Author and photo credits: Linda Portoghese, Deep Blue

From 21 to 23 October, the PARATUS consortium held its annual General Assembly at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) in Barcelona, Spain. The partners engaged in intensive discussions and working group sessions on how to tackle common challenges and make the most out of their joint efforts.

On the first day, they had the opportunity to visit the municipality of Arenys de Munt, which was hit by the storm Gloria in 2020, where Vicente Medina from the UPC took participants on a tour of the measures taken by the municipality to deal with disasters caused by flooding.

On the second day, the consortium participated to an Open Science Technology session where the following topics were discussed:

  • Extreme events happened during PARATUS
  • Linking quantitative data with impact chains
  • Usability of guidelines
  • Multi-hazard risk guidelines
  • Legacy of PARATUS
  • Disaster Risk Stakeholder Hub
  • Uncertainty in future predictions Multi-Hazard Risk Assessment
  • Social media and AI in Disaster Risk Management

During the afternoon, they then engaged with the Serious Game that is being developed by the Centre for Systems Solutions as part of the PARATUS project. A collaborative testing session that provided useful feedback for improvement.

The last day was marked by the opening of the Multi-hazard DRR Academy, which brought together 50 early-career researchers and practitioners advancing the field of multi-hazard DRR.

The PARATUS General Assembly in Barcelona underlined the consortium’s commitment to advancing multi-hazard disaster risk reduction through collaboration and innovation. Over three days, partners engaged in productive discussions, analysed recent extreme events and explored new methodologies to improve risk assessment and response strategies. Field visits, interactive sessions and hands-on activities like the serious game testing enriched the meeting and enabled participants to share valuable insights and practical feedback. This meeting reinforces the Consortium’s commitment to developing effective solutions for disaster resilience and preparedness across Europe.