The UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) launched the R!SE Initiative, which: has the objective of mainstreaming disaster risk management (DRM) into corporate planning and investment decision making; brings together business, investment and insurance representatives, as well as actors from the public sector, business education and civil society; and aims to develop and promote global standards on risk metrics and voluntary industry standards for disaster risk-sensitive investment.
19 May 2014: The UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) launched the R!SE Initiative, which: has the objective of mainstreaming disaster risk management (DRM) into corporate planning and investment decision making; brings together business, investment and insurance representatives, as well as actors from the public sector, business education and civil society; and aims to develop and promote global standards on risk metrics and voluntary industry standards for disaster risk-sensitive investment.
During the launch, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that “economic losses are out of control and can only be reduced in partnership with the private sector.” UN Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson stated that R!SE can catalyze lasting change regarding how risk is approached. UNISDR Head Margareta Wahlström explained that the goal of the R!SE Initiative is to “revolutionize the way the world does business,” and that embedding DRM in business processes is key to resilience, competitiveness and sustainability.
By 2020, the R!SE Initiative is expected to have reached out to at least 1,000 asset owners and investment managers, 200 insurers and re-insurers, and 100 global businesses in at least 50 cities and 20 countries.
R!SE Initiative partners include PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), Florida International University (FIU), Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), AECOM and Willis. Planned activities include: creating voluntary industry standards that will strengthen social demand for disaster risk-sensitive products; developing risk analysis for economic and business forecasts; supporting academic institutions, training centers and business associations in improving business risk management curricula; engaging major institutional investors, such as sovereign wealth and pension funds, to consider disaster risk in their investment portfolios; supporting local business communities, municipalities and cities to measure and improve city-level disaster preparedness; and increasing access to optimal and sustainable disaster insurance, particularly in emerging economies. [UNISDR Press Release] [R!SE Initiative Website]