Research briefs

Keep up to date with the latest research on disaster risk and resilience on the PreventionWeb knowledge base.

Explore cutting-edge research on disaster risk reduction and resilience through PreventionWeb's dedicated research briefs section. Our platform curates and highlights the most recent academic studies, providing valuable insights into disaster risk management. Each research brief distills key findings from peer-reviewed journals and academic publications.

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These briefs are designed to keep you informed about the latest scientific advances. Links to the full publications are always included, ensuring easy access to in-depth knowledge. Please note that this section exclusively features academic research, distinct from reports by international organizations or Non-Governmental Organisations.

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Research briefs

Study suggests US droughts, rainy extremes becoming more severe

Severe drought in the American Southwest and Mexico and more severe wet years in the Northeast are the modern norm in North America, according to new research – and the analysis suggests these seasonal patterns will be more extreme in the future.
Ohio State University
Illustration of houses and cars in a village during a flood.
Research briefs

Traditional infrastructure design often makes extreme flooding events worse

Massive 2014 flooding event in southeast Michigan showed why systems thinking beats local thinking in flood protection
University of Michigan
Research briefs

Extreme heat linked to diabetes in pregnant women, thyroid disorders: Study

There are links between extreme temperatures and gestational diabetes in pregnant women, as well as between heat and thyroid disorders.
Straits Times, the
A tired and stressed worker sweating from the hot weather in the summer working in a port goods cargo shipping logistic ground,
Research briefs

Heat waves, droughts cause billions of dollars in global economic losses

Severe weather costs the global economy billions of dollars a year, highlighting the costs of climate change and the value of mitigating extreme weather, according to a new analysis of weather and economic data.
University of Florida
A farmer overlooking his dried up field.
Research briefs

Climate change key driver of extreme drought in water scarce Sicily and Sardinia

Sicily and Sardinia, important centres of agriculture and tourism have suffered from exceptionally low rainfall and very high temperatures over the last 12 months, culminating in extreme drought conditions from May 2024 onwards.
World Weather Attribution
Research briefs

The climate drivers behind southwest India’s intensifying heat waves

A recent study finds that heat waves over southwest India are influenced by major climatic modes, including El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO), and the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD).
Mongabay
An elderly man drinks from a water bottle on a hot day
Research briefs

Older women more vulnerable to heat than their male peers, researchers find

A new study by researchers at Penn State has found that older women are physiologically more vulnerable to high heat and humidity than older men, and that women between the ages of 40 and 64 are as vulnerable as men 65 years of age or older.
Pennsylvania State University
Nairobi, Kenya
Research briefs

Global South cities lack cooling green spaces

A study has found that Global South cities have just 70% of the “cooling capacity” provided by urban greenery in the Global North.
University of Exeter

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