Walz, Yvonne
Academic Officer & Head of EVES
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- INSTITUTE:
- UNU-EHS
- OFFICE:
- Environmental Vulnerability & Ecosystem Services (EVES) Section
- E-MAIL:
- walz@ehs.unu.edu
- PHONE:
- +49-228-815-0232
- NATIONALITY:
- Germany
Research Interests
- Climate change adaptation
- Disaster risk reduction
- ecosystem-based approaches
- Vulnerability and Risk Assessment
Education
- Ph.D., Geographical Remote Sensing and Spatial Epidemiology, University of Würzburg, Department of Remote Sensing, Germany, in close collaboration with the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute in Basel, Switzerland
- MSc., Geographical Information Science & Systems (UNIGIS), University of Salzburg, Department of Geoinformatics
- Diploma, Geography, Geology and Botany, University of Würzburg
Appointments
- 2022 to present: Alternate focal point of UNU-EHS in GEO, member of the GEO WG DRR and GEO-LDN initiative
- 2021 to present: UNU-EHS focal point for the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
- 2017 to Present: Member of the FEBA (Friends of EbA) Network
- 2017 to Present: Member of the International Advisory Board of the Master program on Climate Change and Human Security (CCHS) of the West African Science Service Center for Climate Change and Adapted Land Use (WASCAL)
- 2017 to 2019: Member of ZFL Steering Board
- 2016 to present: Member of the Working Group on Natural Hazards and Risks in the German Society for Geography
- 2015 to present: Member of the Joint Academic Board, Joint Master of Science ’Geography of Environmental Risks and Human Security’, University of Bonn, Department of Geography (GIUB) and United Nations University (UNU-EHS)
Biographical Statement
Dr. Yvonne Walz is an Associate Academic Officer in the Environmental Vulnerability and Ecosystem Services (EVES) section of UNU-EHS. She has a broad interest in understanding drivers of risk, identifying ecosystem-based approaches to reduce current and future risks and evaluating adaptation strategies to impacts of climate change. In addition, she conducts research with the specific focus to support countries in monitoring progress towards the implementation of the international frameworks, such as the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, or the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development.
At UNU-EHS, Dr. Walz has been leading and managing multiple projects in the field of risk and climate change research, ecosystem-based approaches and geospatial modelling to monitor indicators of the Sendai Framework (e.g. CLIMAFRI, VALE, FURIFLOOD, Align-SLM, EviDENz, WASCAL, etc.). She supports the section head in securing third-party funding, and supervises team members, visiting scientists and master students.
In terms of capacity development, Dr. Walz is actively involved in teaching activities of the joint MSc programme on Geography of Environmental Risks and Human Security of UNU-EHS and University of Bonn, at UNU-MERIT and at the WASCAL PhD program on Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management in Lomé, Togo. In the context of the CLIMAFRI and VALE projects, in her role as project lead, she conceptualized and designed training of trainers programs based on the overall project results.
Prior to joining UNU-EHS, Dr. Walz worked as a researcher at the University of Würzburg in the Remote Sensing Department (4 years), and at the WHO Collaborating Centre for Health Promoting Water Management and Risk Communication at the University Clinics in Bonn (3 years), where she gained work experience in analysing socio-ecological systems in the context of environment and human health. At the Centre for Satellite Based Crisis Information (ZKI) at the German Aerospace Centre (DLR), she led the health mapping activities within the GMES RESPOND Service Elements of the European Space Agency (ESA), and was involved in crisis intervention and spatial damage assessment. During her work at the Department of Land Information (DLI) in Australia, Dr. Walz conducted research on monitoring of burn severity and the impact of fire management practices in temperate forests of South-Western Australia.
