Last week, researchers from JCAR ATRACE, in collaboration with the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, facilitated a full-day workshop for the 36th EU Working Group on Floods in Rotterdam. The Working Group was set up to support the implementation of the Floods Directive. There, national representatives of the European Member States and the European Commission come together regularly to exchange information on flood risk management.
On 9-10 April our researchers provided an interactive workshop on the urgent topic of management of extreme flood events in Europe. With keynote speeches from Prof. Bruno Metz (GFZ Potsdam), Prof. Jaap Kwadijk (Deltares) and Prof. Bart van den Hurk (IPCC co-chair WG II, Deltares), and lessons learned from practitioners in recent extreme floods in Europe, we were all set to make a joint inventory of existing flood management actions across Europe. This was followed by in-depth discussions on which future actions should be prioritized across Europe to increase preparedness for extreme flood events.
In addition, the JCAR ATRACE young researchers who recently began their work presented their long-term research posters. The event was an excellent opportunity for them to engage with key national flood policy makers in Europe.
In our upcoming magazine, you will find a comprehensive article with the main conclusions and recommendations from this workshop. We thank the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, the European Commission and representatives of the other Member States for this unique opportunity to target our research on policy-relevant topics!
