SciDev.Net

Combining satellite data with mobile phones offers cheap and effective tools for managing fires, says South African scientist Philip Frost.

Disaster management needs constellations of satellites with multispectral sensors, says Indian space researcher, Ranganath Navalgund.

Kenyan MP and remote sensing expert, Wilbur Ottichilo, argues the time is ripe for using satellites to spot developing African droughts.

Volcano expert Geoff Wadge explains how the International Charter on Space and Major Disasters helped manage a volcanic eruption in Montserrat.

Africans need to be more aware of earthquakes to cope with disasters — and there's no better place to start than in schools, says Chris Hartnady.

The Samoan earthquake highlights worrying shortcomings in Pacific early warning systems, says Richard Hamblyn.

We must prepare for climate change bringing more natural disasters that favour mosquito-borne disease, says Jai P. Narain from the WHO.

Climate change will make Indian dryland agriculture harder, but a scientific strategy offers real hope, says ICRISAT head William D. Dar.

Everyone — from scientists to the public — has a role to play in preparing for earthquakes, says a Nature editorial.

The Global Earthquake Model is based on a sound foundation and deserves widespread support, says an editorial in Nature Geoscience.

Investing in detailed maps of potential cyclone damage will save lives in Indian Ocean countries, says Shishir Dube.

Preparing for cyclones can save lives, but to save livelihoods nations must also help people adapt to cyclones' impacts, says Saleemul Huq.

Combining statistical and physical models offers the best hope of predicting changes in local cyclone risks in the Indian Ocean, says Mark Tadross.

Small island developing states should set an example by promoting a clean energy environment, says Tom Roper.

The Saptakoshi embankment collapse at Kusaha, Nepal, on 18 August was not a natural disaster, but a man-made tragedy, says Dipak Gyawali.

Nalaka Gunawardene argues that governments in disaster-prone areas need stronger partnerships with the media to ensure that information gets rapidly where it is needed during emergencies.

Keith Alverson says the international community should not rush to create a tsunami warning centre for the Indian Ocean, but instead develop a global system that warns of multiple hazards.

An editorial in Nature welcomes plans for a globally-integrated system of Earth observation, but warns it must support the basic scientific activity of data collection.

Daniel Pauly argues that the critical problems of Asia's fisheries should be taken into account before they are rebuilt after the tsunami.

Gordon Woo and Willy Aspinall says tsunami-warning systems should incorporate risk analysis to raise different levels of tsunami alert.