An urgent concern was the risk of “fake warnings” during floods, hurricanes, and other disasters that would imperil vulnerable populations. Lynch pressed the imperative of meeting the needs of data-poor countries subject to poor quality weather forecasting products as a matter of international equity.  The annual meeting of the WMO Research Board underscored that access to publicly funded data collection must be ensured as a public good. 

“In our era of climate change-induced extreme weather events, these are not purely technical matters—they are fundamental to basic human dignity, and indeed survival,” said Professor Lynch.