29 September 2008: Addressing the Ministerial Meeting on
Reducing Disaster risks in a Changing Climate, which took place in New York,
US, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged enhanced efforts to reduce the
fall-out from natural disasters, noting that climate change leads to harsher
weather extremes.

He listed some of the recent disasters that have occurred
around the world in recent weeks, and underlined that community preparedness
and early warning systems increase resilience and thereby can save lives and
avert damage. He stressed the need for scaling up efforts and resources to
implement the Hyogo Framework for Action, a ten-year plan to tackle natural
hazards that was adopted in 2005. In conclusion, Ban called on Ministers to
“lead the way in championing disaster risk reduction as a core element of
climate change adaptation.” [The Statement]