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Period: to
EWS through history
This timespan shows the major events, policies and meetings that have shaped EWS --and especially CdbEWS-- to its current form. -
IDNDR created (1990-2000)
IDNDR createdAdoption of the United Nations General Assembly resolution A/Res/44/236 by which the 1990´s was proclaimed as the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (IDNDR) in order to increase awareness of the importance of disaster reduction. Special attention was given to the establishment of early warning systems. -
STC declaration: priority to EWS
The IDNDR's Scientific and Technical Committee declared early warning as a programme target. All countries were encouraged to ensure the ready access to global, regional, national and local warning systems as part of their national development Targets to be attained by all countries by 2000, as part of their plans to achieve sustainable development, included ready access to global, regional, national and local warning systems and broad dissemination of warnings. -
Agenda 21
Agenda 21Agenda 21 was adopted by the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (Culture of Safety: c) Strengthening, and/or developing global, regional, national and local early warning systems to alert populations to impending disasters; Pre-Disaster Planning:
(h) Developing training programmes for emergency site managers, non-governmental organizations and community groups which cover all aspects of disaster mitigation... -
SG Review of EW capacity
SG ReportThe Secretary General Report A/50/526 provides a review on early warning capacities of the United Nations system with regard to natural disasters. It states that early warning is a universally pursued and self-evident objective in determining disaster reduction strategies. IDNDR requested further examination of new scientific and experimental concepts for accurate and timely short-term forecasting in order to give recommendations on the applicability and development of effective EW. -
Guiding Principles
Publication of Guiding Principles for effective early warning, which are accompanied by principles for the application of early warning at the national and local community levels and Principles for early warning systems at the international and regional levels. -
SGR move to improve EW effectiveness
Move to improve effectivenessThe result of this multi-sectoral review was presented in the Secretary General Report A/52/561 on improved effectiveness of early warning systems with regard to natural and similar hazards containing important elements on the further development of disaster reduction strategies. -
EWC-1 (aka EWC-98)
EWC-1 DeclarationThe International Conference on Early Warning Systems for the Reduction of Natural Disasters (EWC’98), in Potsdam, Germany, confirmed early warning as a core component of national and international prevention strategies for the 21st century. It identified accomplishments and experiences best suited to improve organizational relationships and practical effectiveness for early warning into the 21st century and major strengths and weaknesses in early warning capacities around the world. -
International Seminar on the El Niño Phenomenon
El NinoEvaluation and Projections, Guayaquil, Ecuador. This meeting reviewed this major event and made concrete recommendations on the predictability and warning of El Niño events, disaster response plans and mitigation strategies. -
UNGA 54: "EW essential to prevention"
A54At its fifty-fourth session, the United Nations General Assembly recognised the importance of early warning as an essential element in the culture of prevention, and encourages renewed efforts at all levels in this field. In particular, the member states reaffirmed 'the need for strengthening an international framework for the improvements of early warning systems and disaster preparedness by developing an effective international mechanism for early warning, including the transfer of technology. -
The strategy “A Safer World in the Twenty-First Century: Risk and Disaster Reduction” and the "Geneva Mandate on Disaster Reduction" Adopted
Geneva MandateIDNDR Programme Forum, the closing event of the decade. Relevant elements of the strategy include community participation and increase of partnership activities, improvement of early warning capacities and establishment of early warning systems as integrated processes, with particular attention to emerging hazards such as climate change... -
WMO/UNESCO Sub-Forum on Science and Technology
Support of disaster reduction was held with a special review of the various way in which science and technology contribute to the disaster reduction process, including the operation of integrated early warning systems. It recognized the advances during the last decade and made recommendations for future actions. -
International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR) launched
The successor arrangement of the IDNDR, it inherited two mandated tasks relevant to early warning (i) strengthen disaster reduction capacities through early warning, and (ii) continue international cooperation to reduce the impacts of the El Niño phenomenon. It also aimed at managing risk through the integration of risk reduction into sustainable development. -
Millennium Declaration unanimously adopted
MDG... A/RES/55/2 by the member states of the United Nations. The General Assembly later recognized the Millennium Development Goals as core feature for implementing the Millennium Declaration. -
Oxfam: "Pastoralist Early Warning and Early Response Systems" workshop
"Pastoralist Early Warning and Early Response Systems" workshop organized in Mombassa Kenya by Oxfam/GB -
First meeting of the ISDR WG 2 - Early Warning
WG2Nairobi, Kenya: The ISDR Inter-Agency Task Force Working Group 2 on Early Warningwas established in 2001. The working group was chaired by UNEP. The overall purpose of Working Group 2 was to support the early warning activities of Inter-agency Task Force members, the UN/ISDR Secretariat and other relevant partners, with a view to facilitate a more coordinated approach to improving EW; thereby, contributing to the overall implementation of the ISDR. -
SG Report: Implementing Agenda 21 refers to EW
SC ReportThe Secretary General’s report, Implementing Agenda 21, E/CN.17/PC.2/7 refers to disaster prevention and reduction in detail. ISDR presented a background paper entitled Natural Disasters and Sustainable Development: Understanding the links between development, environment and natural disasters at WSSD PrepCom 2. This develops elements for the development of policies to reduce vulnerability to disasters, including the need to strengthen global, regional, national and local EWS. -
UNGA Resolution: identifies EW as a priority
<ahref='https://docs.google.com/viewer?url=http://www.unisdr.org/eng/about_isdr/basic_docs/SG-report/SG-report-may2001-eng.pdf&embedded=true&chrome=true' >UNGA Resolution</a> UN GA resolution on the implementation of ISDR (A/56/68) area for action and reaffirms the need to strengthen the international framework to improveEWS. It endorses the recommendations of the Secretary General with regard to the 10-year review of the Yokohama conference process and confirms the mandates of the ISDR. -
Expert Meeting on EW (Bonn)
Expert Meeting on Early Warning and Sustainable Development held in Bonn, Germany under the auspices of the German Committee for Disaster Reduction (DKKV), within the framework of the ISDR. -
Second meeting of Working Group 2 - Early Warning
Second meeting of Working Group 2 - Early Warning held in Potsdam, Germany. The group designated a drafting team (ISDR, DKKV, DMC, CDERA) to develop a proposal for the EWC-II. -
World Summit for Sustainable Development (JoBurg)
<ahref='http://www.johannesburgsummit.org/html/documents/summit_docs/2309_planfinal.htm' >WSSD/Outcome Doc</a> The WSSD took place in Johannesburg and did not renegotiate Agenda 21 but discussed further issues, which have emerged during the past years. Coming up with detailed commitments for the implementation of Agenda 21 were be the major challenge of the event. It mentions EW 8 times!
