Climate change is very likely to increase the frequency, intensity and duration of drought and wildfires. In combination with intensifying land-use and the risk of land degradation to negatively affect ecosystem patterns and processes, the portfolio and flow of ecosystem services to society is reduced. While extreme drought and heat waves can lead to extreme wildfires, land degradation can further accelerate impacts of these climate extremes. Attributing these impacts to climate change is a current scientific challenge. Cascading hazards from droughts and wildfires further degrade ecosystems and land and thus, impair ecosystem recovery and related ecosystem services. This session aims at presenting latest research on these interactions from observational field studies, remote-sensing analyses as well as modelling exercises across scales covering single to multiple ecosystem processes and related ecosystem services under different climate and socio-economic conditions. This session focuses on
under present and future climate change.
Invited speaker: Prof. Britta Tietjen, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany (confirmed)
Climate risks have an enormous impact on societies globally. Floods alone affected 1.65 billion people, and caused economic losses of 651 billion US$ between 2000 and 2019. These risks result from a complex interplay of climate-related hazards, exposure of people, economic assets and critical infrastructure in hazard-prone areas, and their vulnerability to these hazards. Alterations in exposure and vulnerability are often the dominant drivers of changes in climate risks.
This session aims at presenting the latest research focusing on the human contributions to climate risks (i.e. exposure and vulnerability), the interplay of hazard, exposure and vulnerability, societal adaptation, and changes in risks. Contributions may cover:
Please note: Contributions specifically addressing exposure and vulnerability to seismic risks, volcanoes and tsunamis should be submitted to Session 4.
Invited speaker: Prof.David N. Bresch, ETH Zürich, Switzerland (confirmed)
Floods and windstorms are the most hazardous and dangerous atmospheric and hydrologic natural events in many parts of the Earth. We invite contributions describing and analysing the particular conditions of floods (riverine floods; flash floods; pluvial urban floods; coastal floods) and wind storms (extratropical and tropical cyclones; tornadoes). Contributions to this session may focus on
Invited speaker: Prof. Paul H. Whitfield, Centre for Hydrology, University of Saskatchewan, Canada (confirmed)
We invite contributions describing and analysing the causes, impacts and mitigations actions related to volcanoes, earthquakes and tsunamis. In particular, we encourage contributions that develop innovative tools and concepts as well as new approaches related to the following issues:
Invited speaker: Dr. Helen Crowley, Eucentre, Italy (confirmed)
Natural disasters almost always involve changes to the Earth surface. Still, the role that such geomorphic dynamics play in terms of modulating hazard, vulnerability, and risk from natural disasters remains underrepresented in research. In that sense damage is often underestimated, if not misattributed to the general causes rather than the physical processes. We solicit contributions that highlight how considering in more detail geomorphic processes and landforms can improve risk appraisals and management of natural disasters. Examples include, but are not limited to:
Invited speaker: Dr. Kristen L. Cook, German Research Centre for Geosciences GFZ, Germany (confirmed)
Identifying, quantifying and predicting transient states in natural and societal systems requires a vast set of mathematical and statistical methods. A new challenge is the investigation of compound weather and climate events caused by multiple drivers and/or hazards. The contribution of these compound events to risk and possible impacts to society is still unclear.
We are looking for contributions which carry the research on models and data describing complex systems, compound events and their impacts to society forward.
Invited speaker: Dr. Jakob Zscheischler, University of Bern, Switzerland (confirmed)