Be ready with Clim4Cast maps

The Czech science portal VědaVýzkum.cz features the Clim4Cast project and its activities. The portal aims to bring together information about developments in research and innovation, provide updates on science policy, and support discussion about both the successes and challenges of Czech science. More here 🔗 https://vedavyzkum.cz/veda/veda/cesky-monitoring-sucha-patri-ve-stredni-evrope-k-nejlepsim-v-evrope-se-sucho-v-dalsich-dnech-prohloubi

Drought monitoring helps reduce economic and environmental impacts by enabling early warnings and better resource management planning. In Europe, several operational monitoring systems exist at national and regional levels. However, these systems are rarely validated, which complicates decision-making processes. A new study (led by Nirajan Luintel) presents a quantitative comparison of national drought monitoring products in Central Europe. The authors conducted a quantitative comparison of drought monitoring products in Austria, Czechia, Croatia, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia, using a newly developed impact database derived from national newspaper archives covering the period 2000–2023. Read more here 🔗 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10113-026-02536-8

The international Interreg CE Clim4Cast project, which has been connecting scientific teams from seven European countries for the past three years, culminated in a final conference held on 27–28 January. The event was hosted by the Global Change Research Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences (CzechGlobe), in cooperation with the Department of Geography at the Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, and other project partners. In a relaxed and friendly atmosphere, experts explained, for example, how heatwaves threaten human health 🤷‍♂️, introduced the newly observed phenomenon of so-called “green drought” 🍃, and especially valuable was the presentation from the Fire Rescue Service 🧑‍🚒, which described what is involved in responding to exceptionally large-scale wildfires. At the same time, the results of work on building the platform itself were presented ➡️ https://clim4cast.eu/, which is available in seven language versions and represents the first unified platform of its kind in Central Europe.

The Clim4Cast project was presented at the European Meteorological Society (EMS) Annual Meeting, which took place in Ljubljana between 8 and 12 September 2025. Gregor Gregorič from Slovenian Environemnt Agency participated in the session on agricultural meteorology and forestry applications, where he presented an overview of the Clim4Cast project and its implementation in Slovenia. The presentation focused on the application of results from the DHF Forecasting Tool, which provides daily analyses and forecasts processed at ARSO. Possible ways of integrating these outputs into Slovenia’s operational drought monitoring system “Sušomer” (Droughtmeter) were also discussed. ARSO’s contribution highlighted how Clim4Cast results can support operational drought monitoring and climate-resilient decision-making in agriculture and forestry, strengthening the link between research, forecasting, and practical applications. Lukáš Dolák from Mararyk University attended the session on climate risks, their assessments and tools, where he introduced the database of drought, heatwave, and forest fire/wildfire events (DHF). The database itself includes DHF events from seven countries participating in the Clim4Cast project, spanning the 2000–2023 period. Except for a general overview, Lukáš also presented two severity indices based on the DHF database, as well as the occurrence and impacts of compound events. The DHF database represents one of the most crucial project outcomes compiled by all project partners. It can serve as an exceptionally valuable source of information not only about the DHF impacts on human society, landscape, and various sectors, but also reveals so far hidden consequences of cross-border DHF events.