Odisha is multi-hazard-prone state in the eastern part of India. Among the various disasters, the frequency and severity of cyclones have increased at an alarming rate in the last two decades, which is attributed to climatic change. The state government of Odisha has made great strides in reducing the lives lost in the state, but an increase in economic losses and damage to critical infrastructure has become a point of worry. Considering the power sector as the most crucial of all critical infrastructures, this paper explores the impact that cyclones have had on the sector in the last two decades in Odisha. The 4R concept of robustness, redundancy, rapidity and resourcefulness is applied to the power sector, and how this is supported by governance is studied. The study points towards need for the master planning of critical infrastructure, based on the risk assessment, establishment of funding mechanisms for mitigation measures and the standardization and quality checking of power sector equipment to withstand the wind speeds of category 4 and above. There needs to be a good coordination between the power sector and the disaster management sector with proper legislative provision. Knowledge management, training and capacity building is another important issue which needs to be focused on.

The 2015 earthquake caused widespread damage in Nepal causing monetary loss of billions of dollars. Majority the households in Nepal are engaged in informal sector and relies heavily on local market and tourism. In Nepal, livelihood and households are not only linked through livelihood, built space, goods and services, but also through culture and traditions. As a result, understanding their linkage is important for effective recovery to further facilitate strengthening of community resilience. This article focuses on household and livelihood recovery within the first two years of the earthquake in traditional settlements Bungamati. Participatory mapping followed by narrative analysis of the interviews is used for understanding the linkages. Narrative analysis of the field interviews conducted with the shop owners generated six types household assets. Further, these assets were linked with the various coping strategies in the post disaster situation. The findings suggest three main type of coping strategies for livelihood recovery namely; Intensifying use of capitals, dependency on social capital and mitigate consumption and expenditure.

COVID-19 has reinforced the need to revisit the integration of health within disaster risk reduction (DRR) strategies for biological hazards in a system-wide approach. In November 2020, DRR experts attended the Asia-Pacific Partnership for Disaster Risk Reduction (APP-DRR) Forum to share progress and learnings in the areas of health system resilience, data management, residual risk management, risk communication, digital literacy, and knowledge product marketing. Advancements for health in DRR included the importance of multi-sectoral, multi-hazard action plans; adaptation to technological advancements in data collection, dissemination and protection; promoting the health and wellbeing of essential and nonprofessional workers; and improving inclusivity in digital literacy. COVID-19 has affected progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and created a unique opportunity within DRR to re-evaluate the adequacy of response mechanisms against concurrent, cascading or interacting risks of future biological hazards. Health emergency disaster risk management (Health-EDRM) is a new World Health Organization paradigm that includes DRR at intra-, inter- and multidisciplinary levels. Scientific advancement under Health-EDRM is necessary for health and non-health actors in DRR education and research. Continuous education on the multifaceted risk governance is a key to building awareness, capacity and accelerating towards achieving the international DRR and the SDG targets.

The private sector for long has been looked upon as a funding source to cushion the disaster and climate change damages and losses. In recent times, there is a more proactive approach with the private sector increasingly engaging in activities to promote Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a part of their business strategies. Despite significant strides being made by the private sector in this regard, the strategies that are good for the business, environment, and sustainability are yet to take off at a large-scale. Many private organizations are still facing the challenge of identifying the right target sector and stakeholders for fulfilling their sustainability requirements. However, the greatest strength of the private sector is its ability to innovate. As part of this innovative design, the concept of thematic incubation for corporate sustainability is explored. The products and services developed through these thematic incubators are envisaged to result in the achievement of global development agendas and promotion of sustainability performance for multiple stakeholders including government, academia, private sector, and the community at large. This concept allows a win-win situation with the culmination of long-lasting social and environmental goals along-with achieving profit-with-purpose. The paper identifies the concept of sustainability with respect to the interest of the stakeholders, as well as its alignment with that of sustainable development and disaster risk reduction. The paper presents an exploratory case of the thematic incubation for disaster risk reduction, climate change, and sustainable development as a possible approach to corporate sustainability. The paper details the process of thematic incubation along with possible challenges and advantages of the same. In all, thematic incubation has been identified as a lynchpin to ensure the effective utilization of resources and setting in motion a culture of innovation, entrepreneurship, use of science, and sustainability at the local level.