Seventy years since first space photo, Ecometrica's Earth Observation Labs provides near-real time information using ESA satellite data...

TOKYO -- A team of researchers at the Advanced Institute of Industrial Technology has developed a low-cost system to predict river flooding for developing countries, using "internet of things" technology to collect and analyze massive amounts of data from sensors placed along rivers...

In disaster risk management, we often pay close attention to the latest technological boosts to better understand risks and help communities prepare for the next disaster. While such efforts are commendable, I noticed that insightful messages from our ancestors can also help us better anticipate tomorrow’s disaster risks.

As a country that is particularly vulnerable to flooding, Malawians know that they cannot halt the forces of nature, but they can prepare and plan for their impacts – and they did. Supported by the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) and the World Bank, the Government of Malawi undertook a series of community mapping activities...

Since natural disasters can strike anywhere and anytime, making far-sighted preparations is much more effective than scrambling to respond to a crisis. I recognized this after Hurricane Mitch ravaged Honduras and my grandmother had to be evacuated because the local river swelled to the second floor of her home.