Climate hazards are already causing disasters with huge environmental, humanitarian, and economic impacts across the globe. As climate change continues to worsen and weather extremes become more frequent and intense, the consequences of these disasters will continue to escalate and our ability to anticipate and recover from them will be limited, including irreversible impacts for physical and social systems.
Science has made significant progress in projecting climate and related natural hazard risks and developed useful approaches for risk management and adaptation. However, the policy response to climate risks and the implementation of such approaches have often been limited and fragmented across the continent. Whilst some policies and approaches have been taken to anticipate and minimise the harm of such hazards, action remains insufficient, and often reactive rather than preventive. This session will connect what we know about climate hazards and risks, what we are currently doing to prepare for them or manage them, and what can be done to ensure adapted and comprehensive policies can be implemented.
A panel of experts including scientists, policymakers and practitioners will outline Europe’s current adaptation approaches as well as other methods that are currently working well. They will then discuss the limitations of existing approaches, policies, and tools and some of the challenges that exist exist in various sectors and spatial scales. Among the themes to be tackled, this GeoPanel will discuss the challenge of preparing for and managing cascading and compounding risks, building cohesive, EU-wide legislation and tools, and address climate impacts such as chronic, slow-onset hazards.
Lastly, the panel will explore concrete solutions currently in development, including the Integrated Resilience Framework, tools such as the European Climate Viewer, and examples of how effective climate hazards management have been implemented on a local level by policymakers, practitioners, and industry leaders.