When natural disasters strike, their consequences extend far beyond the immediate emergency.
Floods, wildfires and volcanic eruptions can disrupt essential services, damage infrastructure, affect economic activities and compromise the continuity of businesses and local communities.
Strengthening resilience therefore requires a broader approach to disaster risk management, one that connects prevention, preparedness, response and recovery.
UNICORN aims to contribute to this approach by translating Earth Observation data into practical tools and services that respond to the needs of different stakeholders.
Who can benefit from UNICORN?
Public authorities and policymakers
Access to improved forecasting, hazard monitoring and risk assessment information can support more informed planning, preparedness strategies and emergency management policies.
Civil protection and emergency services
Timely and actionable information can help responders better understand evolving situations, assess potential impacts and support operational decision-making.
Industries and businesses
Natural hazards can disrupt supply chains, damage facilities and generate significant economic losses. UNICORN explores how predictive information and risk assessment applications can help businesses anticipate threats, strengthen business continuity planning and reduce their vulnerability.
Insurance and forest sectors
Improved hazard monitoring and risk estimation can support the assessment of exposure, the development of risk reduction strategies and the exploration of new approaches to insurance and forest management.
Citizens and local communities
Better preparedness starts with access to relevant information. By supporting improved risk awareness and forecasting, UNICORN contributes to strengthening the resilience of the communities exposed to natural hazards.
From innovation to real-world applications
A key element of UNICORN is its focus on end-user validation.
The project develops and tests its applications in four different geographical and operational contexts, taking into account the needs of public and private stakeholders.
This approach is essential to ensuring that technological innovation translates into solutions that can be used in practice.
Furthermore, the services are designed with scalability and transferability in mind, creating opportunities for their adoption in other regions facing similar environmental and climate-related challenges.
Building resilience is a shared responsibility.
By connecting Earth Observation, research, technology and the needs of end-users, UNICORN aims to support a more proactive, informed and resilient approach to natural hazard management across Europe.
Discover how UNICORN is turning data into action: https://unicorn-project.com/en/