UCPM Lessons Learnt Programme – Thematic meeting on the 2021 forest fires in Europe. The UCPM lessons learnt thematic meeting on the 2021 forest fires in Europe took place at the headquarters of the Greek Civil Protection authorities in Athens on 22-23 November 2021.
The UCPM Lessons Learnt Programme offered Member and Participating States this discussion platform to exchange experiences and identify key lessons from the recent extreme forest fire season.
Over 60 participants from the UCPM Member and Participating States and Commission services attended the meeting, with many more connected online. Representatives from both civil protection and forestry authorities were invited to the meeting to jointly prepare for future wildfire seasons, in a holistic approach identifying the broadest possible range of lessons.
During the high level opening session, Janez Lenarčič, European Commissioner for Crisis Management, and Christos Stylianides, Greece’s Minister for the Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, underlined the worsening effects of climate change and the need to constantly reinforce civil protection efforts and capacities across the whole disaster cycle. The Commissioner stressed that to do so: “all stakeholders have to come together to share, exchange and learn from one another […] to better anticipate the challenges that will emerge with future forest fire seasons”.
Besides focusing on response activities, the meeting also focussed on prevention, preparedness and recovery, and discussed lessons implemented from previous forest fire seasons.
The World Bank offered insight into the steps taken in the development of Greece’s new national disaster risk management plan, a project co-financed under the UCPM Prevention and Preparedness Programme (Track 1). The European Commission presented a range of EU support and investment tools available to Member States, and gave an update on the latest forest fire related training and exercises as well as the launch of the Union Civil Protection Knowledge Network platform.
The meeting was marked by discussions based on the rich input provided by presenters and participants. The lessons and good practices identified will feed into prevention, preparedness and response activities, as well as training exercises. The meeting also highlighted the overall benefits of UCPM coordination and support, including through the use of UCPM assets such as the European Civil Protection Pool or rescEU.
Today, Europe faces many significant disaster threats and cooperation is key to address them. By taking a joint approach to disaster risk management, all European countries can be prepared for future possible hazards. Our discussions will be an important step to address emerging forest fire risks. It will help with our forward planning for future wildfire threats, both for the 2022 forest fire season and for those to come.
The Lessons Learnt Programme aims to improve future responses and ultimately enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the UCPM as a whole. It is an invaluable platform for exchanges, whilst promoting the UCPM and awareness about its supporting tools. As shown in this last event, gathering stakeholders from across the disaster risk management cycle to identify lessons and exchange knowledge from past events is key to better prepare for future ones.
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