The disaster was fuelled by days of heavy rainfall that overwhelmed rivers already narrowed by upstream deforestation and rapid development. AdvertisementAlmost simultaneously, typhoon Ragasa tore across the Philippines before curving towards China’s coast. Typhoon Ragasa battered coastlines stripped of mangroves that once blunted waves. And its Regional Flyway Initiative, linking migratory bird conservation with wetland restoration, seeks to mobilise US$3 billion to protect wetlands. Countries like Vietnam have integrated water-sensitive urban design into city planning, while the Philippines has implemented river restoration projects combining wetland restoration with conventional flood defences.