On 16 June in Bogor Indonesia over 70 experts, policymakers and practitioners from 30 countries came together and endorsed the role of ecosystems management in integrating disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation (CCA) and for guiding development policies in the 21st century. The Partnership for Environment and Disaster Risk Reduction (PEDRR), the Centre for Natural Resources and Development (CNRD), the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) and the United Nations Office for REDD+ Coordination in Indonesia (UNORCID) organized a three-day International Science-Policy Workshop on Ecosystem-based DRR and CCA in Bogor, at the heart of the country’s most historical Botanical Gardens.

Disaster losses have risen substantially over the past few years. The year 2011 saw the highest economic losses due in history, at USD 370 billion. These losses are expected to increase as climate change impacts intensify and development patterns expose more industrial assets and private properties.

This workshop comes at a time when many governments are seeking information, guidance and approaches that enable longer-term resilient planning, and at a milestone period when three major global policy agendas are currently under negotiations: the post-2015 global framework on disaster risk reduction (HFA-2), the post-2015 sustainable development agenda, and the post-2015 global climate change agreement. Environmental degradation increases people’s vulnerability towards natural hazards, and this driver is often not considered in most risk reduction and climate change adaptation strategies. “Maintaining healthy and well-managed ecosystems- such as coral reefs, mangroves, forests and wetlands- reduce disaster risk by acting as natural buffers or protective barriers” stated Muralee Thummarukudy from the United Nations Environment Programme in his opening remarks. “This important role of ecosystems is what needs to be reflected in the HFA-2”.

The workshop, supported in part by the European Union, draws on local, national, and regional level activities to improve evidence based advocacy and advance best practices for Ecosystem-based DRR.

For more information: cassidy.travis@unep.org