Brief communication: Inclusiveness in designing an early warning system for flood resilience

Floods remain a wicked problem and are becoming more destructive withwidespread ecological, social, and economic impacts. The problem is acute inmountainous river catchments where plausible assumptions of risk behaviourto flood exposure and vulnerability are crucial. Inclusive approaches arerequired to design suitable flood early warning systems (EWSs) with a focuson local social and governance context rather than technology, as is the casewith existing practice. We assess potential approaches for facilitatinginclusiveness in designing EWSs by integrating diverse contexts andidentifying preconditions and missing links. We advocate the use of aSMART approach as a checklist for good practice to facilitatebottom-up initiatives that benefit the community at risk by engaging them at every stage of the decision-making process.

Automated summary

Floods in mountainous river catchments are causing increasing harm and require inclusive approaches to designing flood early warning systems. Rather than focusing solely on technology, the use of a SMART approach encourages engagement with local social and governance contexts to benefit the at-risk community. This approach integrates diverse backgrounds and identifies missing links to ensure inclusivity and good practice throughout the decision-making process.