Posts tagged with 'disaster risk management'
For Women in Nairobi’s Informal Settlements, Floods Don’t End When the Water Recedes
For Women in Nairobi’s Informal Settlements, Floods Don’t End When the Water Recedes
When floodwater entered Virginia’s single-family home in Mathare, an informal settlement in Nairobi, it washed away much more than her furniture — upending all her sources of security while reshaping her life. Before the floods, she owned 15 rental rooms, ...
The Best Defense Against 'Natural' Disasters Is Nature Itself
The Best Defense Against ‘Natural’ Disasters Is Nature Itself
I’ve watched in horror as Europe burns. Ferocious wildfires have swept through Spain, France and now Greece, scorching towns and forests and spewing toxic smoke. Hundreds of thousands of people have fled their homes. Many will have little left to return to. European ...
Rwanda’s Cities Turn to Green-Gray Infrastructure to Address Climate Risks
Rwanda’s Cities Turn to Green-Gray Infrastructure to Address Climate Risks
Over the next few decades, Rwanda is positioned to become one of the most competitive investment destinations in East Africa. National targets, such as achieving upper middle-income status by 2035 and high-income status by 2050 (Vision 2050)1, signal the government’s ...
Utah Pioneers a New Model for Wildfire Resilience
Utah Pioneers a New Model for Wildfire Resilience
Twenty years ago, the forested slopes above Alpine Acres — a small community at the source of the Weber River in Summit County, Utah — were overgrown with dry brush and primed for wildfire. With only one road in and ...
Inside Colombia’s New 2035 Climate Plan: What You Need to Know
Inside Colombia’s New 2035 Climate Plan: What You Need to Know
The center of gravity for climate progress is shifting. Increasingly, many of the countries driving the global climate transition are those that have contributed the least to historical emissions yet are among the most vulnerable to climate impacts. Emerging economies are showing ...
Meet CityMetrics: An Open-Source, Interactive Tool for Analyzing Urban Risks and Opportunities
Meet CityMetrics: An Open-Source, Interactive Tool for Analyzing Urban Risks and Opportunities
Which neighborhoods are suffering the most from rising urban heat? Where is flooding the biggest challenge? What other cities around the world are struggling with air pollution, and what can we learn from those that have improved the quality of ...
Are Countries’ New Climate Plans Ambitious Enough? What We Know So Far
Are Countries’ New Climate Plans Ambitious Enough? What We Know So Far
2025 is a pivotal moment for climate action. Countries are submitting new national climate commitments, known as “nationally determined contributions” or “NDCs,” that will shape the trajectory of global climate progress through 2035. These new commitments will show how boldly ...
4 Levers to Help Scale Net-Zero Carbon and Resilient Housing
4 Levers to Help Scale Net-Zero Carbon and Resilient Housing
The built environment accounts for over one-third of global emissions. In rapidly developing markets like India and Mexico, a surge in housing construction faces a pivotal choice: lock in high-carbon infrastructure or, with the right interventions, enable resilient, low-carbon designs and ...
Climate Action Has a Messaging Problem
Climate Action Has a Messaging Problem
In the summer of 2024, Dutch citizens ranked climate change as the most serious problem facing the world. Just a few months later, they elected a national government that ran on a platform of pulling back its climate policies. This isn’t just ...
After a Devastating Earthquake, Marrakech Plans to Build Back Better
After a Devastating Earthquake, Marrakech Plans to Build Back Better
In September 2023, a 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck Morocco, killing over 3,000 people and devastating communities and infrastructure across Greater Marrakech. The Marrakech Medina, a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Site, was hit particularly hard. ...
Managing Extremes: How South African Cities Are Tackling Water Crises
Managing Extremes: How South African Cities Are Tackling Water Crises
With about 464 millimeters of rainfall per year — less than half the global average — South Africa is one of the driest countries in the world. Its semi-arid climate, uneven rainfall distribution and persistent droughts leave the country facing chronic water ...
River Restored: How Litter Traps & Local Art Are Reviving Johannesburg’s Jukskei River 
River Restored: How Litter Traps & Local Art Are Reviving Johannesburg’s Jukskei River 
In Gauteng Province, the Jukskei River winds its way through the heart of Johannesburg’s inner-city neighborhoods, informal settlements and suburban areas, eventually joining the Crocodile and Limpopo rivers before emptying into the Indian Ocean. One of the biggest waterways in ...
The Small Acts Building Urban Climate Resilience
The Small Acts Building Urban Climate Resilience
Resilience in cities is often framed around large-scale infrastructure projects and sweeping policy shifts. We see headlines about billion-dollar climate adaptation plans, smart cities leveraging AI for disaster response and ambitious net-zero pledges. But some of the most impactful solutions ...
Financing Urban Resilience: Making Nature-Based Solutions Central to Africa’s Development Agenda
Financing Urban Resilience: Making Nature-Based Solutions Central to Africa’s Development Agenda
Despite accounting for less than 3% of global terrestrial area, cities have had an outsized impact on our approach to planetary boundaries, affecting biodiversity and consumption of materials and energy. Studies show that cities have become responsible for 78% of carbon emissions, ...
How Subnational Governments Are Shaping Colombia’s Next-Generation Climate Commitments
How Subnational Governments Are Shaping Colombia’s Next-Generation Climate Commitments
Colombia is currently updating its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), which will be submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) later this year. This update aims to highlight Colombia’s national priorities, such as biodiversity and food security, ...
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