Hello! Halo! Kumusta! Xin chào! สวัสดี! မင်္ဂလာပါ! ជំរាបសួរ! ສະບາຍດີ!

If you’ve spent time in both the Americas 🌎 and Asia 🌏, then you’ve probably come across two terms for powerful storms: “hurricane” and “typhoon”. So what’s the difference between these two?

Well, they actually refer to the same thing! The scientific term is technically a tropical cyclone, which is defined by an “intense circular storm that originates over warm tropical oceans and is characterized by low atmosphere pressure, high winds, and heavy rain” (Britannica, 2023).

So how did we end up with two words to describe the same phenomenon?

• The word “hurricane” originates from two sources: the Taino god of evil, Huricán, and the Mayan god of wind, storm and fire, Huracán (ThoughtCo, 2019)

• The word “typhoon” originates from three sources: the Cantonese word for big wind, daaih-fùng (颱風), the Arabic word for smoke & storm, ṭūfān (طوفان), which itself is rooted from the ancient Greek monster, Typhon (Merriam Webster, 2023).

🫖 This divergence is similar to the duality between the two words, “tea” and “cha”, which resulted due to differences in trade routes.

In this issue we’ll discuss how climate change is making tropical cyclones and other weather phenomena more intense, so do grab a cup of teh 🍵 while you read along.

🧐 What’s the relationship between climate change & natural disasters?

😖 Weather is an incredibly complex system and thus forecasting it can be a difficult endeavor; fortunately, we have made major advances in weather prediction thanks to improvements in science & technology…

Moreover, the good news is that climate change is not necessarily going to make our predictions less accurate moving forward either because modern weather forecasts no longer rely on statistical analysis of historical data but rather modeling with atmospheric physics, aided by supercomputers 🖥️ and satellites 🛰️ (MIT Climate Portal, 2023).

What climate change will do though, is make events like tropical cyclones more intense—with stronger winds 🌬️ & more rain ☔—but not necessarily more frequent. According to Kerry Emanuel, Professor Emeritus of Atmospheric Science at MIT, there are about 90 tropical cyclones occurring every year, and this number is expected to remain fairly constant. However, with warmer air and water temperatures, both evaporation rates and humidity capacity will increase, thus resulting in more intense storms (MIT Climate Portal, 2019).

🌪️ We are already seeing these effects in Southeast Asia. While the Philippines experiences around 20 typhoons per year, Super Typhoon Haiyan—which struck a decade ago—is particularly notable given that it was the strongest one on record, with wind speeds exceeding 170 knots (315 km/h). It resulting in over 6,000 casualties and over USD2B in damages (Climate.gov, 2014).

🌀 Since then, the Philippines has experienced 6 more “super” typhoons with Super Typhoon Rai—which struck just 2 years prior—becoming the country’s second costliest after Haiyan with over 400 casualties and USD1B in damages (Oxfam, 2022). Earlier in that same year (2021), Indonesia suffered over 160 casualties in its remote eastern region from tropical cyclone Seroja, an unprecedented occurrence (Reuters, 2021).

Besides tropical cyclones, climate change and associated environmental degradation is exacerbating issues like flooding across the region. For instance, according to Indonesia’s National Agency for Disaster Management flooding accounted for over 80% of disaster displacements in 2021. Flooding is linked to the following causes: prolonged heavy rainfall 🌧️, poor urban planning 🌆, and deforestation 🪓—3 issues that Indonesia experiences intimately (IDEA, 2023).

🔁 Climate change is also leading to increased frequency and intensity of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), a weather cycle with global implications (Yale Environment 360, 2019).

♨️ With ENSO, the sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean warm, disrupting naturally-occurring monsoon and trade wind patterns. This leads to reduced rainfall over Indonesia, India and Australia, while rainfall and tropical cyclone formation increases over the tropical Pacific Ocean. One of the impacts of this is increased fires in carbon rich environments in Indonesia that result in poor air quality across the region (Mongabay, 2023).

📈 Overall, climate-related disasters have surged 5x over the past 50 years but early warning systems can help save lives and reduce damages (UN, 2021). Later on, we highlight a couple of innovators in Southeast Asia who are doing just that.

📚 Want to learn more about this topic?

1. “Climate Change: Southeast Asia’s Existential Threat” from ISEAS

2. “El Nino & La Nina” from NOAA

3. “Climate-induced Disasters as an Evolving Threat to Southeast Asia’s Maritime Security” from Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative

📢 Shout-outs to Komunidad & The Open Mapping Hub!

📊 Komunidad is a data and analytics software company that is committed to accelerating the transition to a climate-resilient and low-carbon economy while nurturing sustainable growth and progress. Through their SaaS solutions, they work with businesses and governments in mitigating and adapting to climate-related challenges.

📲 Komunidad's groundbreaking Climate Action Center is a SaaS platform that facilitates collective action by offering digital transformation and decision support tools for climate resilience and sustainability.

💭 To learn more about Komunidad's #EarlyWarningsforAll and #ClimateAction initiatives, please visit their website.

🗺️ The Open Mapping Hub Asia-Pacific (OMH AP) is the Asia-Pacific representative of the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team, a non-profit organization that leverages open-source mapping technology to support disaster response, humanitarian aid, and community development.

📌 Through collaborative efforts, community engagement, and volunteer contributions, OMH AP helps address climate resilience by creating detailed and up-to-date maps, which enables better navigation and resource allocation before, during, and after natural disasters such as floods, cyclones, and earthquakes.

