Weather, climate & catastrophe insight: 2020 annual report
This report evaluates the impact of the disasters and extreme weather eventsthat occurred worldwide during 2020 and provides an overview of global economic losses. The report is designed to help identify trends, enhance risk mitigation, transfer risk, and build resilience. While 2020 was not a record-setter in terms of financial losses deriving from natural disasters, there were several notable records set on a regional, peril or event-level scale. Perhaps the biggest takeaway from 2020 was the recognition of how concurrent events can have major global implications. These “compounded” or “connected extremes” will provide critical learning opportunities for better planning as the world becomes increasingly complex and faces growing or emerging risks. 2020 also highlighted topics such as the protection gap to address the underserved, increasingly vulnerable populations, the need for additional investment around risk mitigation strategies to navigate new forms of volatility, and the growing influence from climate change on daily life.
