Natural catastrophes and climate change extremes: why every year matters

Global insured losses from natural catastrophes are growing 5-7% per year on average. Climate change is one driver. In this first webinar in our new climate change series, Prof. Dr. Sonia I. Seneviratne, Land-Climate Dynamics at ETH Zurich, shares her insights on changes in climate extremes. She focuses on three questions:

- What is the contribution of human emissions to changes in natural catastrophe events, e.g. the 2021 floods in Germany, 2021 wildfires in Canada or 2022 floods in Pakistan?
- How can our decisions affect future changes in climate extremes?
- What can we do to minimise these climate extremes?

Seneviratne has been an author on several reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), most recently a lead author of the IPCC Special Report on 1.5°C global warming (2017-2018) and a coordinating lead author of the 6th assessment report of the IPCC (2018-2021).

This the first episode of a 4 part series on climate change, check out the other episodes here:

*Swiss Re*
The Swiss Re Group is one of the world’s leading providers of reinsurance, insurance and other forms of insurance-based risk transfer, working to make the world more resilient. It anticipates and manages risk – from natural catastrophes to climate change, from ageing populations to cyber crime. The aim of the Swiss Re Group is to enable society to thrive and progress, creating new opportunities and solutions for its clients. Headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, where it was founded in 1863, the Swiss Re Group operates through a network of around 80 offices globally.

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