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Articles
- Nehren, Udo, Arce-Mojica, Teresa, Cara Barrett, Alejandra, Cueto, Jorge, Doswald, Nathalie, Janzen, Sally, Lange, Wolfram, Ortiz-Vargas, Andrea, Pirazan-Palomar, Laura, Renaud, Fabrice G., Sandholz, Simone, Sebesvari, Zita, Sudmeier-Rieux, Karen and Walz, Yvonne (2023). Towards a typology of nature-based solutions for disaster risk reduction. Nature-Based Solutions, 3(100057), 1-17
- Urrutia II, Jose M., Scheffczyk, Konstantin, Riembauer, Guido, Mendoza, Jhoyzett, Yanez, Darwin, Jímenez, Stalin, Ramírez, Antonio, Acosta, Marlon, Argüello, Jenny, Huerta, Brenda, Neteler, Markus and Walz, Yvonne (2022). A validated geospatial model approach for monitoring progress of the Sendai Framework: The example of people affected in agriculture due to flooding in Ecuador. Progress in Disaster Science, 15, n/a-n/a
- Wetzel, Mario, Schudel, Lorina, Almoradie, Adrian, Komi, Kossi, Adounkpè, Julien, Walz, Yvonne and Hagenlocher, Michael (2022). Assessing Flood Risk Dynamics in Data-Scarce Environments— Experiences From Combining Impact Chains With Bayesian Network Analysis in the Lower Mono River Basin, Benin. Frontiers in Water, 4, 1-16
- Oyedele, Peter, Kola, Edinam, Olorunfemi, Felix and Walz, Yvonne (2022). Understanding Flood Vulnerability in Local Communities of Kogi State, Nigeria, Using an Index-Based Approach. Water, 14(17), 1-21
- Sudmeier-Rieux, Karen, Arce-Mojica, Teresa, Boehmer, Hans Juergen, Doswald, Nathalie, Emerton, Lucy, Friess, Dan A., Galvin, Stephen, Hagenlocher, Michael, James, Harrhy, Laban, Peter, Lacambra, Carmen, Lange, Wolfram, McAdoo, Brian G., Moos, Christiane, Mysiak, Jaroslav, Narvaez, Liliana, Nehren, Udo, Peduzzi, Pascal, Renaud, Fabrice G., Sandholz, Simone, Schreyers, Louise, Sebesvari, Zita, Tom, Twinkle, Tryanti, Annisa, van Eijk, Pieter, van Staveren, Martjin, Vicarelli, Marta and Walz, Yvonne (2021). Scientific evidence for ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction. Nature Sustainability, 1-8
- Meza, Isabel, Eyshi Rezaei, Ehsan, Siebert, Stefan, Ghazaryan, Gohar, Nouri, Hamideh, Dubovyk, Olena, Gerdener, Helena, Herbert, Claudia, Kusche, Juergen, Popat, Eklavyya, Rhyner, Jakob, Jordaan, Andries, Walz, Yvonne and Hagenlocher, Michael (2021). Drought risk for agricultural systems in South Africa: drivers, spatial patterns, and implications for drought risk management. Science of the Total Environment, 799, n/a-n/a
- Wagner, Simon, Souvignet, Maxime, Walz, Yvonne, Balogun, Kehinde, Komi, Kossi, Kreft, Soenke and Rhyner, Jakob (2021). When does risk become residual? A systematic review of research on flood risk management in West Africa. Regional Environmental Change, 21(3), 1-18
- Walz, Yvonne, Janzen, Sally, Narvaez, Liliana, Ortiz-Vargas, Andrea, Woelki, Jacob, Doswald, Nathalie and Sebesvari, Zita (2021). Disaster-related losses of ecosystems and their services. Why and how do losses matter for disaster risk reduction?. International Journal for Disaster Risk Reduction, 63(102425), 1-16
- Meza, Isabel, Siebert, Stefan, Doell, Petra, Kusche, Juergen, Herbert, Claudia, Eyshi Rezaei, Ehsan, Nouri, Hamideh, Gerdener, Helena, Popat, Eklavyya, Frischen, Janna, Naumann, Gustavo, Vogt, Juergen V, Walz, Yvonne, Sebesvari, Zita and Hagenlocher, Michael (2020). Global-scale drought risk assessment for agricultural systems. Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences (NHESS), 20, 695-712
- Walz, Yvonne, Min, Annika, Dall, Karen, Duguru, Moses, Villagrán de León, Juan Carlos, Graw, Valerie, Dubovyk, Olena, Sebesvari, Zita, Jordaan, Andries and Post, Joachim (2020). Monitoring progress of the Sendai Framework using a geospatial model: The example of people affected by agricultural droughts in Eastern Cape, South Africa. Progress in Disaster Science, 5, 1-12
