In 2019, the International Science Council (ISC) and the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) invited the Integrated Research for Disaster Risk program (IRDR) to lead on the development of a global research agenda for risk-informed development to guide impactful international disaster risk research and its funding. Since then, the COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the integrated nature of human development and planetary health, brought renewed urgency to tackling the underlying drivers of risks at different scales, and demonstrated the vital role of science in coping with and preventing future crises.
This document takes stock of recent developments in disaster risk science and provides a compelling set of directions for research and scientific collaboration for a more holistic and collaborative approach to understanding and managing risks. It challenges silos in science and in society and the notion that social, ecological, economic and technological systems can be understood in isolation from one another, and advocates for an increased focus on people.