A quarter of South Africans in cities are living in informal settlements.
A general view of the damage in an informal settlement heavy rains, mudslides and winds in Durban, on April 13, 2022.
Rajesh Jantilal/AFP via Getty Images)
Women and girls living in poverty face many forms of discrimination and pressure during events like flood disasters.
A man is seen searching through debris at the Blue Lagoon beach following heavy rains and winds in Durban, on April 12, 2022.
Rajesh Jantilal/AFP via Getty Images
Flooding is arguably even more problematic in informal settlements because of the lack of planning.
The main driver of climate change is the greenhouse effect – when certain gases in the Earth’s atmosphere trap the sun’s heat and cause global warming.
Richard Drury/Getty Images
This score is a massive four points higher than the year prior. But as La Niña subsides, we’ll quickly feel the long-term warming trend again, with bushfires picking back up next season.
A new artificial wetland runs through the city of Ningbo, China.
Wang961201 / shutterstock
Domestic violence surges during and after bushfires, pandemics, earthquakes, cyclones and floods. We need to start preparing for the next inevitable disaster.
The urge to create, or donate to, crowdfunding campaigns in a crisis is understandable. But it’s worth asking: who can succeed in crowdfunding, and who gets left behind?
A koala joey was found drenched and trembling near the edge of the Brisbane River. It was one of the lucky animals to be rescued from the severe floodwaters.
WWF Australia
Food is a fundamental human right. But governments have left it to charities and food suppliers to step in after disasters. That has to change as climate change throws up greater stresses.
Thinking carefully about people’s health during and after disaster is crucial to building disaster resilience. Ensuring access to medicines is a core part of that goal.
Mosquitoes love water and with floodwater set to remain for some time, expect mosquito numbers to increase. Here’s how to avoid mozzie bites and the diseases they bring.
How does this compare to Australia’s previous floods? And can we expect more frequent floods at this scale under climate change? The answers aren’t straightforward.
As someone who lost pretty much everything in the 2011 Brisbane floods and then led a study on community responses to those floods, I have some insights on what helps – and what doesn’t.