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β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…   Horizon Europe Β· Grant No. 101112728 Β· climempower.eu

ClimEmpower:
Risk Map
Methodology

Navigating Hazard, Exposure, and Vulnerability for Localized Resilience.

Asset-specific climate risk methodologies with documented formulas, data inputs and adaptation measures.

🌾 Drought 🌑 Heatwave πŸ”₯ Wildfires πŸ’§ Floods πŸ“š References
Risk Map Grid Framework ↓ Complete Methodology on Zenodo β†— View / Download Risk Maps β†— Adaptation Measures β†—
CLIMEMPOWER RISK EQUATION
H
Γ—
E
Γ—
V
=
R
H = Hazard E = Exposure V = Vulnerability R = Final risk score (1–1000)
Hazards
Drought Β· Heatwaves Β· Wildfires Β· Floods
Risk model
Hazard Γ— Exposure Γ— Vulnerability
Risk scale
1–1,000 when H, E and V are scored 1–10
Risk classes
Very Low Β· Low Β· Moderate Β· High Β· Very High
Method rule
Keep asset-specific exposure profiles separate
Local data
Use higher-resolution local data where available and document limitations
MODULE 02 // THE CORE EQUATION

Climate Risk = Hazard Γ— Exposure Γ— Vulnerability

The ClimEmpower risk assessment workflow treats Hazard (H), Exposure (E) and Vulnerability (V) as distinct components. After the input variables are processed on a common scale, the final risk score is calculated as R = H Γ— E Γ— V.

HHazard
EExposure
VVulnerability
RRisk 1–1000

Hazard

A climate-related event or process with the potential to cause harm.

Exposure

The presence of people, assets or ecosystems in areas affected by the hazard.

Vulnerability

The susceptibility of exposed elements to suffer harm or loss.

Risk Score

With H, E and V standardised to 1–10, multiplication produces a 1–1000 risk score.

MODULE 03 // COMPONENT CONSTRUCTION

Build Each Component, Then Multiply

Where several variables make up one component, the ClimEmpower AIT methodology uses transparent variable-level weighting. Equal weighting is used where specified, while asset-specific indicators are kept separate to avoid diluting risk through inappropriate averaging.

1. Standardise inputs

Convert variables to a comparable scoring scale where required and document whether higher or lower raw values represent higher risk.

2. Construct H, E and V

Aggregate only variables belonging to the same component and risk profile. Use the hazard- and asset-specific methodology shown on each hazard page.

3. Calculate risk

R = H Γ— E Γ— V

For 1–10 component scores, the resulting ClimEmpower risk index ranges from 1 to 1000.

Local data can replace or refine broader datasets when suitable. Assumptions, spatial-resolution trade-offs, temporal limitations and uncertainty should be documented explicitly.
MODULE 04 // ASSET-SPECIFIC RISK

Hazards and Assets Covered

ClimEmpower separates risk profiles by the asset or sector being assessed instead of averaging unlike exposure layers into one generic map.

Hazard ↓ / Asset β†’
Agriculture
Population & Health
Infrastructure
Biodiversity
Tourism
Buildings
🌾 Drought
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🌑 Heatwaves
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πŸ”₯ Wildfires
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πŸ’§ Floods
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CLIMATE HAZARD RISK ASSESSMENT

Drought

Population and Agriculture

ClimEmpower assesses drought risk separately for population and agriculture. The hazard component uses SPI-12 and NDMI, while exposure and vulnerability indicators are selected for the respective risk profile.

H
SPI-12 + NDMIDrought hazard variables in the adapted methodology
2
Risk profilesPopulation and Agriculture
Explore full drought methodology β†’
🌑
CLIMATE HAZARD RISK ASSESSMENT

Heatwaves

People & Health

Within ClimEmpower, heat-induced risk focuses on people. Heatwave definitions are region-specific; the adapted AIT implementation also uses Land Surface Temperature and regional temperature-extreme metrics to spatialise heat hazard.

H
Region-specificNo single universal heatwave threshold is applied across all pilot regions
Explore full heatwave methodology β†’
πŸ”₯
CLIMATE HAZARD RISK ASSESSMENT

Wildfires

Asset-Specific Risk

Wildfire hazard combines the Fire Weather Index with burnable vegetation. Burnable vegetation is explicitly treated as a hazard factor, while exposure and vulnerability are constructed separately for population, biodiversity, infrastructure, tourism and agriculture.

H
FWI Γ— fuelFire-weather conditions combined with burnable vegetation
5
Asset profilesPopulation, Biodiversity, Infrastructure, Tourism and Agriculture
Explore full wildfire methodology β†’
πŸ’§
CLIMATE HAZARD RISK ASSESSMENT

Floods

Buildings, Population & Critical Infrastructure

The ClimEmpower flood methodology assesses flood impacts for buildings, population and critical infrastructure using asset-specific exposure and vulnerability information where available.

3
General flood assetsBuildings, Population and Critical Infrastructure
Explore full flood methodology β†’
SYNTHESIS // THE RESILIENCE LOOP

Mathematically Inverting Risk

Because risk is an equation, increasing adaptive capacity lowers vulnerability and generates a new, lower risk score after intervention.

1Map the ThreatIdentify hazard intensity & extent
2Isolate VulnerabilityPinpoint sensitivity & weak systems
3Deploy InterventionsImplement targeted actions
4Increase Adaptive CapacityStrengthen systems & reduce vulnerability
5Recalculate RiskCompute the new, lower risk score
1

Variable Normalisation

All inputs are reclassified to a common 1–10 scale.

1 ≀ Variable score ≀ 10
2

Component Aggregation

Hazard, exposure and vulnerability are calculated from their constituent variables using equal weights.

C = Ξ£ Vα΅’ Γ— (1/n)
3

Final Risk Score

The three components are multiplied.

R = H Γ— E Γ— V
1–200Very LowBenchmark good practices
200–400LowMaintain adaptive capacity
400–600ModeratePrecautionary planning
600–800HighTargeted investment
800–1000Very HighImmediate action required
BIBLIOGRAPHY

References

Open the standalone References page for the academic and institutional sources underlying the ClimEmpower risk map methodology, hazard science and adaptation evidence base.

Open References β†’