This official virtual Side Event to the Third UN Ocean Conference (UNOC3, Nice, 9-13 June 2025), co-organized by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) and the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), will highlight the urgency of disaster- and climate-resilient coastal infrastructure by bridging science, policy and finance. Anchored in CEEW’s data-driven risk assessment frameworks and recommendations emerging from CDRI’s International Conference on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (ICDRI, Nice, 6-7 June 2025) focusing on SIDS, the session will showcase how data, early warning, inclusive governance and innovative finance can enhance community resilience and enable adaptive, risk-informed infrastructure. The session will reinforce the linkages between infrastructure resilience, climate adaptation and ocean sustainability under SDGs 9, 13 and 14. 

Key Discussion Areas:

1. Harnessing Data and Technology for Adaptive Action: Leveraging AI, GIS and digital twin technologies for real-time risk assessment and early warning systems.
2. Strengthening Codes and Standards: Establishing and enforcing climate-resilient infrastructure standards tailored for coastal regions, especially SIDS.
3. Scaling Up Access to Finance: Mobilizing innovative financing, including blue bonds and resilience funds, to support resilient infrastructure and climate adaptation.
4. Enhancing Preparedness and Inclusion: Integrating community-driven solutions and gender inclusion in infrastructure planning and implementation. 

PARTICIPANTS (Click speaker names to view bio)

1. Mr. Abhishek Jain, Fellow and Director, Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW)
2. Ms. Somya Bhatt, Project Specialist, United Nations Development Programme
3. Prof. Harkunti Pertiwi Rahayu, Professor of Disaster Aspect in Urban and Regional Planning, Institute Technology of Sumatera, Indonesia
4. Ms. Louise Foulkes, Caribbean Director and Engineering Program Manager, Build Change
5. Dr. Pushp Bajaj, Programme Lead, CEEW 
6. Mr. Raj Vikram Singh, Senior Specialist – Disaster Risk Financing, Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI)
7. Ms. Camille Sévérac, Deputy Country Director India, Agence Française de Développement (AfD)
8. Ms. Aishwarya Pillai, Lead Specialist – Infrastructure for Resilient Island States (IRIS), CDRI