LESSONS FROM A DECADE OF EUROPEAN DISASTER MANAGEMENT RESEARCH EXPLAINED FOR PRACTITIONERS WORLDWIDE

Climate threats, pandemics, and humanitarian crises demand coordinated disaster risk reduction strategies. Research and Community Building for Disaster-Resilient Societies synthesizes a decade of research and practical experience from EU countries and organisations. This final volume in the Hydrometeorological Extreme Events series provides a critical evaluation of modern community-based approaches to disaster management, extending beyond hydrometeorological hazards to other geohazards, nuclear and biohazards, as well as large-scale medical emergencies.

The book delivers a critical evaluation of European disaster risk reduction policies, research trends, and networking efforts, particularly the Community for European Research and Innovation for Security (CERIS) initiative. It examines approaches to prevention, mitigation, preparedness, threat monitoring, response and recovery while also highlighting human factors and effective crisis communication.

Readers will find:

• Inside perspectives on Europe’s largest and most thoroughly researched disaster mitigation programs developed through successive EU Framework Programmes
• Community-based approaches that integrate human factors and effective communication strategies essential for coordinated disaster response and recovery efforts
• Policy backgrounds connecting research activities to internationally accepted frameworks since the early 2010s, including the Sendai Framework for Action
• Networking and community-building models demonstrating how multi-stakeholder collaboration strengthens disaster resilience across regional and national boundaries
• Coverage spanning hydrometeorological events, geohazards, medical emergencies, and security threats for comprehensive disaster risk understanding

Designed for scientists and practitioners in disaster risk management, this volume also serves policymakers, industry professionals, civil society organizations, and regional authorities. It delivers actionable insights from a decade of coordinated European research supporting effective disaster prevention, response, and recovery strategies.

Philippe Quevauviller, PhD, HDR, spent decades at the European Commission coordinating disaster resilience research programming and developing the Community for European Research and Innovation for Security initiative. He has also been an Associate Professor at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and scientific writer with over 250 papers and 20 books published. As a retired EC official, he pursues activities in arts-sciences fusion in support of disaster societal resilience.

Cristina Longo, PhD, is a Research Programme Administrator at the Research Executive Agency of the European Commission, managing project evaluation in crisis management and disaster resilience. She previously served as scientific project officer at the EC Joint Research Centre for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Centres of Excellence.

Giannis Skiadaresis is the European Commission’s Area Coordinator for Disaster Resilient Societies (DRS) in the Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs (DG HOME). His experience in foresight, new technologies and innovation, disaster management and policy allows him to combine operational understanding with strategic planning and policy implementation.