The DKKV is…
German Committee for Disaster Reduction e.V. (ger.: Deutsches Komitee Katastrophenvorsorge e.V.)
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Flooding in Buenos Aires, Argentina
Unusually heavy rainfall in the Argentine province of Buenos Aires since May 16, 2025, has caused massive flooding in the agricultural region. Over the course of just three days, some areas recorded more than 400 millimeters of rain – with San Antonio de Areco...
Once Extreme, Now Normal
A recent report published in the Behörden Spiegel (German Public Sector Journal) warns of the growing dangers posed by climate change - in particular, the creeping normalization of extreme weather events such as heatwaves, droughts, and heavy rainfall. Experts from...
New Book: „Understanding and Addressing Disaster Risk: Who Speaks? Who Suffers?“
The new book “Understanding and Addressing Disaster Risk”, by Ben Wisner, Irasema Alcántara-Ayala, JC Gaillard, Ilan Kelman, and Victor Marchezini explains that disasters are not natural events, but the result of long-term social processes that create vulnerabilities...
RISKKAN-Webinar: WG Cities and critical Infrastructure
Another RISKKAN webinar on the topic “WG Cities and Critical Infrastructure ‘Societal resilience and infrastructure - who is forgotten in post-disaster recovery?’ will take place on June 13, 2025 at 1 pm. Prof. Dr. Alexander Fekete, personal member of DKKV, and Mark...
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What is disaster risk reduction?
Storms, natural hazards and extreme events can quickly become a danger to people and the environment. But climate change, extreme urbanization, power outages and fires also offer potential hazards.
A disaster occurs when the functioning of a community or society is impaired or interrupted and, as a result, high human, material, economic and ecological losses occur that cannot be managed alone.
Precautionary measures can help to reduce the consequences and impact of the disaster. Depending on the hazard and personal circumstances, the precautionary measures to be taken may vary.
Find out more about potential hazards and individual precautionary measures on our topic pages.