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Jennifer Guralnick

UNISDR Americas

jguralnick@eird.org

www.eird.org

/ www.eird.org/hfa.html

Building the Resilience of Nations and Communities to 

Disasters

10 October, 2011

Regional and Global Climate Risk Management  Activities for Disaster Risk Reduction and 

Resilience

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Disasters ‐

a development concern:  emerging trends…

•

More than 90% of deaths related to disasters occur in 

developing countries.

•

Statistics: more disasters; fewer people dying; more people 

affected; economic losses increasing.

•

Population growth, increased urban migration, informal 

settlements, poverty levels, the impact of development 

processes, all contribute to exposure to hazards.

•

Localized and systemic environmental degradation

is lowering 

the natural resilience to disasters.

•

Climate change

will increase the frequency and strength of 

weather‐related hazards.

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• The hardest hit by disasters in 2010, with 373 registered events

• Earthquakes caused the most deaths (Haiti and Chile), followed by floods (Brazil, Honduras, Colombia, Nicaragua, USA, Mexico and others), storms (Guatemala and Mexico mostly) and extreme temperature (Brazil).

• 2010 Atlantic hurricane season: 21 systems including 12 hurricanes such as Hurricane Tomas affecting 10 Caribbean countries (Bahamas, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Haiti, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, and Turks and Caicos)

• 2010 Pacific Hurricane: 13 cyclones, affecting mostly Mexico and Guatemala

• Epidemiological related deaths: over 3,300 deaths in Haiti alone due to the cholera outbreak

Sources: CRED, EM-DAT, IFRC, OPS, others

2010 at a Glance: The Americas

Region of the Americas:

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Multi‐Hazard

Map: LAC

Source: GAR 2009; Chapter

2, p. 24

DisasterDisaster

ReductionReduction

anan

agenda in agenda in progressprogress

1989:1989:IDNDRIDNDR

19901990‐‐19991999

I994:I994:YokohamaYokohamaStrategyStrategy

andand

ActionAction

PlanPlan

2000:2000:

ISDRISDR

2002:2002:SustainableSustainable

DevelopmentDevelopment

PlanPlanJohanesburgoJohanesburgo

(WSSD)(WSSD)

2005:2005:HyogoHyogo

FrameworkFramework

forfor

ActionAction

Promotion

of

disaster

reduction, 

mainly

by 

scientific

and

technical

people

Mid‐term

review

of

the

IDNDR, the

first

guidance

document

on

risk

reduction

policies

(socially

and

community

oriented

)

Increased

public

commitment

and

link with

sustainable

development, 

enhanced

cooperation

and

international

partnerships. 

Mechanisms: IATF / 

DR, Secretariat

of

the

ISDR, the

UN 

Trust

Fund

It includes a new 

section on "An 

integrated, 

comprehensive and 

multi‐threats 

approach to address 

the issue of 

vulnerability, risk 

assessment and 

disaster 

management…"

Building the 

Resilience of 

Nations andCommunities to 

Disaster

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1.

Make DRR a priority:

Ensure that reducing disaster risk is a national and local 

priority with a strong institutional basis for implementation

2.

Know the risks and take action:

Identify, assess and monitor disaster risk and 

ensure early warning

3.

Build understanding and awareness:

Use knowledge, innovation and 

education to build a culture of safety and resilience at 

all levels 

4.

Reduce risk:

Reduce underlying risk factors

5.

Be prepared and ready to act:

Strengthen disaster 

preparedness for effective response at all levels  

Priorities of the Hyogo Framework for Action

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ISDR system levels of action (“platforms”)

National implementationNational frameworks, multi‐stakeholders, and multi disciplinary withSupport from UN country team – when appropriate 

ThematicBuilding on existing networks, clusters, programmes and other mechanisms

RegionalBased on existing regional and sub‐regional strategies and mechanisms

ISDR prog

ramme

coordina

ted internationa

lan

d region

alefforts to sup

port nationa

l and

 

local cap

acities

Global Platform  report to GAAnnual sessionsSubsidiary Programme Advisory/Committee

IIThe Hyogo Framework for Action 2005‐2015 

9Fuente:  Climatic Research Unit, 2010

Source: 2009 Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction: Risk and poverty in a changing climate

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In December 2010, at the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Cancun (COP16), Parties asserted the importance of enhancing climate change-related disaster risk reduction strategies, taking into consideration the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) where appropriate.

