Europe faces a growing range of disaster risks, with wildfires and earthquakes among the most serious and costly. Rising temperatures, land-use changes and ageing infrastructure are increasing exposure and vulnerability across the continent.
Once mainly limited to southern regions, wildfires are now spreading further north, while more than one-third of Europeans live in areas exposed to moderate or high seismic hazard.
Against this backdrop, the Technical Assistance Financing Facility (TAFF) supports national and regional authorities in strengthening prevention and preparedness capacities. Through TAFF, the Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO), the World Bank, and the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) collaborate to provide technical assistance, develop risk analyses, and promote integrated approaches to resilience.
The TAFF Workshop
From 2 to 3 October 2025, the first TAFF Workshop on Disaster Prevention and Preparedness took place in Brussels, bringing together more than 120 participants from the Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM), TAFF-supported projects, EU institutions, and partner organisations.
The event served as a forum for knowledge exchange and practical collaboration, highlighting how TAFF is helping countries address disaster risks through concrete projects, technical studies, and peer learning.
Investing in integrated wildfire risk management: Day 1 of the TAFF Workshop
The first day of the workshop focused on wildfire risk management with speakers emphasising the increasing frequency and intensity of wildfires and the need for joint European approaches to prevention, preparedness and response.
Zuzana Stanton-Geddes, Senior Disaster Risk Management Specialist at the World Bank, highlighted key wildfire management trends and challenges in the EU, stressing the importance of TAFF and UCPM in building capacity through shared knowledge and collaboration.
Cristina Brailescu, Team Leader for DG ECHO’s Prevention and Preparedness Programme, presented lessons from the UCPM Peer Review Programme, pointing to good practices and calling for national wildfire strategies with clear investment priorities and stronger links between science, policy and practice.
Ólafur Loftsson of Iceland’s Civil Protection Department, presented a TAFF-supported project to develop an integrated wildfire management framework through improved mapping, coordination, and training. Florenc Qosja, Advisor to the Minister of Interior in Albania, outlined national initiatives to strengthen fire-risk management and search-and-rescue capacities.
Strengthening Early-Warning Systems and Outreach
The second block focused on early-warning systems, described as one of the most effective ways to save lives and reduce impacts.
Sari Lappi of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) highlighted efforts to modernise forecasting through impact-based approaches and artificial intelligence.
Eric Guyader, Manager of the Galileo Emergency Warning Satellite Service (DG DEFIS), presented the new satellite channel that will enable Member States to transmit secure multilingual alerts directly across Europe.
From a national perspective, Dan Titov, Head of IT at the State Hydrometeorological Service of Moldova, showcased progress in upgrading monitoring and forecasting through a TAFF project. Finally, Denis Chang Seng of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) presented the CoastWAVE 2.0 initiative, strengthening tsunami preparedness and coastal resilience in the North-Eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean regions with UCPM support.
From impact to recovery: View from the TAFF Conference, Day 2
The second day of the Technical Assistance Financing Facility (TAFF) workshop offered discussions on recovery frameworks, improved assessments and long-term investments in disaster-risk-reduction strategies.
Lessons from the Field
The day began with compelling case studies demonstrating the complex path from disaster impact to recovery and ultimately, resilience.
Selcen Altınsoy, a Senior Housing Expert, discussed innovative shelter solutions developed in the aftermath of the Kahramanmaras Earthquake in Türkiye. Container cities provided emergency relief, while also laying the foundation for long-term resilience.
The powerful case study of Kesennuma City in Japan, presented by Associate Professor Kanako Iuchi, linked disaster recovery with economic revitalisation and social resilience. After suffering a tragic loss of life and infrastructure due to the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, Kesennuma transformed “in a living laboratory for resilience” where the wellbeing among residents improved notably.
Innovations in disaster risk management
During parallel sessions, experts from various fields facilitated discussions on innovative solutions in disaster risk management.
Boris van Zanten, Disaster Risk Management Specialist at the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR), facilitated an exchange on the role of nature-based solutions (NBS) in climate resilience. In another session, Jun Rentschler, Senior DRM Specialist at the World Bank, led a discussion on prioritising critical infrastructure and services. In parallel, Pierre Chrzanowski from GFDRR demonstrated how satellite/geospatial information can play a key role in effective disaster risk management.
From lessons learnt, to lasting resilience
The first TAFF event successfully achieved its goal: bringing together experts from the disaster risk management field, facilitating knowledge exchange, strengthening capacity building, and sharing best practices across UCPM countries.
| During the workshop, TAFF launched six new country reports on wildfire and earthquake risk management for Romania – Wildfires, Romania – Earthquakes, Cyprus – Wildfires, Cyprus – Earthquakes, Croatia – Wildfires, and Croatia – Earthquakes.Alongside the country studies, TAFF also released two regional reports on Wildfires in Europe and Earthquakes in Europe. These analyses offer a comprehensive overview of disaster risks and risk management capacities across the full disaster cycle. They highlight good practices, identify investment and action priorities, and include case studies that reflect national realities on the ground. |
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