Reducing Vulnerability to Climate Change: World Vision's Experience Helping Children and their Families

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1 Reducing Vulnerability to Climate Change: World Vision's Experience Helping Children and their Families Douglas Brown World Vision DDVE Seminar Presentation A presentation made on April 23, 2009 at the World Bank-IMF Spring Meetings Civil Society Policy Forum in Washington, DC

2 Reducing Vulnerability to Climate Change World Vision s Experience Helping Children and Their Families 9/April/2008 Douglas R. Brown

3 Outline Who we are and what we do Climate, livelihoods and vulnerability Practical examples COVACA FMNR Conservation Agriculture Global perspectives on climate, change and resilience Coastal areas Agriculture and food security Perceptions of risk and attitudes to climate change

4 Who we are and what we do World Vision is: a Christian relief, development and advocacy organization dedicated to working with children, families and communities to overcome poverty and injustice Focus on human and social transformation Area Development Programs (ADP) long-term perspective Improved well-being for children and their families A three-pronged strategy development programming humanitarian response advocacy Serve all regardless of religion, race, gender or ethnicity An international partnership Assist approximately 100 million people in nearly 100 countries with a global budget of almost $3.6 billion

5 Climate Change and Human Well-Being Combating climate change is central to all humanitarian action Climate change is not only an environmental problem as there are: Social aspects Economic aspects Climate change is fundamentally a development problem

6 Sustainable Livelihoods Framework Vulnerability and context of household decision-making: environmental, economic, social context policies, institutions and procedures (PIPs) Vulnerability = f(exposure, adaptive capacity) Livelihood building blocks: social human natural physical financial Livelihood strategy A: activity 1 activity 2 activity 3 Livelihood strategy B: activity 1 activity 2 activity 3 Desired livelihood outcomes: child well-being health resilient sustainable Actual livelihood outcomes: malnutrition illness vulnerable unsustainable

7 COVACA Community-Owned Vulnerability and Capacity Assessment A key component of DRR and Adaptation efforts throughout World Vision COVACA in Haiti consisted of: A realistic assessment of vulnerabilities and capacities leading to better decision making Identify activities that communities can implement within their own resources to protect themselves from selected key threats Empower the community to take responsibility for their own protection and implementation the identified activities

8 FMNR Farmer-Managed Natural Regeneration Key success factors: Initial incentive Genuine active community participation Socio-cultural norms Institutional change Widespread adoption Adapting it to other contexts: West Africa Senegal, Mali, Niger, Chad Ethiopia CDM project Community see benefit already

9 Conservation Agriculture Key success factors Carbon, nutrient and water cycling Labour resource constraints Management of crop residues/mulch Socio-cultural institutions

10 Asia-Pacific Region Report The future of our planet lies in our hands Proactive adaptation prepare for disasters and change before they occur reducing vulnerability and risk increasing resilience promoting preparedness

11 Global Food Security Initiative Priority Interventions for Adaptation, Resilience and Food Security Short-term (Crisis/Emergency) General Targeted Food/Cash Assistance Vulnerable Group Feeding (VGF) Community Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) Mid-term (Transition and Development) Food or Cash for Work or Assets (FFW/CFW/FFA/CFA) Support for Agricultural Inputs Essential Nutrition Package (ENP) Food for Education (FFE) Long-term (Restoration and Development) Core Health and Nutrition Package Diversification of Farming Systems Soil and Water Conservation/Management Post-harvest Handling, Storage and Marketing

12 Global Agricultural Strategy To promote ecologically-sound, socially and economically viable and just small-holder agriculture and NRM practices that contribute to the well-being of children Promote more productive and sustainable agricultural systems Protect and/or restore healthy agro-ecosystems Support viable markets and smallholder agricultural enterprises Build smallholder household resilience and capacity to manage risk in the face of shocks Engage in advocacy supportive of smallholder agricultural development

13 Climate Change Survey Organization-wide survey Attitudes to climate change Perceptions of risk Understanding of concepts climate change adaptation Mitigation

14 Choose Hope Climate science: Projections of what might happen if Predictions of what will happen We have a choice Denial says nothing needs to be done Despair says nothing can be done Between these, there is hope with hope we: Look for solutions Act as stewards Choose justice Protect and nurture our children and their future

15 THANK YOU