Drivers and barriers of business engagement in EWS 3 Major global trends are driving the growth of business opportunity in EWS. This chapter explores what drives businesses to engage with EWS, and what prevents them from doing more. These drivers and barriers are the basis of strategies for increasing business engagement in EWS, which are explored in the following chapter. 3.1 Drivers of business engagement in EWS Driver 1: Businesses are focusing more on hydrometeorological hazard risks Many businesses understand that their operations, supply chains, distribution and workforce are impacted by weather. However, two recent trends have increased their focus, the first of which is reporting. Since the adoption of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) in 2024, companies operating in the European Union (EU) have been required to report on climate risk. Similar measures have been adopted in the UK, Canada, the State of California and other important business jurisdictions. Furthermore, voluntary disclosures, which ask companies to consider their impact on the natural world, have become increasingly popular. Both CRSD and voluntary disclosures require increased engagement with related data. The second trend is the increase in extreme weather incidents. Companies in industries that are directly exposed to weather, climate and water effects (e.g. agriculture, extractives and companies that either own or have financial exposure to valuable outdoor physical assets) have developed robust plans based on highly localized predictions. One electricity company even invested in developing an internal climate scenario group that collects its own site-level weather data from across its global operations and informs the company’s strategic decision-making. Beyond these primary industries, others are starting to consider impacts, even if many are not ready to make large investments in mitigating them. For instance, several are integrating real-time weather data into supply chain management systems to optimize logistics, reduce costs and improve operational resilience amid more frequent extreme weather events.Driver 2: Disaster resilience is high on the public agenda Though disaster resilience has been in public debate for some time (as noted by the 2015 Sendai Framework), COVID-19 changed the nature of the global conversation on resilience, exposing the “vulnerability of our society to global systemic risks”.22 In the context of a changing climate, this has especially included resilience to weather disasters, which, since around 2021, have become a more prominent part of the international agenda. This is clear through the development of major global programmes and initiatives that explicitly reference disaster resilience as a concern, including Early Warnings for All and the Bridgetown Initiative to reform the international financial system. It is also evidenced in funding allocations. For example, in 2021, the World Bank committed to a plan to increase its climate financing to 35% of its total portfolio, with half of climate financing from the International Development Association (IDA) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) being allocated to climate adaptation. A similar emphasis on resilience is clear at the national level. For example, in 2023, the White House held the first US national climate resilience summit. Companies are increasingly choosing to enhance their corporate social responsibility (CSR) by aligning with important disaster resilience initiatives. For example, a company in the survey emphasized its commitment to sustainable development by mitigating risks through EWS, enhancing its reputation and aligning with CSR objectives. Similarly, another company noted that partnerships with government agencies and research institutions, developed through EWS collaborations, drive innovation and reinforce its growth strategy. Catalysing Business Engagement in Early Warning Systems 12

Catalysing Business Engagement in Early Warning Systems 2025