Every March 23, World Meteorological Day is celebrated. This has been happening since 1997, in commemoration of the implementation of the agreement for the creation of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
Without a doubt, World Meteorological Day is a relevant date. Its aim is to raise awareness of the importance of meteorology and hydrology for the necessary balance between nature and social activities.
It is widely known that, in recent decades, climate change has caused meteorological phenomena (electrical storms, droughts, forest fires, hurricanes, floods…) to become more recurrent and extreme each time. Consequently, the exposure of humanity to the occurrence of disasters is greater.
Taken from the internet. On a global scale, climate change has increased the harmful effects of weather events.
Likewise, the unequal and irrational development of hyperconsumption societies, at the expense of nature, has caused the disappearance of species, ecosystems and even the death of people.
An article published by the WMO explains that the Covid-19 pandemic “has highlighted that, in our interconnected world, we must adopt a truly multi-hazard and cross-border approach to advance the global objectives of climate action, reduction of disaster risk and sustainable development.
Meanwhile, experts point out that population growth, environmental degradation and uncontrolled urbanization are aggravating factors. Hence the importance of governments developing adequate early warning systems.
The WMO focuses the annual celebration on a topic of interest to humanity. Precisely, this time it is dedicated to “Early warning and early action”, in order to highlight the importance of hydrometeorological information ─and related topics─ for disaster risk reduction, protecting the means of subsistence of communities and the people’s lives, as published by the WMO on its website.
The Greater Antilles joined the organization on March 4, 1952. Currently, the Cuban State has policies, regulations and daily practices that articulate scientific research in the field of meteorology ─and related sciences─ with the work of civil defense and disaster risk reduction.
What is the WMO?
WMO was established on 23 March 1950. A year later it became the United Nations specialized agency for meteorology, operational hydrology and related geophysical sciences. The Secretariat is based in Geneva, Switzerland, and the supreme body is the World Meteorological Congress.
According to information available on the web, the WMO is made up of “193 Member States and Territories”. Although the origins date back to 1873 ─when the International Meteorological Congress was held in Vienna, Austria─, its immediate predecessor was the International Meteorological Organization (IMO).
