UN-OCHA article - The humanitarian impact of climate change

By Margareta Wahlström

The greatest risk we face is doing nothing. It is time to roll up our sleeves and get to work in building more disaster-resilient communities. ... Many of the most effective tools at our disposal to save lives are based on mobilizing people, not on expensive technology. Community-based early warning systems, local disaster education and evacuation plans, better crop and land management techniques are all being completed with great success by nations across the resource spectrum.

Read the rest of the article on Reliefweb.

BRC Media and PR Officer Blogs on Alertnet on the Bangladesh cyclone community preparedness project

Georgina Cooper, Media and PR Officer for the British Red Cross, is a guest blogger on Alertnet. Her first article deals with the need for women-focussed peer education on cyclone preparedness, and the work of the Building Community Disaster Preparedness Capacity Project.

Click on the link above to see Georgina's page.

HPN Network Paper 60: Mobile Health Units in emergency operations: A methodological approach

by Stephane du Mortier and Rudi Coninx.

Mobile health units are often used to provide health care in unstable situations, such as armed conflicts, where fixed services cannot function for reasons of security. They are, however a controversial way of providing health care, because of their cost, irregular service provision and logistical complexities. Drawing on the experience of the ICRC and relevant literature, this Paper provides a decision making framework for health care workers.

Click here to download the paper.

HPN: DRR in Humanitarian Exchange Magazine 38

Humanitarian Exchange Magazine 38 has just been published, and features articles on Disaster Risk Reduction.

An increasing body of best practice has emerged on this topic but there are still many challenges, not least the dynamically changing humanitarian context in which agencies must respond. There is a need for better coordination between climate change, disasters and development communities, greater understanding of both global and local risks associated with climate change, and improved approaches to understand and respond to local vulnerabilities.

Click here to download the magazine.