Boosting local resilience efforts in Germany with MCR2030

The July 2021 Western Europe floods were Germany's most expensive natural disaster to date, costing the country an estimated €33 billion. Moving forward, Germany needs to strengthen disaster risk management to bolster sustainable development and future-proof planning.

The German Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK) and the Association of German Cities - Deutscher Städtetag are partnering with the Making Cities Resilient 2030 initiative (MCR2030) to improve German cities' understanding of risk and reinforce their resilience.

A virtual knowledge-sharing session on 18 January - promoted by the Association of German Cities - involved over 120 participants from cities across Germany. Representatives from BBK, UNDRR and MCR2030 partner ICLEI Europe provided an overview of the German disaster risk management context, opportunities of the MCR2030 and how COVID-19 is one of the many overlapping issues cities need to consider when understanding disaster risk.

Lina Furch, Head of Department of European and International Affairs at the Association of German Cities (Deutscher Städtetag) said, “Cities are at the forefront of tackling the impacts of climate change and are responsible for disaster risk management. It is therefore of utmost importance to strengthen their resilience. The huge number of participants shows that cities are aware and willing to act and learn from each other. As the Association of German Cities we happily support the initiative as we are convinced that it is of great benefit for the cities.”

Nina Köksalan, National Focal Point for the Sendai Framework, Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK), said, "Thanks to the UNDRR, we have been able to set up networks with other countries, which is extremely helpful – other regions are facing similar problems, and we appreciate opportunities to engage in peer-to-peer exchanges for knowledge-sharing. Furthermore, MCR2030 aims align with Germany’s goals related to disaster risk reduction – and we know resilience is a task for the entire country."

Andrew Bower, Team Leader for Risk Governance at the UNDRR Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia, said, "The current crises have been a call to do more – to scale up our efforts to reduce disaster risks and improve disaster risk governance. We are delighted to partner with BKK and the German Association of German Cities to support cities in Germany, providing access to tools and expertise, as well as helping create a space for meaningful technical assistance and support."

MCR2030 is an alliance of partners committed to supporting cities in strengthening their resilience. Holger Robrecht, Deputy Director of ICLEI Europe, has highlighted the importance of partnering with the UNDRR and co-chairing in the MCR2030 initiative. "MCR2030 provides a policy-relevant framework, a workable technical compass that also draws on the experience of more than 4,300  signatories worldwide who have joined the campaign over the past decade. MCR2030 helps cities support each other and raises awareness of the need for better disaster preparedness, strengthened risk management and the benefits of increased resilience, locally and globally."

Background

MCR2030 is a unique cross-stakeholder initiative improving local resilience by making cities safer, preventing risks and promoting innovation and investments. Building on the Making Cities Resilient Campaign which began in 2010, MCR2030 welcomes cities, local governments as well as any other parties wishing to help cities prosper through advocacy, knowledge-sharing and city-to-city networks.