- Hagenlocher, Michael, Meza, Isabel, Anderson, Carl C., Min, Annika, Renaud, Fabrice G., Walz, Yvonne, Siebert, Stefan and Sebesvari, Zita (2019). Drought vulnerability and risk assessments: state of the art, persistent gaps, and research agenda. Environmental Research Letters, 1-23
- Kulinkina, Alexandra V., Sarkar, Rajiv, Mohan, Venkata R., Walz, Yvonne, Kaliappan, Saravanakumar P., Ajjampur, Sitara S.R., Ward, Honorine, Naumova, Elena N. and Kang, Gagandeep (2019). Prediction of hookworm prevalence in southern India using environmental parameters derived from Landsat 8 remotely sensed data. International Journal for Parasitology, 1-8
- Sebesvari, Zita, Woelki, Jacob, Walz, Yvonne, Sudmeier-Rieux, Karen, Sandholz, Simone, Tol, Susanna, Ruíz García, Verónica, Blackwood, Katherine and Renaud, Fabrice G. (2019). Opportunities for considering green infrastructure and ecosystems in the Sendai Framework Monitor. Progress in Disaster Science, 2, 1-5
- Kulinkina, Alexandra V., Walz, Yvonne, Koch, Magaly, Biritwum, Nana-Kwadwo and Utzinger, Juerg (2018). Improving spatial prediction of Schistosoma haematobium prevalence in southern Ghana through new remote sensors and local water access profiles. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 12(6), 1-22
- Graw, Valerie, Ghazaryan, Gohar, Dall, Karen, Delgado Gómez, Andoni, Abdel-Hamid, Ayman, Jordaan, Andries, Piroska, Ruben, Post, Joachim, Szarzynski, Joerg, Walz, Yvonne and Dubovyk, Olena (2017). Drought Dynamics and Vegetation Productivity in Different Land Management Systems of Eastern Cape, South Africa—A Remote Sensing Perspective. Sustainability, 9(10), 1-19
- Asare-Kyei, Daniel, Renaud, Fabrice G., Walz, Yvonne and Rhyner, Jakob (2017). Development and validation of risk profiles of West African rural communities facing multiple natural hazards. PLoS ONE, 12(3), n/a-n/a
- Walz, Yvonne, Wegmann, Martin, Dech, Stefan, Raso, Giovanna and Utzinger, Jürg (2015). Risk profiling of schistosomiasis using remote sensing: approaches, challenges and outlook. Parasites and vectors, 8(163), 1-16
- Walz, Yvonne, Wegmann, Martin, Dech, Stefan, Vounatsou, Penelope, Poda, Jean-Noël, N',Goran, Eliézer K, Utzinger, Jürg and Raso, Giovanna (2015). Modeling and validation of environmental suitability for schistosomiasis transmission using remote sensing. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 9(11), 1-22
- Walz, Yvonne, Wegmann, Martin, Leutner, Benjamin, Dech, Stefan W, Vounatsou, Penelope, N',Goran, Eliézer K, Raso, Giovanna and Utzinger, Jürg (2015). Use of an ecologically relevant modelling approach to improve remote sensing-based schistosomiasis risk profiling. Geospatial Health, 10(2), 271-279
Book Chapters
- Walz, Yvonne, Asare-Kyei, Daniel, Von Sassen, Stella and Renaud, Fabrice G., “The Need for a Regional Service to Monitor Flood Hazard Events in West Africa” in Regional Climate Change Series: Floods, ed. Adegoke, Jimmy, Sylla, Mouhamadou B., Bossa, Aymar Y., Ogunjobi, Kehinde and Adounkpe, Julien (Accra: WASCAL, 2019), 20-34.
- Graw, Valerie, Dubovyk, Olena, Duguru, Moses, Heid, Paul, Ghazaryan, Gohar, Villagrán de León, Juan Carlos, Post, Joachim, Szarzynski, Joerg, Tsegai, Daniel and Walz, Yvonne, “Assessment, monitoring, and early warning of droughts: the potential for satellite remote sensing and beyond” in Drought Challenges – Policy Options for Developing Countries, In: Current Directions in Water Scarcity Research, ed. Mapedza, Everisto, Tsegai, Daniel, Bruntrup, Michael and McLeman, Robert (Amsterdam: Elsevier Ltd, 2019), 115-131.
