Climate change a good reason for risk managers to rethink their future role, FERMA says

The probable picture of climate change for Europe is too much water in the north and not enough in the south, making it clear that no risk manager can be unaware of the issues of climate change, suggests a statement issued Friday by the Federation of European Risk Management Associations (FERMA).

“Climate change will bring about a transformation in business as companies seek to manage hazards that we believe will intensify.

“They will also innovate, developing new products and processes that need less energy to produce or to use,” says Florence Bindelle, executive director of FERMA, which brings together 22 national risk management associations in 20 European countries.

While this evolution is taking place, “it seems a good time for risk managers to think about what they want for their role in the business of the future, taking into account the combined factors that shape the global economic environment,” Bindelle continues.

“No risk manager can be unaware of the issues of climate change,” says Helle Friberg, an association board member and chairman of the program committee for the 2014 FERMA Seminar, at which findings of the latest FERMA Benchmarking Survey will be announced.

With too much water in northern Europe and not enough water in southern Europe, the accompanying hazards are storms with high winds and heavy rains, says Jesper Theilgaard, Danish meteorologist, television weatherman and climate expert. Theilgaard will offer comments on why the issue has become so serious and the consequences for risk managers and insurers, as part of his keynote speech at the conference.

“There is an economic risk of doing something which turns out not to be necessary, but if we don’t do enough, it might be too late, not for the planet but for humanity,” Theilgaard says.