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The WorldRiskReport 2026 - Why storms turn into disasters

Country: World Source: Ruhr-Universität Bochum Please refer to the attached file. The new WorldRiskReport focuses on storms and presents the first-ever global storm risk ranking for 193 countries. The Philippines, Mexico, and Madagascar hold the top three spots, while Germany ranks 167th with a very low storm risk. Tropical cyclones are becoming more intense, their paths are shifting, and more and more people living on coastlines are falling within their reach. However, it is not the wind that determines whether a storm turns into a disaster. Why does the same storm lead to a once-in-a-century disaster in one country, while in a neighboring country it causes only minor damage? This question is explored in the WorldRiskReport 2026, which Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft and the Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict (IFHV) at Ruhr University Bochum are publishing today at the Extreme Weather Congress in Hamburg. Since 2011, the report has analyzed the disaster risk for 193 countries on an annual basis. This year, the focus is on storms – one of the most devastating natural hazards. The data reveal a clear trend. While the number of cyclones remains stable, their intensity is increasing. At the same time, their paths are shifting toward the poles, affecting regions that were never built to withstand severe storms. It is not the wind but the storm surge that claims the most lives, and as sea levels rise, coastlines that were once considered safe will be flooded in the future. Small island states and the rapidly growing coastal cities of the Global South will be hit the hardest. “Storms are natural phenomena. Disasters are not. Whether people die is decided long before a storm makes landfall – in building regulations, warning systems and social welfare systems,” says Dr. Katrin Radtke, scientific director of the WorldRiskReport at the IFHV. The storm ranking, published for the first time, illustrates just how unevenly the risk is distributed: 123 of the 193 countries are scarcely exposed to storms, while ten countries bear the brunt of the global storm risk. Leading the list is the Philippines, which has the highest overall risk. A look at Japan and the USA shows that high exposure does not necessarily result in a disaster. Although they are just as heavily exposed as many countries in the Global South, thanks to early warning systems, building standards and stable institutions, they bear only a fraction of the risk. The report also highlights a dangerous convergence, which political scientist Dr. Stephan Klingebiel analyzes in a commentary. While extreme weather events are on the rise, funding for humanitarian aid is coming under pressure worldwide. “Storms are becoming stronger, and people are increasingly living within their reach. At the same time, funding for humanitarian aid is being cut. The WorldRiskReport 2026 makes it clear just how costly this convergence will be if we do not invest in preparedness now,” says Dr. Ilona Auer Frege, Executive Director of Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft. Climate scientist Dr. Friederike Otto explains in an interview how climate change is altering storms. From this issue onwards, the report will appear in a fundamentally revised design.

ReliefWebReliefWebRuhr-Universität Bochum6h ago

Trump to meet China’s Xi as Congress mulls bill banning artificial superintelligence – US politics live

Congress has so far done little to rein in the AI industry even as some of its most prominent leaders warn about potentially catastrophic risks Sign up for US Breaking News emails The Trump administration is refusing to work with the newly appointed deputy head of the United Nations ⁠refugee agency, Reuters reported. Tressa Rae Finerty, an American who took up the role of deputy high commissioner at UNHCR earlier ⁠this month, has taken leave as she seeks a waiver from the US government that would allow her to carry out aspects of her duties, ​according to seven diplomatic sources. Speaking at the UN general assembly, Donald Trump re-issued his threat to “annihilate” Iran and “drive them into Hell” if the regime didn’t capitulate and make a deal.” He also said he was “working closely with the leaders of Russia and Ukraine ” to end the disastrous war, defended his administration’s actions in Latin America – including the midnight raid to arrest former Venezuelan president Nicólas Maduro , defended his drone strikes on boats in the Caribbean and the Pacific, accused Mexico of being effectively controlled by the cartels, and said it was “unacceptable” for the US to share a border with a nation under such conditions, pointed to regime change in Cuba and said he would reject any calls for a “globalist scheme” to control artificial intelligence. Shortly after his UN address, Trump signed a Greenland deal, which Greenland’s prime minister Jens-Frederick Nielsen said “underlines the importance of the Nato alliance.” In tricky, carefully worded paragraphs, she said the agreement “recognises the US defining historical and ongoing contributions to the security and defence of Greenland,” but it also “respects the sovereignty and the territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Denmark, as well as Greenland’s right to self-determination.” Trump told a CNN reporter at the UN general assembly on Tuesday that he was “surprised” the outlet was covering him, saying it ‘shouldn’t be here’ after he banned the network alongside Politico and MS Now from the White House on Friday. At a joint press conference on Tuesday, vice-president JD Vance and Mehmet Oz , administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, announced that the federal government was removing 760,000 enrollees from Affordable Care Act insurance marketplaces. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe GuardianTom Ambrose7h ago
  • critical toward Congress · 98%

Hurricane Polo, rapidly intensifying from strong El Niño patterns, rages off coast of Mexico

Polo, with sustained winds of 165mph, is churning 215 miles south of Zihuatanejo but is unlikely to directly hit Mexico A tropical storm off the south-west coast of Mexico has intensified into a category 5 monster in fewer than 24 hours, fueled by stronger than usual El Niño weather patterns in the Pacific Ocean. Hurricane Polo was sending out maximum sustained winds of 165mph (266km/h) on Tuesday as its center churned about 215 miles (346km) south of the coastal city of Zihuatanejo, in Guerrero state. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe GuardianRichard Luscombe23h ago