- Triyanti, Annisa, Walz, Yvonne, Marfai, Muhammad Aris, Renaud, Fabrice and Djalante, Riyanti, “Ecosystem-Based Disaster Risk Reduction in Indonesia: Unfolding Challenges and Opportunities” in Disaster Risk Reduction in Indonesia – Progress, Challenges, and Issues, ed. Djalante, Riyanti, Garschagen, Matthias, Thomalla, Frank and Shaw, Rajib (Basel: Springer International Publishing AG, 2017), 445-467.
Conference Proceedings
- Graw, Valerie, Ghazaryan, Gohar, Schreier, Jonas, González, Javier, Abdel-Hamid, Ayman, Walz, Yvonne, Dall, Karen, Post, Joachim, Jordaan, Andries J. and Dubovyk, Olena ed. Timing is Everything – Drought Classification for Risk Assessment 2018/07/22-27 Valencia. Valencia: IEEE, 2019.
Reports
- Walz, Yvonne, Sandholz, Simone, Urrutia, Manuel, Narvaez, Liliana, Ramírez, Andrea and Saenger, Nathalie (2023). Nature-based Solutions for integrated planning and implementation of disaster and climate risk management. United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security and United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction.
- Walz, Yvonne, Janzen, Sally, Narvaez, Liliana, Ortiz-Vargas, Andrea, Woelki, Jacob, Doswald, Natalie and Sebesvari, Zita (2022). A way forward to monitor disaster-related losses of ecosystems and ecosystem services in the Sendai Framework Monitor. United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS).
- Walz, Yvonne, Nick, Florence, Higuera Roa, Oscar, Nehren, Udo and Sebesvari, Zita (2021). Coherence and Alignment among Sustainable Land Management, Ecosystem-based Adaptation, Ecosystem-based Disaster Risk Reduction and Nature-based Solutions. United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security.
- Schuetze, Simon and Walz, Yvonne (2021). Technical Report: Amazon Wildfires. Interconnected Disaster Risks 2020/2021. United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS).
- Mena Benavides, Melisa, Scheffczyk, Konstantin, Urrutia, Manuel, Huerta, Brenda and Walz, Yvonne (2021). Evaluación del riesgo de inundación en Ecuador. United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS).
- Mena Benavides, Melisa, Scheffczyk, Konstantin, Urrutia, Manuel, Huerta, Brenda and Walz, Yvonne (2021). VALE Flood Risk Assessment for Ecuador. United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS).
- O',Connor, Jack, Eberle, Caitlyn, Cotti, Davide, Hagenlocher, Michael, Hassel, Jonathan, Janzen, Sally, Narvaez, Liliana, Newsom, Amy, Ortiz-Vargas, Andrea, Schuetze, Simon, Sebesvari, Zita, Sett, Dominic and Walz, Yvonne (2021). Interconnected Disaster Risks. United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS).
- Walz, Yvonne, Dall, Karen, Graw, Valerie, Villagrán de León, Juan Carlos, Haas, Susanne, Kussul, Nataliia and Jordaan, Andries (2018). Understanding and reducing agricultural drought risk: Examples from South Africa and Ukraine. United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security.
- Walz, Yvonne, Haas, Susanne, Greenough, Karen, Forkuor, Gerald, Mück, Matthias, Taubenböck, Hannes, von Sassen, Stella and Renaud, Fabrice G. (2017). Risk Assessment in West Africa: A Handbook for Practitioners. WASCAL Competence Center.
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Articles
- Walz, Yvonne, Maier, Stefan W., Dech, Stefan W., Conrad, Christopher and Colditz, René R. (2007). Classification of burn severity using MODIS: A case study in the jarrah-marri forest of southwest Western Australia. International Journal of Geophysical Research – Biogeosciences, Special Edition: Remote sensing contributions to forest fire effects assessment, 112(G2), 14.
