Learning from a climate disaster: The catastrophic floods in southern Brazil

The catastrophic floods that affected southern Brazil last May should serve as a warning to human societies that, despite the still widespread climate change skepticism or denial, mitigation and adaptation to cope with the ongoing climate crisis are urgently needed. The toll was 213 people killed or missing; 2.4 million people affected, including 600,000 displaced; and unprecedented losses in urban and rural infrastructure, including livestock. These losses could have been lower if adaptation measures had been in place, as has been repeatedly recommended by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Having witnessed the catastrophe firsthand, here we highlight nature-based adaptation measures that could effectively provide resistance and resilience against extreme climate events.