Knowledge Base highlights and editors' picks

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Every week the PreventionWeb team of editors selects the latest news and research, reports and publications on disaster risk reduction – here is their selection of the latest must-read content.

Flooded Vibhavadi-Rangsit road after heavy rain in Bangkok, Thailand

Update

8 November 2023

NASA analysis finds strong El Niño could bring extra floods this winter

Such high-tide flooding that inundates roads and buildings along the west coast of the Americas tends to be uncommon outside of El Niño years, but that could change by the 2030s.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Documents and publications

9 November 2023

Getting ahead of disasters: Launch of a charter on finance for managing risks

This Charter sets out principles for collaborative action to ensure better use of finance to manage risks and protect people in the most vulnerable countries from climate-related disasters.

Update

7 November 2023

Ecosystems as infrastructure: A new way of looking at climate resilience

The director of Columbia University’s Urban Design Program believes that architects should do more than just create beautiful spaces: They need to work with nature to create climate resilient living environments that help knit human communities together.

Yale Environment 360

woman collecting water in the parched wetlands of the Central Marshes of southern Iraq

Update

8 November 2023

Human-induced climate change compounded by socio-economic water stressors increased severity of drought in Syria, Iraq and Iran

From boreal winter 2020 onwards, a large region in West Asia has suffered from exceptionally low rains and elevated temperatures. The resulting 3-year drought has led to severe impacts on agriculture and access to potable water.

World Weather Attribution

A family observes the aftermath of flooding on the banks of the Danube

Research briefs

6 November 2023

Looking beyond our borders would improve preparedness for extreme floods

Almost all extreme flooding across Europe could be anticipated by looking at previous major events in other similar parts of the continent, according to a new study.

UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology

Relief workers distribute rice in a warehouse in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan

Research briefs

8 November 2023

Oxfam Pilipinas calls for proactive spending of disaster funds on Yolanda’s 10th anniversary

Humanitarian and development organization Oxfam Pilipinas urges local governments to shift from reactive spending to a proactive approach by utilizing local calamity funds effectively.

Oxfam International Secretariat

Update

6 November 2023

Pakistan: Devastating floods have widened spatial disparities

On the request of the Government of Pakistan, the World Bank reconstructed key transport infrastructure through a developed model that estimates accessibility to services at small scales using geospatial and remote sensing data.

World Bank, the

Woman fetching water from a borehole, Nigeria.

Research briefs

2 November 2023

Scientists map loss of groundwater storage around the world

A new study maps, for the first time, the permanent loss of aquifer storage capacity occurring globally.

Desert Research Institute (DRI)

Commuters wade knee deep floods in Jakarta, Indonesia

Research briefs

6 November 2023

New model adds human reactions to flood risk assessment

Researchers at North Carolina State University have created a land change model that simulates interactions between urban growth, increased flooding and how humans adapt in response, offering a more realistic assessment of risk.

North Carolina State University

Yellow tsunami hazard zone warning sign in Bali, Indonesia

Update

6 November 2023

How business can contribute to tsunami preparedness: Examples from Fiji, Haiti, and Sri Lanka

In support of government efforts to raise awareness and prepare vulnerable communities for the possible occurrence of a tsunami, stakeholders such as business networks may organize activities to contribute to tsunami preparedness.

Connecting Business initiative