On the World Meteorological Day, let us face the future. Let’s look back a bit at what we have been doing to our planet at stop it at the instant. What can we do, some might ask. Well, since we, humans, are the ones responsible for the “crazy” weather which has been taking place in various places of the world, then we are the only ones to stop these actions harming our planet.
Throughout the article, we will mention ways in which the World Meteorological Organization and the UN are trying to implement in this regard, such as promoting sustainable urban development and climate-smart cities.
The World Meteorological Day commemorates the coming into force on 23 March 1950 of the Convention establishing the World Meteorological Organization. It showcases the essential contribution of National Meteorological and Hydro-logical Services to the safety and well-being of society and is marked by activities around the world.
The “World Meteorological Organization” (WMO) announced today that the year 2015 made history, with shattered temperature records, intense heatwaves, exceptional rainfall, devastating drought and unusual tropical cyclone activity, according to the World Meteorological Organization. That record-breaking trend has continued in 2016.
WMO is an intergovernmental organization with a membership of 191 Member States and Territories. It originated from the International Meteorological Organization (IMO), which was founded in 1873.
Established in 1950, WMO became the specialised agency of the United Nations for meteorology (weather and climate), operational hydrology and related geophysical sciences. It has its headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, and is a member of the United Nations Development Group. The current Secretary-General is Petteri Taalas. The current president is David Grimes.
In celebration of the “World Meteorological Day” on 23 March, the “World Meteorological Organization” (WMO) issued the following website: http://public.wmo.int/en
Building climate-smart cities
WMO collaborated with the Geneva Environment Network to host a roundtable on World Meteorological Day that explored how UN and other partners can collaborate on promoting sustainable urban development and climate-smart cities.
The roundtable was opened by WMO Assistant Secretary General Elena Manaenkova and featured presentations by a panel of experts from WMO, UN-Habitat, the World Health Organization, the UN Economic Commission for Europe, and the Swiss city of Onex.
“Homo Urbanus” now accounts for some 55 per cent of the global population, and most future population growth will take place in cities. Recognizing the scale of the challenge, the panelists discussed how urban design and services can promote healthier and safer lives for city dwellers.
Shanghai (WMO)
Climate Adaptation
A particular challenge is that many cities are not well designed for a changing climate. Urban development needs to anticipate future climate conditions in order to ensure both climate resilience and sustainable development. Taking up just two per cent of global land area but accounting for 70 per cent of global emissions, cities also have a major role to play in mitigating climate change.
Climate adaptation can be enhanced through the choice of construction materials, investments in mobility and mass transit, lifestyle changes, increased reliance on clean energy sources, improved management of hazardous chemicals, better water and waste treatment, and flood management measures to compensate for the reduced ability of urban areas to absorb water.
Pollution control measures to ensure safer air are particularly important for public health; meteorological services have an essential role to play in monitoring and advising about the wind and temperature patterns that influence pollution levels.
#Smart Cities
Effective decision-making on all of these issues requires collaboration among diverse public agencies as well as with the private sector and with communities. Cities can benefit greatly from adopting new technologies and social media to improve their resilience. Smart phones can be used by individual citizens to provide observations on flooding and pollution and to receive alerts.
The Twitter hashtag and other tools can be used to share a data and information cheaply and quickly. Other opportunities for cities include promoting green mobility, improving recycling programmes, encouraging building owners and managers to make climate-friendly investments and creating green spaces that promote healthy activities.
Harmonizing the policies for various sectors and issues and promoting coordination is also key. The UN Habitat III conference this October will provide an occasion for international, national and local organizations to strengthen coordination and build partnerships.
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