The attention to disaster risk reduction in the Cancun Adaptation Framework signals strong national ownership of disaster risk reduction, and the established processes for formulating and implementing national adaptation plans present an influential means of scaling up disaster risk reduction through multisectoral, multi-stakeholder processes.

The Link: DRR & CC

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Among the Conclusions of the II Session of the Regional Platform for DRR in the Americas

Nayarit, Mexico – March 2011

•Increasing vulnerability related to existing socioeconomic development processes

•Need for greater integration of DRR and CCA in context of sustainable development: Regulatory and institutional framworks

•Requiere political and financial committment with long-term vision for DRR and CCA

•Instruments to measure DRR & CCA for decision-making at all levels (land-use planning and public investment)

DRR Regional Platform for the Americas 

2011

At the Sub/Regional Level:

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•Institutional frameworks remain differentiated and lacking DRR / CCA articulation

•Lack of CC scenarios and georeferenced information on exposure and vulnerability for risk analyses

•Disarticulation between CC and hazard analyses within public policies surrounding territorial planning

•Lack of DRR investments and indicators for measuring effectiveness: Limited economic resources for DRR & CCA

•Governance: Few actions for reducing fiscal risk

DRR Regional Platform for the Americas 2011

At the National Level:

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•Local governments play an important role in territorial land-use planning but with limited technical, economic and institutional capacities for incorporating DRR & CCA

•Social, political problems and conflict must be addressed directly within reconstruction and relocation processes

•Local governments dependent upon other administrative levels for accessing resources and decision-making surrounding DRR and CCA

•Difficulties surrounding early warning information: reception and dissemination

DRR Regional Platform for the Americas 2011

At the Local Level:

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Global Platform for DRR III Session: GP11

Geneva, 8-13 May, 2011: Over 2,600 delegates: 163 Governments, 25 IGOs, 65 NGOs, parliamentarians, private sector, local government, academic institutions, civil society and international organizations:

Critical steps identified

• Invest for DRR

• Disaster Loss Database / Registers

• Reduce the underlying factors of risk

• Urban risk and local level in particular

DRR & CCA within framework of sustainable development

DRR priorities at the 

global and regional levels

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Strengthening the synergies between disaster and climate risk reduction initiatives is an indispensable step towards reducing vulnerability.

Particular attention needs to be paid to focused, applied actions targeting disaster risk reduction through climate risk management strategies.

Any future framework for sustainable development needs to includea clear prescription for incorporation of disaster and climate risk management.

Poverty and vulnerability reduction are integral to effective disaster risk management.

National disaster loss registers, disaster risk mapping and financialtracking systems need to be established and further developed to effectivelysupport future development planning and investment choices.

Effective risk reduction implies the full engagement of local governments and their communities, with the appropriate authority, and the human and financial capacity, engaged in the definition of national risk management policies.

DRR & CC: A common agenda

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Mechanisms for promoting DRR and 

CCA Joint Agenda

• Formulation of IPCC reports, adaptation plans, national communications, briefing notes

• IPCC Special Report on DRR and extreme events: Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and Disasters to Advance Climate Change Adaptation (SREX)"

• Advocacy in High-Level Meetings

• Inclusion of DRR in National CC Communications and Adaptation Plans; CC in National DRR coordination mechanisms (Platforms)

• Inclusion of CC in HFA Reporting (Local, National, Regional and Global)

Still much to be done!

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Some Concrete Examples

• Regional DRR & CC reports from Central America and Andean Community of Nations (CAN), others

• Peru considering DRR in the formulation of its National Adaptation Plan (NAP)

• Uruguay national adaptation proposal including DRR

• Argentinean Territorial Strategic Plan: incorporation of adaptation measures to CC & DRR within public investment and planning processes Argentinean National Climate Change Unit (Environment Secretariat) and the Ministry of Planning and Investment

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“Countries that incorporate climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction into their budgets and development planning will be better placed to protect hard-won development gains and accelerate progress towards the Millennium Development Goals… Reducing disaster risk is a job for all. The more that governments, UN agencies, organizations, the private sector and civil society understand risk and vulnerability, the better equipped they will be to mitigate disasters when they strike - as they most certainly will.”

Words of Wisdom

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moonRemarks at General Assembly informal thematic debate on DRR 09 February 2011, New York (United States)

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[Bird Flu]

Source: The Guardian Newspaper [TnT]

New Challenges

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Jennifer Guralnick

UNISDR Americas

jguralnick@eird.org

www.eird.org

/ www.eird.org/hfa.htmlwww.unisdr.org

/ www.preventionweb.net

Thank you!