4.2 Focus on open data Data availability is a key driver of innovation in EWS, to the extent that private companies are beginning to offer weather data aggregation as a business-to- business service. For example, a major technology company in the sample has created open platforms that aggregate and standardize hydrological data sets, making it easier to access and understand the data. This supports businesses in customizing various EWS outputs for their use. A core strategy for encouraging stronger business engagement in EWS is to make as much data open and easy to work with as possible. Open data platforms offer free and standardized data, democratizing access to critical information and enabling businesses to develop tailored solutions specific to their needs. The WMO facilitates the free and open exchange of meteorological and environmental data through its 2021 Unified Data Policy, ensuring that comprehensive data (including weather) is accessible to all countries. Central to this is the WMO Information System 2.0 (WIS 2.0), a cutting-edge framework that enables data sharing across all WMO domains and disciplines. Supporting the Unified Data Policy and the Global Basic Observing Network (GBON), WIS 2.0 simplifies and lowers the cost of international, regional and national data exchange. At its core, WIS 2.0 embraces open data principles, adopting open standards and web technologies to facilitate the sharing of increasing volumes and varieties of real-time data, ensuring equal access to all. Progress continues to be made in this area. For example, in 2019, the EU listed meteorological data as a “high-value dataset”.26 This required it to be made available via an application programming interface (API) to the public for reuse, free of charge. This approach has been implemented across the EU. It is progressing into states of the European Economic Area, with, for example, the Swiss NMHS MeteoSwiss scheduled to make its data freely available to the public as of 1 April 2025. Efforts to accelerate this trend globally would help bring more businesses into the early warning ecosystem. Strategy 2 Catalysing Business Engagement in Early Warning Systems 16

Catalysing Business Engagement in Early Warning Systems 2025