Today, more and more countries are turning to ecology to reduce disaster risks and build climate change resilience.
The 3rd World Conference on Disaster Preparedness (DDR) concluded in Sendai, Japan. More than 200 delegates from around the world pledged to mitigate disaster risks through an Eco-DDR approach, and discussed the challenges and opportunities of Eco-DDR, as well as how to accelerate the implementation of Eco-DDR and build global disaster resilience.
The 15th edition of the UN Global Disaster Risk and Mitigation Assessment Report states that addressing environmental degradation, restoring ecosystems such as mangroves and forests to buffer disasters, and expanding environmental impact assessments are all important disaster mitigation issues since 2015.
International plan to enhance wetland and coastal functions: $100 million invested
"More than 95% of disasters are water-related, so the risk of disasters can be reduced through sustainable wetland management," said Jane Madgwick, CEO of Wetlands International.
Alta Jean Baptiste, Director of Civil Protection at Haiti's Ministry of the Interior, emphasized the importance of sustainable management of coastlines, especially for developing island nations like Haiti. The Haitian Ministry of Environment, in collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme, is working to protect coastal and marine ecosystems, generate sustainable income through fisheries and marine tourism, and strengthen local disaster resilience.
The Global Environment Facility (GEF), the world's largest environmental program fund jointly managed by the World Bank and the United Nations, has pledged US$100 million to support the Eco-DRR projects in Burkina Faso, Sri Lanka, and Colombia. Dr. Naoko Ishii, CEO of the GEF, pointed out that this funding will promote sustainable urban development and land-use planning.
Ecological Disaster Reduction Database; Establishment of Incentive Mechanism
Key messages delivered at the meeting also included the importance of establishing collaborative platforms, continuously building an ecological disaster reduction database, defining the success or failure of ecological disaster reduction, incentivizing investment in ecological disaster reduction, and mobilizing civil society and private enterprises to cooperate in ecological disaster reduction.
Pa Ousman Jarju, an official from Gambia's Ministry of Environment, Climate Change, Water Resources, Parks and Wildlife, emphasized that overcoming organizational barriers and enabling collaboration among different entities to accelerate ecological disaster reduction is crucial.
Ivo Menzinger, CEO of Swiss Re Asia Pacific, shared his experience in collaborating with nature conservation associations to develop cost-effective ecological disaster reduction strategies. "Based on our research on Hurricane Sandy, 40% of the 60% of disaster risks that can be reduced can be mitigated through ecological disaster reduction laws."
Sources: Environmental Information Center(2015-03-23)
