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The sharpest impact of our changing climate on human systems will be the rise in incidence and severity of climate-related disasters. The two main disciplines concerned with human vulnerability to climate extremes are disaster management and climate change. While disaster managers develop and implement hands-on tools for reducing vulnerability to natural hazards, they have yet to incorporate the implications of climate change into their work. Climate change researchers and policymakers are increasingly focusing on adapting to a changing climate, but have not yet spelled out how to do so with ground-level action. Working from different point of departure, both disciplines have come to a common conclusion, that natural resource mismanagement contributes to the vulnerability of human systems to these hazards, and enhanced management can provide a tool for vulnerability reduction.