Strengthening Disaster Resilience is Essential to Sustainable Development (2016)

Losses due to disasters are increasing in both developed and developing countries. Human factors together with increased extreme events aggravate the negative consequences of hazards. In the globalized 21st century, a disaster in one country creates disruptions in others. In 2015, the international community agreed on three major accords: the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

To expedite the Sendai Framework, G-Science Academies exhort six policy actions for disaster resilience and sustainable development:

• (1) Develop metrics and indicators for evaluating exposure, vulnerability and resilience;
• (2) Advance science and technical knowledge and improve assessment of disaster risk including building relevant data infrastructure;
• (3) Develop innovative engineering for disaster prevention and raise political and public awareness;
• (4) Strengthen inter- and trans-disciplinary collaborative efforts to accelerate our transformations to a sustainable world;
• (5) Engage the investor community; and
• (6) Initiate a forum for information sharing with the private sector and relevant stakeholders to provide practical solutions.