Outcome document - Plan of Implementation. -
EWC-2 (Bonn)
EWC-2The Bonn Second International EWC was initiated under the ISDR as part of the efforts of the Working Group 2: Early Warning, of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF). Other IATF working groups have also made contributions to the development of early warning, particularly Working Group 1: Climate and Disasters, which dealt with El Nino issues, and Working Group 4: Wildland Fires. -
EWS: Do's and Don'ts Workshop
Early Warning Systems: Do's and Don'ts Workshop
NCAR, NSF, CAMS, US-NOAA,
Shanghai, China -
PPEW established
PPEWThe Second International Conference on Early Warning called for an organisational platform to support the establishment of an international programm on early warning. Therefore the Platform for the Promotion of Early Warning (PPEW) has been established in Bonn, Germany with 4 full-time personnel. -
Post Tsunami: Prog. of Action: SD of SIDS
SD_SIDSUnited Nations (A/CONF.207/7/Add.1) International Meeting to Review the Implementation of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States Port Louis, Mauritius. Metnions EWS 3 times. -
Int;'l. EW Program (IEWP) launched at WCDR
IEWPThe International Early Warning Programme (IEWP) was launched at the World Conference on Disaster Reduction. -
WCDR: "People-Centred EWS"
<ahref='https://docs.google.com/viewer?url=http://www.unisdr.org/wcdr/thematic-sessions/thematic-reports/report-session-2-7.pdf&embedded=true&chrome=true' >People-Centered EWS</a>United Nations World conference on Disaster Reduction (WCDR).
Special thematic session on People-centered early warning systems. -
Resolution to strengthen....Prevention
After the tsunami hit the Indian Ocean region the resolution on Strengthening emergency relief, rehabilitation, reconstruction and prevention in the aftermath of the Indian Ocean tsunami disaster was adopted (A/RES/59/279 -
Resolutions for ISDR, disaster vulnerability and int'l. cooperation
Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on the report of the Second Committee International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (59/231). The resolutions on Natural disasters and vulnerability (A/RES/59/233) and on international cooperation on humanitarian assistance in the field of natural disasters, from relief to development (59/212) were adopted. -
EW headlined in G8 Summit
The G8 Summit (Gleneagles, Scotland (UK)) specifically addressed the future of disaster risk reduction and early warning, and called for greater support for a more effective International Strategy for Disaster Reduction and implementation of the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015. In calling for greater support for a more effective International Strategy, the leaders of the most industrialized countries have agreed to provide more resources to disaster reduction. -
GA resolutions highlight EW
Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (A/RES/60/195) and on natural disasters and vulnerability (A/RES/60/196) -
Global Survey of Early Warning Systems launched
Launch of the pre-print version of the Global Survey of Early Warning Systems It was presented by Jan Egeland, the UN Under Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, at the Third International Conference on Early Warning. -
EWC-3: "From Concept to Action"
The Third International Conference on Early Warning (EWC-3) held with the slogan “From concept to action”. The conference was structured in two streams a Priorities and Projects Forum, presenting and discussing good practices in early warning, and a Scientific Symposium. The innovative combination allowed the practical demonstration of proposed early warning projects around the world with discussions and debates of key policy issues. -
IFRC coins the phrase "EW > EA"
IFRC's Climate Centre coined the well-known phrase “Early warning, early action” with a document by the same name. The focus is on warning for slow-onset disasters, such as climate change. -
SCF/UK: Cross Border EW and Response Workshop
Cross Border Early Warning and Response
Save the Children, UK
Ethiopia 5-7 Jun. 2008 -
Care/Bangladesh: Long Lead Flood Forecast Workshop
Long Lead Flood Forecast Technology for DM
Care/Bangladesh
Dhaka, Bangladesh
3-4 Sep. 2008 -
WDR dedicated to EW>EA
IFRC's World Disasters Report was entirely dedicated to “early warning, early action” -
WMO Workshop on Multi-Hazard EWS
Training Workshop on Multi-Hazard Early Warning Systems with focus on Instit. Partnerships and Coordination WMO (countries in the Americas Zone)
San Jose, Costa Rica
20-25 Mar. 2010 -
TBD: EWC-4????