CSS-ETH at the Global Platform DRR; Day 2

Authors Jurgena Kamberaj & Simon Aebi from the Center for Security Studies | ETH Zürich

Dear readers,

Welcome to this special reporting series from the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction 2025 (GP2025), coming to Geneva from 2-6 June. If you have not yet read about this blog, you will find here a short description. It is Day 2 of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction (GP2025).

Yesterday’s reflections on power, priorities, and accountability set the stage for today’s agenda. Switzerland, as host country, outlines its vision for disaster risk reduction, focusing on shared responsibility, local action, and long-term investments. These priorities are echoed later in the day during the Opening Ceremony, where Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis addresses the Global Platform. (EDA - DFAE - FDFA)

Switzerland acknowledges that despite international efforts, the world is not on track to meet the goals of the Sendai Framework by 2030. Implementation at national and local levels must improve, urgently and concretely. There’s a strong call to recognize the economic case for disaster risk reduction. To make this happen, Switzerland urges broader financial mobilization for DRR, including from non-traditional sources, such as public-private partnerships, risk-sharing models, and concessional financing.

In a fast-changing global context, marked by geopolitical shifts, constrained public budgets, and emerging risks, Switzerland stresses that DRR must be integrated into national, subnational, and international agendas. Implementation capacity and clear roles at every level, especially local, are seen as key.

Nature-based solutions are framed as a triple-win: for risk reduction, biodiversity conservation, and sustainable access to ecosystem services. And in a nod to the future, Switzerland highlights the role of technology and innovation. However, rigorous testing, accountability, and safety must guide their use, especially as AI systems enter risk governance.

Finally, there is an appeal to the global community: the success of DRR beyond 2030 will depend on continued cooperation, inclusion, and platforms like GPDRR that keep the conversation and the momentum alive.

Resilient Recovery

Alongside the GP2025, the World Resilient Recovery Conference also took place. The sessions explored the multidimensionality of disasters and therefore also their recovery. Discussions ranged from socio-economic and cultural predispositions of affected communities to effective investment and recovery funding schemes that are required to support the recovery phase. This becomes even more important, as it is urgently needed to not limit recovery as a post-disaster activity. While “building-back-better” is necessary in the aftermath, treating recovery as a continuous task that must be given due consideration before disasters unfold is inevitable. The GP2025 was used to launch the 10 priority actions for resilient recovery that fully integrate into the Sendai Framework (Priority 4). Furthermore, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) ’s new Resilient Recovery Framework was presented:

The framework highlights the importance of governments at every level to create an environment for resilient recovery. Informed by society and science and leveraged through data and technology, more robust approaches must guide recovery to support disaster risk reduction. (Dr. Abhilash Panda)

Media as DRR Actor

Another session brought attention to a topic that rarely takes center stage in disaster risk policy: the role of the media. Bridging the Gap: Critical Media’s Role in Strengthening Alerts and Enhancing Disaster Preparedness reframed media institutions not just as communicators of crisis aftermaths, but as active participants in prevention and preparedness (Giacomo Mazzone). UNDRR is the first UN organization to formally recognise media institutions as strategic partners in disaster risk reduction. Speakers explored how media organizations can be better equipped with their own preparedness plans, especially since communication networks are often disrupted or deliberately targeted during crises (Matthieu Rawolle). To strengthen their resilience and ensure they can continue to serve the public in times of disaster, UNESCO is currently developing a model on Disaster Preparedness and Response Plan for Media Institutions (Natalia Ilieva).

Switzerland and Indonesia: Bilateral Exchange

The question of risk communication also shaped the afternoon, when the CSS team took part in the bilateral exchange between Switzerland and Indonesia, two countries with a long-standing partnership in the field of disaster risk reduction. The disaster profiles couldn’t be more different: volcanoes, tsunamis, and earthquakes on one side, floods, landslides, and glacial risks on the other. But both countries face a common challenge: ensuring that early warning systems are understood, trusted, and acted upon by the people they are meant to protect. The discussion circles back to something that we reported on yesterday: early warning only works if it fits the context. That means understanding how different communities perceive risk, which institutions they trust, and how they respond to information. These systems can’t be copy-pasted across regions but need to be designed around local realities. That’s what makes these global exchanges in Geneva valuable: they allow countries to share practical experience, compare approaches, and move from what works in theory to what works in context.

Opening Ceremony

As the afternoon progressed, the official Opening Ceremony marked the start of the eighth session of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction, convened by UNDRR and hosted by the Government of Switzerland. Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis joined high-level representatives and delegations from around the world to reaffirm Switzerland’s commitment to global disaster risk reduction. Importantly, youth voices also took the stage. The Youth4Sendai initiative reminded the audience that disaster risk reduction must not only draw from experience and evidence but also include the energy and perspectives of the next generation.

From high-level speeches to technical exchanges, Day 2 showed that disaster risk reduction is both a political commitment and a practical challenge. Discussions tomorrow will delve into these aspects. The focus will be on how risk is understood and how governance can manage it.

Jurgena and Simon