Books
- Herbst, Susanne, Kistemann, Thomas, Lajoie, Louise, Walz, Yvonne and Wienand, Ina. (2007). Medical Geography 600 – Centre for International Health. Curtin University of Technology, Elective Unit in the Master of International Health at the Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Australia.
Conference Publications
- Walz, Yvonne, Wegmann, Martin, Dech, Stefan W. (2012). “Beitrag von hochaufgelösten Rapid Eye Daten zur Räumlichen Risikoanalyse in der Gesundheitsforschung am Beispiel von Schistosomiasi”. Proceedings 4. RESA Nutzerworkshop, DLR Rapid Eye Science Archive (RESA), 325-332. (Neustrelitz: DLR).
- Walz, Yvonne, Wegmann, Martin, Dech, Stefan W. (2012). “Schistosomiasis risk assessment from space using high resolution Rapid Eye data”, in IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium – Remote Sensing for a Dynamic Earth, 22-27 Jul 2012, 7224-7227.
- Walz, Yvonne, Maier, Stefan W. and Dech, Stefan W. (2005). “Measuring Burn Severity in Forests of South-West Western Australia Using MODIS”. Proceedings of the 5th International Workshop on Remote Sensing and GIS on Forest Fire Management: Fire Effects Assessment, Zaragoza, Spain.
Conference Proceedings
- Walz, Yvonne (2004). “Measuring Burn Severity in Forests of South-West Western Australia Using MODIS”, in Conference Proceedings of the 12th Australasian Remote Sensing and Photogrammetry Conference, Fremantle, Western Australia.
Thesis
- Walz, Yvonne (2015). Remote sensing for disease risk profiling: a spatial analysis of schistosomiasis in West Africa. PhD thesis at the Julius-Maximilians University of Würzburg, Germany.
- Walz, Yvonne (2010). Challenges in using remotely sensed temperature for epidemiology – illustrated by a spatio-temporal analysis of dengue fever and MODIS land surface temperature in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta. Master Thesis within the postgraduate course “Geographical Information Science & Systems” (UNIGIS MSc) at the Centre for Geoinformatics (Z_GIS) at the Paris Lodron University of Salzburg, Austria.
- Walz, Yvonne (2004). Measuring burn severity in forests of south-west Western Australia using MODIS. Diploma thesis at the Department of Remote Sensing, Institute for Geography and Geology, University of Würzburg.
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- West African Science Service Center on Climate Change (WASCAL)
- Enabling knowledge for disaster risk reduction in integration to climate change adaptation (KNOW-4-DRR)
- Development of International Water Quality Guidelines for Ecosystems (IWQGES 2) – Phase 2
- WASCAL consolidation phase
- EvIDENz – Earth Observation based information products for drought risk reduction on the national level
- TelePAtH Tipping Points of Food Security in coupled social-ecological systems of West Africa under Climatic Hazards
- CLIMAFRI – Implementing Climate-sensitive Adaptation strategies to reduce Flood Risk in the transboundary Lower Mono River catchment in Togo and Benin
- Integrating Ecosystem-based Approaches into Flood Risk Management for Adaptive and Sustainable Urban Development in Central Vietnam (FloodAdaptVN)
- VALE – Development and validation of earth observation-based indicators for the monitoring of the Sendai framework using the example of flooding in Ecuador
- Align-SLM: Alignment between ecosystem-based adaptation, ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction, nature-based solutions, and sustainable land management
- FURIFLOOD: Current and future risks of urban and rural flooding in West Africa – An integrated analysis and eco-system-based solutions
- Advisory service for the development of a climate analysis and justification for the Resilient Puna Project in Peru
- RRR-Coast: Towards a green and inclusive post-pandemic recovery of the Blue Economy and coastal communities
- Align4LDN: Coherence and alignment among approaches contributing to sustainable management of land and water resources
- CRM-NbS: Nature-based solutions for Comprehensive Disaster and Climate Risk Management
- FISPER: Guidelines for UNCCD Parties to make ecological restoration attractive in terms of financial inclusion and social protection
- LDN4NAP: Supplement to the UNFCCC NAP technical guidelines on promoting synergy between efforts addressing DLDD, the achievement of LDN and the process to formulate and implement NAPs