‘We are here today for one urgent and unifying purpose: solutions’
By the Climate Centre
IFRC Secretary General Jagan Chapagain yesterday joined a high-level dialogue on early warning and extreme heat at the 80th UN General Assembly in New York.
“There is a need for collective and inclusive action. This event shows collaboration is power,” he said on X/Twitter. “It’s together [that] we will build more resilient, heat-adaptive communities.”
Three key IFRC takeaways presented at the event include the reality that extreme heat is a growing global crisis, silently claiming almost 500,000 lives every year, yet rarely making headlines.
Secondly, investing in early warning linked to early action is the best investment to save lives, protect communities and economies; finally, the upcoming international treaty on disaster law (GPDRR brief) “offers a critical opportunity to help states prepare, reduce risks and improve early warning and action.”
‘Collaboration is power’
The dialogue was intended to identify concrete solutions for COP 30 in Brazil and mobilize political and institutional momentum behind the UN-led Early Warning for All (EW4All) initiative.
WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo told the event: “We are here today for one urgent and unifying purpose: solutions.
“Solutions that turn science into decisions, transform warnings into action, build long-term resilience, and that are based on data sharing and trust.”
The dialogue focused on emission reductions and mitigation, the redesign of urban centres and facilities, and governance – including integrated decision-making, planning for action on heat, and investment informed by science and early warning systems.
‘Backbone of humanitarian action’
Scaling up early warning in nearly 60 of the worst-affected countries could save 100,000 lives every year, the WMO and WHO say, adding that this is why their Joint Office on Climate and Health works on extreme heat through the Global Heat Health Information Network that also includes – on its management committee – Climate Centre Director of Programmes Julie Arrighi.
The IFRC has said its three top prorities at UNGA80 at are protecting humanitarian workers, tackling climate change, and addressing non-communicable diseases.
Also speaking in New York, IFRC President Kate Forbes noted in her own address that so far in 2025, almost all the humanitarian personnel killed in the line of duty were local or national staff and volunteers – “the backbone of our humanitarian action”.
The Declaration on the Protection of Humanitarian Personnel, led by Australia and launched yesterday, she added, was “a clear affirmation by states and by all of us here today that the lives of those who serve humanity matter.
“It is a clear signal that we will not remain silent in the face of appalling and record-breaking pattern of attacks.”
IFRC Secretary General Jagan Chapagain speaking yesterday at the high-level dialogue on early warning and extreme heat at the 80th UN General Assembly in New York. (Photo: IFRC via social media)