Looming climate change adds even more stress to humanitarian aid

According to reps for the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), climate change is a major factor in the newest hurdles to bringing aid to recent disasters.

In a new survey, entitled “Believe in Humanity”, the IFRC states: “World powers expect humanitarian actors to face continuing or increasing humanitarian needs driven by climate change-related natural disasters.”

The survey’s release coincides with the upcoming climate change conference in Copenhagen, and was released just as hundreds of delegates from the 186 national societies of the Red Cross/Red Crescent gathered for their week-long General Assembly in the United Nations compound in Nairobi, Kenya.

“Here in a country like Kenya one can already see the signature of climate change in terms of droughts and most recently floods – challenges which your organization has to respond to with ever more frequency and urgency,” said Achim Steiner, Under-Secretary-General and UNEP Executive Director. “Climate change unchecked is likely to trigger increasing tensions over scarce natural resources.”

The Nairobi meeting marked the 60th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions, as well as the 150th anniversary of the battle of Solferino; a battle that left tens of thousands of soldiers dead and prompted Swiss businessman, Henry Dunant, to found the Red Cross.

Today, the Red Cross is the world’s largest humanitarian network with millions of volunteers.

Disasters and conflict

As a major priority for the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), disaster relief and conflict resolution is a high-risk factor in over 40 countries.

UNEP often works alongside the IFRC to bring relief to stress-worn countries in the wake of an eco-disaster; deploying teams of experts using state-of-the-art science and technology to assess environmental damage and determine risks for human health, livelihoods and security in post-conflict and disaster situations.

One example is a recent assessment of the country of Sudan, where UNEP linked environmental problems such as land degradation, deforestation and the impacts of climate change as threatening the Sudanese people’s prospect for long-term peace, food security and sustainable development.

“There are many other examples where, with environmental planning, the situation might have been sustained or improved, rather than having declined,” added Steiner.

“No country has barred IFRC staff from accessing victims of war and disasters on account of sovereignty,” said Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga. “Such influence could be used to rally people to care for the environment to prevent disasters.”

Next month, the Copenhagen Climate Change conference could potentially define the humanitarian efforts throughout the world for many years to come.

“In just a few weeks’ time governments will gather in Copenhagen, Denmark, for the crucial UN climate convention meeting,” said Steiner. “The decisions taken there may shape the future of this century in terms of human vulnerability and disaster management as a result of the impacts of global warming.”