South Asia & India

In a region with seasonally occurring extreme weather events, adaptation of all sectors to these circumstances was and is key to development and stability. Due to a changing climate, a solid database as the foundation for decision-making, investors and insurances helps to adapt and buffer the impacts of extreme events and raise awareness for the relevance of adaptation and mitigation.

Our Work in the Region

Extreme weather events like typhoons and floods have a high financial impact, which is hard to foresee. This causes ripples of insecurity for investors and (re-)insurances. The Climate and Catastrophe Risk Assessment models the likelihood of occurrence and impact in order to transfer the risk from the individual to the institutional level to enable profound and timely reaction. Additionally, the provision of flood and typhoon models as open source benefits awareness across borders and fosters implementation of adaptation and investment options.

Climate change challenges farmers and insurances to plan, adapt and invest differently. A solid database on regional climate change projections and observed crop yields and losses in remote rural areas is a crucial basis for these decisions. With the help of satellite imagery, agricultural model assessments provide information about climate-related perils and losses so that resilience of farmers is enhanced, food provision in the region is stabilized and more funds are available for adaptation option.

Seasonal forecasts in regional climate help to assess the impacts of disruptive weather phenomena on a national, regional and community level and robust scenario modelling enables sustainable planning. This capacity building through reciprocal knowledge exchange outlines the ground for assessing climate risks on water resources and agricultural production. Based on the knowledge climate induced migration patterns can be better understood for a higher resilience towards climate variability.

Selected Ongoing Project

  • ForHimSDG Förderung der Entwicklung des Himalayas durch Stärkung von Lehre und Forschung im Bereich der Sustainable Development Goals; funded by DAAD; 01.01.2022-31.12.2025; contact: Prajal Pradhan
  • SWAPNO Safe Water – Advances in Purification Options - Sauberes Wasser durch Aufbereitungssysteme - Praktisch, Nachhaltig und Innovativ; funded by German Alliance for Global Health Research, BMBF, PT DLR; 01.05.2022-30.04.2024; contact: Amanda Wendt

Selected Finished Projects

  • AGRATI_India Agricultural Risk Assessment Tool for Insurances in India; funded by EU, EIT Climate KIC; 01.03.2018 - 31.12.2019; contact: Christoph Gornott
  • AsianCitiesAdapt- ACA  Sustainable Cities in South-East Asia / Stadtentwicklung in Asien: Entwicklung klimasensitiver Anpassungspläne; funded by BMU - Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz und nukleare Sicherheit; 15.02.2010 - 14.11.2013; contact: Jürgen Kropp
  • B-EPICC-RD2 Klimakapazitätsvorsorge: Risikovorhersage und -Minimierung; funded by BMUB, 01.01.2022-31.12.2023; contact: Fred Hattermann, Christoph Gornott
  • CLIMSU Climate Impacts on Sugar; funded by: Climate-KIC Schweiz; 01.09.2016 - 30.09.2017; contact: Christoph Gornott
  • EPICC-RD2 Klimakapazitätsbildung: Risikovorhersage und -Minimierung; funded by BMUB; 01.01.2018-31.08.2021; contact: Fred Hattermann
  • FABLE India FABLE land use analysis for India; funded by SDSN; 01.06.2019-28.02.2021; contact: H. Lotze-Campen
  • Hyderabad-RD2 Klima und Energie in einem komplexen Transformationsprozess zur Nachhaltigkeit in Hyderabad: Nachhaltige Anpassung an und Mitigation des Klimawandels mit Blick auf Lebensstile und Konsummuster; funded by BMBF, PT DLR; 01.07.2008 - 30.06.2013; contact: Matthias Lüdeke
  • IKI OASIS Oasis Platform for Climate and Catastrophe Risk Assessment; funded by BMUB - Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz, Bau und Reaktorsicherheit; 01.07.2018 - 30.06.2020; contact: Fred Hattermann
  • NICCSA (I-CCC) Unterstützung des National Institute for Climate Change Studies and Actions; funded by BMU, IKI; 01.07.2018 - 31.08.2020; contact: Jürgen Kropp
  • SURVIVE2 Science and policy to assist and support SIDS and LDCs to negotiate a strong international climate regime enabling low carbon development and supporting adaptation needs; funded by BMUB - Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz, Bau und Reaktorsicherheit; 01.09.2011 - 30.09.2016; contact: Katja Frieler
  • SUSFOOD Sustainable Food Systems under Climate Change in South Asia; funded by BMBF, PT DLR; 01.07.2017 - 30.06.2019; contact: Jürgen Kropp
  • World bank Turn Down the Heat III: Regional Analysis – The Case for Climate Resilience; funded by The World Bank Group; 16.12.2013 - 30.04.2019; contact: Christopher Reyer
  • World bank Background  Modeling Impact-Climate Change-poverty; funded by The World Bank Group; 30.05.2014 - 30.06.2015; contact: Ilona Otto

Working Groups (alphabetical order)