UN Special Representative on disaster risk reduction Mami Mizutori spoke with The Guardian Sunday to warn that climate disasters are now occurring at a rate of one per week.

Mizutori claims that while large scale cyclones and droughts may get the headlines, lower impact events may actually be leading to more death and displacement. Mizutori pleaded for additional climate investment not just in mitigation but in adaptation and resilience as well. She noted that climate disasters are currently costing around $520 billion per year. Mizutori offered some specific suggestions for addressing the problem.

Mizutori called for new regulations in a variety of infrastructure areas, including water, power and housing focusing on resilience to climate change disasters such as droughts or extreme flooding. Mizutori called for additional weather infrastructure and flood defenses as well including natural solutions like mangrove swamps. Mizutori noted that the most vulnerable in these situations are the poor, elderly, disabled, and women and children. Mizutori ended by suggesting that we need to look at the situation holistically particularly in terms of government structure where responsibility for climate emissions is often held under different agency than the one protecting the people from the results of those emissions.