Latest Updates

On 19 March, Resilience First held a dinner with Shaun Hipgrave, Director of Protect and Prepare, Homeland Security Group, UK Government Home Office, to discuss Martyn's Law. The event was kindly hosted by Controlled Events.

Despite being a relatively young field, AI-generated developments and associated risks are likely to be accelerated at a rate beyond societal and government responses and regulations.

Resilience First, the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES) and Resilience Rising recently launched the Corporate Climate Resilience Pathways (CCRP) initiative, a multi-year effort focused on empowering companies to enhance their resilience, scale up investment in adaptation, and drive systemic transformation toward a sustainable future. Learn more about our groundbreaking set of Principles for Corporate Climate Resilient Leadership, developed with input from over 70 leading climate and corporate stakeholders.

On 22 February 2024, Resilience First held a 'Resilience State of our Nation' briefing, reception and private dinner with Lord Toby Harris, Chair of the National Preparedness Commission. The event was co-hosted by PA Consulting and Radisson Collection Hotel, The May Fair. These are our reflections from the evening. 

 

Looking back

Early warning systems play a crucial role in disaster response, minimising losses and preserving lives. Despite progress made in the past decade, less than 50% of the world's most vulnerable regions have access to such systems. Resilience First's current project aims to analyse data from the World Risk Poll to determine the factors that affect people's confidence in disaster-related information sources and their level of preparedness.

The UK has experienced a stagnation in productivity growth over the past 15 years, which is affecting the economy and living standards. The Productivity Institute suggests some key priorities to address this issue.

It’s no coincidence that 2023 – the hottest year on record – was the year adaptation and resilience climbed up further than ever on the global climate agenda. But what does climate resilience mean at company level, and how can Chief Sustainability Officers integrate it into their work?

Regulation and innovation often seem worlds apart, but last month's roundtable discussion highlighted some ways we can bridge this gap. In this article, Control Risks' Partner Jean Devlin outlined some key takeaways, including the need for strategic policy-making, the shared cost of resilience and the influential role of the private sector in regulations. Though challenges may seem daunting, the potential for unlocking competitive advantages through a whole-of-society approach to resilience holds enormous promise.

Businesses play a critical role in advancing climate resilience, but there is a need for a universal corporate framework to provide guidance for their actions. How can we steer private sector efforts towards effective communication, adoption of best practices, and informed decision-making?

The rise of disruptive events in today's complex business environment only emphasises the growing importance of bolstering organisational resilience. And collaboration might just be the secret sauce.

Having been published since 2008, the 190-page National Risk Register (NRR) 2023, shares much in common with an older iconic institution, the ‘Shipping Forecast’. Like the Shipping Forecast, it predicts the future, its accuracy varies, it is listened to, or read, by far more people than actually understand it and ignored by millions who don’t even know about it.

What are the potential implications of the UK's Resilience Statement? Why is it important? Olu EriOlu, Associate Director, Infrastructure Advisory Group at KPMG, considers three implications of the Resilience Statement for infrastructure organisations.

Decarbonising the world economy is both possible and necessary, and we should approach 2024 with renewed energy about our role as enablers. Explore this insightful take on COP28 by Amy Barnes, Head of Climate and Sustainability Strategy at Marsh.

A thought-provoking piece by Lord Toby Harris, Chair of the National Preparedness Commission, reminds us we live in a TUNA world (Turbulent, Uncertain, Novel and Ambiguous). Lord Harris also highlights how resilience and preparedness at all levels can ensure our survival in chaotic times, as well as give us a unique competitive advantage.

Our COP28 Roundtable on Enabling Private Finance for Adaptation convened senior stakeholders from across sectors to explore the case for resilience investment, current challenges that widen the financing gap, and real-world innovative solutions that have already demonstrated remarkable success in accelerating adaptation, protecting value chains and sustaining livelihoods. Find out our key takeaways.

Gain insights into unaddressed risks to resilience in 2023 with a thought-provoking article authored by Dr. Chris Needham-Bennett and Garth Banks from Needhams 1834 Ltd. Working from home brought about new IT security challenges and changed the dynamics between employers and employees. Quantifying threats and incorporating them into risk registers remains difficult, prompting us to consider what other hurdles to resilience might be overlooked, such as space weather events or potential wars in Europe.

As we look ahead to 2024, several key trends and predictions emerge, offering hope and insight into navigating shifts to the workplace, and dealing with new technology. This article explores some of the most pressing employee struggles and discusses how the future may shape our ability to overcome them.

In the recently unveiled Control Risks Global Resilience Report for 2023, the spotlight is on the evolving landscape of organisational resilience. With data from 640 global business leaders, this report dives deep into shifts in horizon scanning, the spectrum of threats confronting organisations, and the areas they're fortifying to boost their resilience. Find out the key takeaways.

As climate change continues to pose significant challenges to society, it's crucial to embrace new technologies to galvanise climate action. John White, Managing Director EMEA at Riskthinking.AI, highlights the role of technology in collecting and analysing climate data to facilitate decision-making, in addition to emphasising the importance of effectively translating climate science into the language of the boardroom.

In today's world, 99% of organisations rely heavily on digital technology, making it essential to have strong digital resilience. This is especially true when it comes to two critical areas: cyber risks and artificial intelligence (AI) risks. Sheá Panayi, Cyber Risk Consultant, and Arunava Banerjee CISM, Cyber Risk Consulting Lead, at Zurich Resilience Solutions, share their expertise on how to enhance resilience.

Flooding is a natural disaster – exacerbated by climate change – that can have devastating effects on communities and businesses. With the frequency and severity of floods increasing in recent years, it is more important than ever for organisations to prioritise flood resilience. We sat down with Property Flood Resilience Champion, Mary Long-Dhonau OBE, to discuss why Property Flood Resilience is crucial for businesses, what steps they can take to become more flood resilient, and the potential impacts of flooding on their property, infrastructure, and staff.

In this article we will delve into some of the most dynamic and thought-provoking conversations that took place at the International Risk and Resilience Conference, and shed light on current global challenges and opportunities. Discussions included Martyn's Law, threats to global supply chains, increased cybersecurity risks and the next big shock that could impact businesses.