Ming Zhang, World Bank Global Director, Global Practice for Urban, Land, Resilience and Disaster Risk Management, will speak at the Mayors' Leadership Forum on nature-based solutions and cities' role in protecting biodiversity.

Planning for resilient, inclusive and sustainable infrastructure is crucial — but what does this look like in practice? In this panel, GFDRR Head Niels Holm-Nielsensharedhow GFDRR ensures that recovery and risk management efforts are responsive and sustainable by integrating community voices and adapting to on-the-ground realities.

Revealing vital insights into tackling flood risk and inequality in cities.

This Knowledge Café event on extreme heat at the World Bank Annual Meetings — with Ming Zhang, World Bank Global Director for Urban, Disaster Risk Management and Land, Maria Marcela Silva World Bank Regional Director for Infrastructure, Latin America and Caribbean, and Niels Holm-Nielsen, GFDRR Head as speakers —highlightedpotential solutions to the pressing challenge of extreme urban heat.

The EU-funded program, Strengthening Financial Resilience and Risk Reduction Program in Central Asia, implemented by the GFDRR and the World Bank, helda final regional forumin Almaty. This two-day event will bring together representatives of national government ministries and agencies responsible for disaster management, health, social protection, and finance and insurance, alongside research institutions, academia, international organizations, and development partners.

A deep dive into urban planning, disaster risk management, and climate finance, among other topics.

TheTechnical Deep Dive (TDD) on Nature-Based Solutions in Mountainous Regions,organized by theGFDRRin partnership with the governments ofAustriaandSwitzerland,was held from September 9 to 13, 2024, in Innsbruck, Austria. This four-day event gathered government representatives from Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, alongside World Bank experts and international specialists, to explore innovative solutions for resilient development in mountainous areas of Central Asia and the Caucasus. The TDD featured presentations of success stories, nature-based solutions practices, and their implementation potential in the region, along with participatory workshops and field visits.

09:00-12.30 | Location: Room 403

Speakers:Sadi Samadzod,Director, State Unitary Enterprise “Smart City” under Dushanbe administration (Tajikistan);Zhanar Gabdullina,Deputy Chairman, “Almaty Development Centre” JSC (Kazakhstan);Ricardo Ochoa Sosa(CAPSUS S.C.)Charles Antoyne Mari Catherine Hurstel,City Resilience Program; Rui Su, City Resilience Program

Moderators:Chyi-Yun Huang,Senior DRM Specialist, World Bank;Ross Eisenberg,Disaster Risk Management Specialist, City Resilience Program

11:30-12.30 | Location: Room 401+402+403

Speakers:James Myazoe,Republic of the Marshall Islands;Ahmed Aiman Shareef,Republic of Maldives;Naomichi Murooka,Japan International Cooperation Agency;Jessica Schmidt,World Bank;Rui Su,City Resilience Program

Moderator: Jian Vun, World Bank

2:30 p.m.-3:15 p.m.‎  | Plenary

Participants:Hideyasu Kiyomoto,Mayor, Himeji City, Japan;Luisa Salgueiro,Mayor, Matosinhos City, Portugal;Hadianto Rasyid,Mayor, Palu City, Indonesia

Chair:Guangzhe Chen,Vice President for Infrastructure, World Bank

Moderator:Ming Zhang,Urban Global Lead and Practice Manager, GPURL, World Bank