International Panel Discussion: Climate Services to Support Risk-Informed Decision-Making for Building Resilience to Weather Extremes in a Changing Climate

Every day, news from many corners of the world point to more loss of life and significant direct and indirect economic losses caused by the disasters related to weather-, water- and climate-related hazards. Building resilience to disasters and protecting critical infrastructure (e.g., transportation, health, water management, energy, agriculture and food security, etc) are at the core of priorities of international cooperation in disaster risk reduction, facilitated through the adoption of Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015 (HFA) by 168 countries at the second World Conference on Disaster Reduction (2005, Kobe, Japan). HFA has resulted in a paradigm shift from post disaster response to a comprehensive approach that would also include prevention and preparedness measures. HFA has facilitated unprecedented international cooperation among international development, humanitarian and scientific and technical agencies to assist Member States with a coordinated approach to build resilience to disasters. Furthermore, under the UNFCCC international agreements and related Damage and Loss Programme as well as the Global Framework for Climate Services, critical developments are underway to facilitate provision of science-based climate services to support risk-informed decision-making. Effective inter- and intra-sectoral risk reduction measures should be -informed, be underpinned by clear and consistent policies, legislation and legal frameworks at all levels of government and leverage partnerships (public and private). This invited panel/discussion session will explore opportunities of the weather and climate services to support risk analysis and provide fundamental information as input to policy development and risk-based decision-making tools, used by practitioners to reduce impacts and develop resilience to extreme events. Following a 20-minute presentation by the keynote speaker, each of the invited panelists will make a 10-minute statement, followed by a facilitated, interactive question and answer period.