UCC leads EU project on preparing for disasters and extreme weather

The flooding in Midleton from Storm Babet in October 2023. Project activities will focus on floods, storms and heatwaves, particularly among vulnerable urban communities. File photo: Guileen Coast Guard unit.

A University College Cork-led EU project is exploring how Europe can better prepare for disasters and extreme weather events.

The €4m project aims to bridge three dimensions of extreme weather preparedness: what people know about risk, what they feel about it and what they ultimately do.

It is co-ordinated by Dr Lydia Cumiskey from the sustainability institute at UCC. AMPLIFY brings together researchers, public authorities, first responders, civil society organisations, communities and creative practitioners from seven European countries.

During the project, particular attention will be paid to people who can be overlooked by conventional risk communication, including persons with disabilities, people with low literacy or low socio-economic status, and young people.

Dr Cumiskey said preparing for weather disasters is not only a technical issue, “it is also a social, cultural and emotional process". 

“How people understand risk, how they relate it to their own experience, whether they trust the information they receive and whether they feel able to act, all play a crucial role in building resilient communities.

“The project will combine scientific research, creative practice and participatory governance to develop new ways of communicating risk and strengthening co-operation between citizens and authorities."

At the centre of AMPLIFY are four hubs across Europe. In Cork, co-hosted by UCC, Cork City Council and The Glucksman, project activities will focus on floods, storms and heatwaves, particularly among vulnerable urban communities.

Over three years, the project will involve at least 400 participants directly in its creative hubs and will co-create and test at least 10 creative risk communication solutions.

These may include videos, performances, songs, visual artworks, sound installations and other formats designed, not simply to raise awareness, but to stimulate preparedness and collective action.

The learning generated through the hubs will also be translated into training, policy and open access resources.