AI Innovations in Disaster Risk Reduction and Management: Enhancing Systemic Risk Analysis for a Resilient Future

As global challenges such as climate change, urbanization, and increasingly frequent disasters strain disaster risk management systems, the need for more innovative, data-driven approaches is becoming urgent. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has the potential to revolutionize Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRR) by providing sophisticated tools for systemic risk analysis, improving early warning systems, and enhancing disaster response strategies. AI can also play a pivotal role in risk-informed development and planning, helping to integrate risk assessments into urban growth and infrastructure development to reduce future vulnerabilities. By embedding AI-driven insights into planning processes, communities can proactively address disaster risks before they escalate.

However, to harness the full potential of AI, it is critical to fully understand and address challenges such as data quality, algorithmic transparency, model evaluation, and human-centered design and to have international standards providing clear guidance on these concepts and others. Misapplication of AI, biased datasets, or non-inclusive models may exacerbate vulnerabilities, rather than reduce them.

The learning lab will be structured as an interactive session to guide participants through various aspects of AI applications in DRR, from data preparation and bias to the importance of transparency and human-centered design.

The session will consist of presentations and panel discussion, fostering collaborative dialogue and knowledge exchange among participants.
 

Moderators:
•    Ms. Letizia Rossano, Director of Asian and Pacific Centre for the Development of Disaster Information Management (APDIM)
•    Mr. Lorenzo Nava, Chair of the Working Group on Educational Materials in the FG-AI4NDM and Researcher at University of Padua
 

Keynote Speech by:
Dr. Joel Joseph S. Marciano Jr., Director General, Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA)

Speakers:
•    Mr. Noel Jerome Borlongan, Senior Science Research Specialist at Philippine Space Agency
•    Ms. Helen Marie Caughey, Deputy Chief and International Meteorologist at UK Met Office
•    Dr. Yifang Ban, Professor and Director of the Division of Geoinformatics, KTH Royal Institute of Technology
•    Mr. Madhab Uprety, Senior Technical Adviser and Asia Pacific Focal Point at Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre
 

Closing Remarks by:
Ms. Margareta Wahlstrom, former Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction, United Nations