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This brief communication presents the work and objectives of the CATALYST project on "Capacity Development for Hazard Risk Reduction and Adaptation" funded by the European Commission (October 2011–September 2013). CATALYST set up a multi-regional think tank covering four regions (Central America and the Caribbean, East and West Africa, the European Mediterranean, and South and Southeast Asia), intending to strengthen capacity development for stakeholders involved in disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation, in the context of natural hazards. This communication concludes with a selection of recommendations for capacity development in DRR and climate change adaptation from the perspective of governance issues.

Floods are extreme events that can have large impacts on human societies and ecosystems. They arise from a multitude of causes and can have very different consequences depending on regional and local circumstances. Floods are part of the natural hydrological cycle, but adverse impacts arise when water masses inundate infrastructures and land that cannot cope with the excessive water. Major flood disasters in Europe have caused loss of lives and economic loss that amount to billions of euro, but aggregated over large areas small local floods also produce significant losses. Analyses of trends of past flood events suggest flood hazard may have increased in parts of Europe. Available evidence suggests high flows have been increasing in northern Europe, especially in western Britain and coastal Scandinavia. Regional patterns are, however, diverse, with many weak negative trends occurring in northern Europe as well, and a very mixed pattern in central Europe. Across most of the continent, however, urbanisation and the accumulation of assets in flood prone areas have led to increasing trends in the damages and economic consequences of floods. Global warming may reduce flood hazard in areas that are dominated by annual snowmelt floods, except in those regions where a sharp increase in winter snowfalls outweighs the effects of a warmer and shorter snow season. In other parts of Europe there is greater uncertainty in how flood hazard will change due to climate change. Increases in extreme river flows have, however, been predicted in several studies and may occur over relatively short time spans. Flood risk management is a demanding task that requires careful analysis of flood hazards and their causes, assessments of the magnitude of the risks, systematic planning to reduce risks and adaptation in the face of possible change. Dam safety is a major issue in dealing with flood risks. Flood risk management requires appropriate institutions, technical solutions and functioning go

Die räumlichen Auswirkungen des demographischen Wandels in Deutschland und Europa sind nach wie vor ein aktuelles Thema sowohl für die raumwissenschaftliche Forschung als auch für die Praxis der Stadt-, Regional- und Landesplanung. Die dabei im Fokus stehenden Fragen der sozial selektiven Abwanderung aus peripheren Räumen, der Aufrechterhaltung von Einrichtungen der technischen und sozialen Infrastruktur sowie der Bewahrung gleichwertiger Lebensverhältnisse in allen Teilräumen eines Landes haben mittlerweile auch die öffentliche Diskussion erreicht. Denn insbesondere in Ostdeutschland werden bereits jetzt Schulen geschlossen, es wird über Standards der medizinischen Versorgung diskutiert und Fragen der verkehrlichen Erreichbarkeit müssen beantwortet werden. "Erkennen - Steuern – Handeln: Antworten auf den demographischen Wandel" war das Thema des zehnten Treffens des Jungen Forums der ARL vom 6. bis 8. Juni 2007 in Dresden. Im Vordergrund standen die Suche nach Lösungsmöglichkeiten im Umgang mit den räumlichen Auswirkungen des demographischen Wandels, die Diskussion von lokalen und regionalen Anpassungsstrategien sowie die Implementierung von Strategien in die politische Praxis. Die vorgetragenen und diskutierten Beiträge aus Wissenschaft und Praxis sind Gegenstand dieses Arbeitsmaterials. Neben grundlegenden Fragestellungen beziehen sich die Beiträge auf vier übergeordnete Themenbereiche: Modelle, Ziele und Leitbilder zukünftiger räumlicher Entwicklung; Regional Governance und Strategieentwicklung; Handlungsansätze in den Bereichen Flächenmanagement und Stadtgestalt; Handlungsansätze in den Bereichen Stadterneuerung und Wohnungsmarktanpassung., The spatial impacts of demographic change in Germany and Europe remain a topical issue both for spatial research and for the practice of urban, regional and state-level planning. The central questions which arise have now also become matters of wide debate among the general public: socially selective migration away from peripheral areas; whether and how to keep up technical and social infrastructure, and continue to preserve the "parity of living conditions" throughout the state in its entirety. Particularly in eastern Germany, schools are already being closed, discussion has turned to standards of health-care provision, and questions of transport and accessibility now also need to be answered. "Identify - Steer - Act: responses to demographic change" was the topic of the tenth gathering of the ARL's Junges Forum, held from June 6–8, 2007 in Dresden. The prime focus was on attempts to find solutions in dealing with the spatial impacts of demographic change, on discussion of local and regional adjustment strategies, and the implementation of new strategies in political practice. The contributions from research and practice which were presented and discussed at the gathering form the contents of the working materials assembled here. In addition to touching on a number of fundamental issues, these papers address four broad topic areas: models, goals and visions for future spatial development; regional governance and strategy development; approaches to land-resource management and the cityscape; approaches to urban renewal and realigning the rented-property market.

The European Union Floods Directive requires the establishment of flood maps for high risk areas in all European member states by 2013. However, the current practice of flood mapping in Europe still shows some deficits. Firstly, flood maps are frequently seen as an information tool rather than a communication tool. This means that, for example, local stocks of knowledge are not incorporated. Secondly, the contents of flood maps often do not match the requirements of the end-users. Finally, flood maps are often designed and visualised in a way that cannot be easily understood by residents at risk and/or that is not suitable for the respective needs of public authorities in risk and event management. The RISK MAP project examined how end-user participation in the mapping process may be used to overcome these barriers and enhance the communicative power of flood maps, fundamentally increasing their effectiveness. Based on empirical findings from a participatory approach that incorporated interviews, workshops and eye-tracking tests, conducted in five European case studies, this paper outlines recommendations for user-specific enhancements of flood maps. More specific, recommendations are given with regard to (1) appropriate stakeholder participation processes, which allow incorporating local knowledge and preferences, (2) the improvement of the contents of flood maps by considering user-specific needs and (3) the improvement of the visualisation of risk maps in order to produce user-friendly and understandable risk maps for the user groups concerned. Furthermore, "idealised" maps for different user groups are presented: for strategic planning, emergency management and the public.