Climate Change: Coping with the Humanitarian Impact

Father and daughter escaping rising waters after heavy rains caused by the tropical storm Noel flooded their homes in Cité Soleil, Haiti, 30 October 2007. [Photo: UN /Logan Abassi]

The number of people affected and the damages inflicted by extreme weather – mainly due to torrential rain, bursting rivers, violent winds and insidious droughts – have been unprecedented.

Particularly vulnerable are people whose lives are already threatened by abject poverty, HIV/AIDS, environmental degradation, inadequate housing and insecurity. Those living in disaster hotspots – such as in flood plains or in cyclone tracks - are exposed to repeated climatic shocks that just compound their vulnerability. With the threat of extreme weather events in the future, the demand for disaster response can only rise, as will the costs.

Tackling climate change needs a global and comprehensive response; curbing greenhouse gases, helping people adapt to changing weather and investing in risk reduction. But for humanitarians, there is one clear-cut challenge: to ensure an effective disaster response.

"Floods, violent storms and droughts don't have to become disasters." - Humanitarian Implications of Climate Change, Maplecroft, CARE International, August 2008

Next: The Threat of Climate Change