Media Contacts:
Abi Weaver
American Red Cross
+1 202 303 5551 media line
media@usa.redcross.org
Francesco Fiondella
Inter’l Research Institute for Climate and Society
+1 845 680 4476 office; +1 646 321 2271 mobile
francesco@iri.columbia.edu
Climate Information Crucial to Help Reduce Risk and Limit Disaster Damage
June 21/Washington– Forecasts can play an invaluable role when used properly in helping humanitarian
agencies and governments plan for and prevent disasters, according to a new report launched
[http://iri.columbia.edu/csp] today at the American Red Cross Headquarters in Washington D.C.
Climate and weather disasters, from the massive floods in Pakistan, Australia and Colombia, to the
devastating drought in Niger, have claimed thousands of lives and caused billions of dollars in damages
in the last year. According to statistics from the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters,
these types of disasters have risen significantly in the last few decades. Scientists expect changes in
climate will make extreme events more frequent and intense in the future.
Governments and humanitarian organizations, such as the United Nations’ Office for the Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Federation of
Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) are placing greater emphasis on trying to prevent and
minimize the impact of disasters by making earlier and better informed decisions ahead of time. The
new report, called A Better Climate for Disaster Risk Management, is the latest in the Climate and
Society series produced by the International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI). The IRI
published the report in partnership with OCHA, IFRC, WFP, the CGIAR Research Program on Climate
Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS), and the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA).
The report details ways in which disaster risk managers can improve their decision making by integrating
climate information into their operations. Monthly, seasonal and long-term climate forecasts typically
provided by national meteorological agencies and expert institutions such as NOAA and the IRI can guide
contingency planning, logistical preparations, and resource-allocation decisions. At the same time,
information about how the climate is likely to change in coming decades helps disaster managers
evaluate how investments made today will stand up to future extremes.
“ What we are able to show in the report is that climate information providers and humanitarian actors
can effectively communicate and develop useful working relationships,” says the publication’s director,
Molly Hellmuth. “And when they do, there is great potential to save lives and reduce the impacts of
disasters–which is a real motivation to both groups."
In 2008, IFRC issued its first-ever international emergency appeal based on a seasonal climate forecast,
using this forecast to develop contingency plans, preposition stocks, and train volunteers to respond to
floods in West Africa. When floods occurred in Togo, Senegal, Ghana and the Gambia, national Red
Cross societies were ready and able to distribute emergency supplies within 48 hours. The previous
year, without the climate forecast, responding to floods took 40 days and cost three times as much per
beneficiary.
CLIMATE
C
HANGE
AGRICULTUREAND
FOOD SECURITY
A Better Climate for Disaster Risk Management details this and 16 other examples including: integrating
rainfall and hurricane forecasts into planning in post-earthquake Haiti; using climate information to
increase long-term food security in Kenya; and using games to help humanitarian workers better
understand how to use complex climate information. The key lessons and recommendations in the
report include:
Weather and climate information, especially seasonal forecasts, can be used to help reduce the impacts
of disasters by informing preparedness, disaster prevention, and emergency response.
Partnerships between climate scientists and disaster risk managers are essential to develop trust and
create actionable information. “The best, actionable climate information arises out of a dialogue
between climate scientists and disaster risk managers–it can’t be a one-way process,” says Maarten van
Aalst of the Red Cross/Red Crescent Climate Centre, one of the report’s authors. “This requires investing
in a relationship that promotes knowledge sharing, trust and creativity.”
Climate information needs to be integrated into existing decision-making platforms to ensure disaster
managers can use it in their daily activities and that it helps generate concrete action.
Immediate gains can be made to improve disaster risk management in areas of the world where
seasonal forecasts are more reliable, and where better-informed humanitarian decisions can provide
relatively strong and immediate returns on investment.
Better funding mechanisms linked to climate early warning are needed. Governments, humanitarian
organizations and donors should provide stronger support for preparedness and prevention measures,
including more systematic funding for early action based on relevant climate information.
“We recognize that preventing and managing disasters is extremely complex and goes beyond just using
climate information,” says IRI Director-General, Steve Zebiak. “However, in our partnership to save lives
with the IFRC, we have seen the tangible value of improved preparedness when climate informs
disaster-risk management.”
# # #
About the International Research Institute for Climate and Society
The International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI), part of the Earth Institute at Columbia
University, aims to enhance society’s ability to understand, anticipate and manage the impacts of
climate in order to improve human welfare and the environment, especially in developing countries.
From environmental monitoring and forecasting to climate-related risk management tools and practices
in water resources, public health, agriculture, and food security, IRI and its partners focus on
opportunities to build capacity for bringing climate information into regional planning and decision
making. For more information, please visit http://iri.columbia.edu or follow @climatesociety on Twitter.
About the American Red Cross
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies
nearly half of the nation's blood; teaches lifesaving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and
supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization — not a
government agency — and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform
CLIMATE
C
HANGE
AGRICULTUREAND
FOOD SECURITY
its mission. For more information, please visit www.redcross.org or join our blog at
http://blog.redcross.org.
About the IFRC
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is the world's largest
humanitarian organization, with 186 member National Societies. As part of the International Red Cross
and Red Crescent Movement, our work is guided by seven fundamental principles; humanity,
impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity and universality. For more information,
go to www.ifrc.org.
About the World Food Programme
WFP is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide. Each year, on average, WFP
feeds more than 90 million people in more than 70 countries. For more information, go to
www.wfp.org.
About OCHA
OCHA is the part of the United Nations Secretariat responsible for bringing together humanitarian actors
to ensure a coherent response to emergencies. OCHA also ensures there is a framework within which
each actor can contribute to the overall response effort. OCHA's mission is to mobilize and coordinate
effective and principled humanitarian action in partnership with national and international actors in
order to alleviate human suffering in disasters and emergencies; to advocate the rights of people in
need; to promote preparedness and prevention; and to facilitate sustainable solutions. For more
information, go to www.unocha.org
About CCAFS
The CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) is a strategic
partnership of the CGIAR and the Earth System Science Partnership (ESSP). CCAFS brings together the
world’s best researchers in agricultural science, development research, climate science and Earth
System science, to identify and address the most important interactions, synergies and tradeoffs
between climate change, agriculture and food security. The CGIAR Lead Center of the program is the
International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) in Cali, Columbia. For more information, visit
www.ccafs.cgiar.org.
About NOAA
The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration conducts research and gathers data about
the global oceans, atmosphere, space, and sun, and applies this knowledge to science and service that
touch the lives of all Americans. NOAA warns of dangerous weather, charts our seas and skies, guides
our use and protection of ocean and coastal resources, and conducts research to improve our
understanding and stewardship of the environment which sustains us all. For further information, please
go to http://www.publicaffairs.noaa.gov.
CLIMATE
C
HANGE
AGRICULTUREAND
FOOD SECURITY