverty and inequality. Nevertheless, the COVID-19 recovery process has the potential to be a transformational event for many countries. The road to recovery offers cou…
HONIARA, Solomon Islands, 2 March 2018 – Less than 24 hours after Honiara launched a major review of its disaster resilience planning, heavy rain and flash floods provided an immediate test of the city’s preparedness.
Honiara Mayor Andrew Leonard Mua OBE activated the Emergency Operations Centre as water cascaded down from the highlands above the city,…
SYDNEY, Australia, 16 March 2016 - Australian businesses are coming together to improve community safety and outcomes following natural disasters in a country that is confronted reguarly by events such as bushfires, floods, cyclones and severe storm activity.
The costs of natural disasters exceeded A$9 billion in 2015, and it is estimated that, without…
GENEVA, 21 June 2013 - Two countries sitting at opposite ends of the world are emerging as beacons of good practice in terms of innovative public-private partnerships that have been proven to reduce disaster risk.
More than 18,000km separates New Zealand from Scotland but the two countries are much closer when it comes to pursuing proactive partnership…
GENEVA, 1 May 2013 - When college sophomore Sam Johnson started a Facebook page following the September 2010 earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand, to rally his peers to help affected communities, he never imagined that his idea would eventually mobilize an 'army' of young people across the country to take up similar efforts.
Nor could he have imagin…
GENEVA - The leader of Fiji’s disaster-hit Western Division has pledged to forge an integrated cross-sectoral strategy to achieve a safer and more resilient future.
Western Division Commissioner Mr Joeli Cawaki and his team of technical experts told the head of the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), Ms Margareta Wahlström, that integrated…
Over the last 20 years, disasters in Asia-Pacific have become more numerous and expensive, and cities are where the impacts of these disasters are most acutely felt. Climate change is one large driver of risk, but urbanization and the increase in population density can lead to the creation of new risks. Moreover, cities are sometimes uniquely vulnerable…
13 October 2016, GENEVA –The UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Disaster Risk Reduction, Mr. Robert Glasser, today marked International Day for Disaster Reduction by recognising five outstanding examples of successful efforts to reduce disaster mortality.
Today marks the beginning of the “Sendai Seven Campaign: Seven Targets, Seven Years…