2.1. CRED Report 2015 and Climate-related Disasters

When we say about from the CRED report 2015, this is what the map you get the EM-DAT has recorded about 240 climate-related disasters per year before 2000. When compared to the 341 per year so that there is a 44% of increase.

According to the CRED report from 2015, there have been significant changes in the number of climate-related disasters globally. Before the year 2000, an average of 240 disasters occurred each year. After that period, this number rose to an average of 341 disasters annually, indicating a 44% increase. This highlights how climate change is leading to more frequent disasters, suggesting a concerning trend that needs attention.

Think of a neighborhood where storms used to happen once in a while. If you notice that storms are now occurring almost every other month, it shows a clear uptick in the frequency of storms, similar to the increase in climate-related disasters noted in the report.

If you look at the classification of the disasters, It is just a geophysical disaster which we are talking about the earthquake or the tsunami or these are most of the landslides which are more related to the geophysical aspects of it, and they are very less. But whereas here it is going almost these are climatically whether it is a hydrological or meteorological aspects so this is where the climate-induced.

Disasters can be classified into two main categories: geophysical and climate-induced. Geophysical disasters include events like earthquakes, tsunamis, and landslides which occur due to physical earth processes. These types of disasters are relatively rare compared to climate-induced disasters, which are related to weather patterns and climate changes, such as floods and hurricanes. The increase in climate-related disasters reflects a shift towards more frequent events caused by climate change.

Imagine comparing a rare diamond to everyday glass. The rare diamond represents geophysical events like earthquakes, while the common glass symbolizes climate-induced disasters like floods, which are happening more frequently due to climate issues.

There have been various studies which actually address that climate-induced disaster is on higher end. And there is a need that we need to integrate that climate change and the disaster risk and how we have to work in hand-in-hand to work with it.

Numerous studies indicate that climate-induced disasters are increasing in frequency and severity. To effectively manage this growing risk, it is crucial to integrate strategies for climate change adaptation with disaster risk management efforts. This means that policies and actions concerning climate change should directly consider how they affect disaster risks, promoting a holistic approach to safeguarding vulnerable communities.

Imagine a team of doctors treating a patient whose condition is deteriorating due to both a virus and weak immunity. If they only focus on treating the virus without boosting the immune system, the patient might not recover well. Similarly, failing to connect climate change strategies with disaster risk management can lead to ineffective measures.

Similarly, the conceptual approach of the SREX report, where SREX which talks about putting the disaster risk in the center, and how the settlements are exposed and vulnerability component and also the long-run weather and climatic events put these settlements into vulnerable conditions.

The SREX (Special Report on Extreme Weather and Climate Change) report emphasizes the importance of understanding disaster risk through the lens of extreme weather events and climate change. It highlights how settlements (cities, towns) can become vulnerable due to long-term climatic events, illustrating that as climate changes, so does the risk faced by communities living in those areas.

Consider a town located near a river. If climate change leads to more heavy rainfall events, over time, that town becomes more vulnerable to flooding. The SREX report is like a warning light that tells us to pay attention to these increasing risks due to changing weather patterns.

And the main important point here is linking the CCA climate change adaptation, and the disaster risk reduction is one of the important crucial steps to achieve the sustainable development.

Linking Climate Change Adaptation (CCA) with Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) is crucial in the context of sustainable development. By combining these two approaches, communities can enhance their resilience against climate-related disasters, thus contributing to overall development goals. When governments and organizations work to incorporate both CCA and DRR into policies and practices, they create a more robust framework capable of addressing both immediate disaster risks and longer-term climate issues.

Think of a tree that needs both water (for growth) and protection from strong winds (for safety). If a gardener focuses on only watering the tree but ignores securing it from wind, the tree might be damaged despite having enough water. Linking CCA and DRR is like ensuring that both aspects of care are addressed for the tree’s health.

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