💭 To learn more about the impactful work of OMH AP in the region and beyond, you may reach out their email at [email protected] or visit their website.

🗞️ Recent News

👍🏻 Good News

💰 Agreement on loss and damage deal reached on first day of COP28 talks (The Guardian, 30 November 2023)

🤝 Singapore strengthens humanitarian assistance and disaster relief partnership with PDC (PDC, 8 November 2023)

👎🏻 Bad News

🌊 Thousands of homes underwater after floods hit Vietnam (CNA, 15 November 2023)

🌀 Climate change: scientists say strong typhoons are arriving earlier, overlapping with extreme summer rain (SCMP, 4 October 2023)

💥 Climate change makes cyclones more intense and destructive, say scientists (Straits Times, 16 May 2023)

📢 Other Voices

🔍 “Philippines searches for answers 10 years after Typhoon Haiyan” by Michael Beltran (Nikkei Asia, 9 November 2023)

🎙️ Interview with Nashin of Peta Bencana

💡 Why were you initially inspired to tackle climate adaptation?

😕 Like many others, I experienced the impact of the climate crisis long before I understood what it was…

⛈️ Growing up in Jakarta, I was exposed to flooding and noticed that what we used to call the large “five year floods” started to occur more frequently, with greater intensity, and much less predictably. Moreover, I noticed that disasters disproportionately impacted those with less resources; however, at the same time I also noticed that in spite of having less resources to cope with disasters, Indonesians exhibited such a strong spirit of “gotong royong”, finding ways to help each other through strong community bonds, no matter what.

⭐ These ingredients pulled me to dedicating my time and resources to advocate for, and work towards, social and environmental justice.

🛠️ How exactly is PetaBencana solving it?

📊 Information is the most important resource in a disaster. A lack of access to verified, real-time data compromise abilities to make informed, evidence-based decisions result in ineffective resource management, confusion, and conflict. However, the knowledge of local communities and the dense network of mobile sensors connected via social media, provides a data source of unprecedented resolution for mitigating risk.

🤖 Powered by CogniCity Open Source Software (OSS), PetaBencana.id harnesses the heightened use of social media and instant messaging during disasters to produce real-time disaster maps from both crowd-sourced reporting and government agency validations. Designed to integrate into any social media platform, CogniCity OSS, uses a novel humanitarian chatbot model to automatically reach out to disaster-affected residents in real-time, soliciting anonymous disaster information directly from people on street-level who understand the situation best.

🛠️ By enabling anyone to easily view and share disaster information in real time, PetaBencana.id democratizes decision-support tools and empowers people to take immediate evidence-based action while also improving coordination between government agencies, first responders, and residents.

🌐 CogniCity OSS is designed to be adaptable to a wide range of geographies, use cases, and languages. It is now already adopted in 7 countries. Together, these teams who have adopted CogniCity OSS, are part of the Climate Emergency Software Alliance (CESA), an international organization working at the forefront of climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction.

😲 What is a surprising fact about climate disasters?

🔢 One of the biggest misconceptions is that with advances in AI & data technologies, disaster events become more predictable. However, the impacts of disasters such as infrastructure failure (e.g. where a canal wall will break, where the electricity to a pump will cut off, where a sea wall will collapse) are incredibly tough to predict. More data does not necessarily guarantee meaningful action.

🤓 We must focus on tools that enable people to make meaningful decisions and participate in disaster risk reduction especially during unpredictable events, and ensure that these tools are accessible and safe for all.

🎬 What actions can readers take now to support your cause?

There are many ways to support our programs and organizations:

1. 📩 First and foremost, if you are in a disaster in Indonesia or the Philippines, send a report via WhatsApp, Telegram (ID/PH), Facebook Messenger (ID/PH), or Viber and check PetaBencana.id (Indonesia) / MapaKalamidad.ph (Philippines) to stay safe.

2. 🤝 Are you an individual? Join our network of trainers, youth ambassadors, or other volunteers. Otherwise, if you’re an organization, partner with us! We are open to partnerships with organizations of all shapes & sizes who share our mission and values.

3. 🤑 Donate to support communities at the front-line of the climate crisis. Donations are tax deductible!

4. 📢 Amplify the visibility, awareness, and reach of the platform in your networks! Encourage your friends and family to submit a test report as a disaster preparation strategy, and use your social media reach to raise awareness and remind people that if they are in a disaster, they can visit our platform to view and share real-time disaster information! When we share what we see, everyone can stay informed, avoid danger, and #ReduceRiskTogether!

5. 🏠 Don’t see a real-time community-led information sharing platform in your country? Contact us to #BringItHome! If you are an organization committed to enhancing your community’s resilience in the face of disasters and climate change, consider joining the Climate Emergency Software Alliance.

🦸🏻 What do you do when you’re not saving the world?

Paint 🎨, write ✍🏻, read 📖, swim 🏊🏻, dive 🤿, hike 🥾, and learning how to surf 🏄🏻‍♂️. I also really do enjoy long walks on the beach 🚶🏻🏖️.

⏭️ Next week, we’ll be kicking off our three-part blue economy series with an issue on sustainable fisheries!

❓ Did you enjoy this week’s issue? If yes, please do forward to your friends who would enjoy the read as well. Also, feel free to let us know what you thought by giving us feedback at [email protected].

🌊 SEA you next week!

Karina & Massimiliano