Abstract. Recent large floods in Europe have led to increased interest in research and development of flood forecasting systems. Some of these events have been provoked by some of the wettest rainfall periods on record which has led to speculation that such extremes are attributable in some measure to anthropogenic global warming and represent the beginning of a period of higher flood frequency. Whilst current trends in extreme event statistics will be difficult to discern, conclusively, there has been a substantial increase in the frequency of high floods in the 20th century for basins greater than 2x105 km2. There is also increasing that anthropogenic forcing of climate change may lead to an increased probability of extreme precipitation and, hence, of flooding. There is, therefore, major emphasis on the improvement of operational flood forecasting systems in Europe, with significant European Community spending on research and development on prototype forecasting systems and flood risk management projects. This Special Issue synthesises the most relevant scientific and technological results presented at the International Conference on Flood Forecasting in Europe held in Rotterdam from 3-5 March 2003. During that meeting 150 scientists, forecasters and stakeholders from four continents assembled to present their work and current operational best practice and to discuss future directions of scientific and technological efforts in flood prediction and prevention. The papers presented at the conference fall into seven themes, as follows.

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UNESCO operates at the interface between natural and social sciences, education, culture and communication, playing a vital role in constructing a global culture of resilient communities. UNESCO assists countries to build their capacities in managing disaster and climate risk and with their ability to cope with disasters. The Organization provides a forum for governments to work together and it provides essential scientific and practical advice in disaster risk reduction. UNESCO's programmes in relation to the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR) cut across all of its areas of competence (education, natural and social sciences, culture and communication). Working alone or in collaboration with both UN Agencies and other scientific entities, UNESCO has been a catalyst for international, inter-disciplinary cooperation in many aspects of disaster risk reduction and mitigation. Since the establishment of ICL in 2002, UNESCO has continuously supported ICL's activities as a part of its contributions to ISDR, namely the Hyogo and now Sendai Frameworks for action. KeywordsUNESCO Á Hyogo framework Á Sendai framework UNESCO Disaster Risk Reduction ActivitiesUNESCO has been strongly involved in disaster risk reduction (DRR) since the 1960s, with studies on earthquakes and oceanography. Its programme has since expanded into other categories of hazards and many areas, as it pursues multidisciplinary actions to study natural hazards and mitigate their effect.In the 1990-2000s, UNESCO kept supporting natural hazard-related studies and mitigation activities during the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (IDNDR) proclaimed by the United Nations (Clayson 1991).UNESCO promotes scientific exchange and collaborative efforts in order to establish effective early warning systems for different hazards such as tsunamis, landslides, volcanoes, earthquakes, floods and droughts. UNESCO helps Member States to collectively achieve effective early warning and hazard-monitoring, helps coordination between existing research centers and educates communities at risk about preparedness measures, including setting up warning and emergency response Standard Operating Procedures and community drill exercises. UNESCO promotes community-based approaches in the development of response plans and awareness campaigns, which strongly involve educational institutions and local community actors.

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