In 2022, the World Risk Report ranked the Philippines as the most disaster-prone country in the world. As such, the country is highly vulnerable to climate change, under which both the frequency and intensity of disasters are projected to increase. Yet, more frequent typhoons, rising sea levels, and loss of biodiversity will have especially severe consequences for communities living in fragile contexts experiencing conflict and environmental degradation. With this in mind, HHI and MSU-IIT have established a joint research area of focus: to expand and strengthen knowledge on the intersection of climate change, conflict, and the environment. Through a collaborative research initiative that examines this intersection in the BARMM, HHI and MSU-IIT seek to better inform practice and policy across the humanitarian, development, and peace and security sectors and ultimately support community resilience in conflict affected areas.

To launch this research initiative, HHI and MSU-IIT welcomed representatives from academia, local, national, and international NGOs, and community and local government leaders to MSU-IIT’s Iligan City campus for a two-day workshop entitled “Understanding Climate, Conflict, and Environmental Impacts in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.”

This report documents the process of designing and implementing the workshop, summarizes its outputs, and discusses steps for continued engagement in research and practice at the intersection of climate change, environmental degradation, and conflict.

Nepal is a hotspot for natural hazards and has repeatedly experienced different geological, hydrological, meteorological, and biological hazards. The frequent changes in the type, magnitude, and frequency of these hazards exacerbated by changing phenomena of climatic extremes necessitate reviewing existing preparedness practices and suggesting more work on preparedness measures.

The HHI Program on Resilient Communities has undertaken a scoping study to review existing practices and identify opportunities for strengthening preparedness in Nepal. The scoping study is the first phase in a project that seeks to improve community resilience to disasters through applied research relevant to effective disaster preparedness and management.

The following report summarizes existing literature and highlights findings from a series of consultations with agencies working in disaster risk reduction and management in the country. These consultations found that despite significant progress in legislation and institutional arrangements for preparedness and risk reduction, there are still gaps in effective implementations of endorsed legislation, coordination among agencies, and resources (human, technical and financial).

The study highlights the need to capacitate government officials working at the local and national levels by enhancing understanding and knowledge of shifting patterns of hazards and its effective management techniques.

Similarly, the study also pinpoints the need for advanced trainings in search and rescue operations for key responders. The study concludes by highlighting the importance of coordination with academic and research institutions to project future scenarios of hazards for better management, indicating a need for national-level research and training programs and initiatives dedicated to disaster management.

This paper outlines the psychosocial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic as reported by 145 licensed mental health providers in the Philippines in an online survey. Respondents perceived an increase in observed mental health disorders in their beneficiaries and an overall decrease in stigma associated with receiving mental health care services during the pandemic. Respondents further identified specific stigma-related help-seeking barriers during the pandemic. Positive impacts of telehealth and importance of increased public education of mental health were highlighted, with implications for improving the landscape of mental health care for Philippines post-pandemic.

The Philippines is one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world and frequently ranks among the top three countries most impacted by disasters. Ongoing conflict with non-state armed actors results in scenarios where civilians are impacted by both conflict and natural hazards. The result is a situation where civilian relief agencies operate in proximity to the military. We argue that there is an important need for principled civil-military coordination in these contexts to ensure the integrity of security operations to support peace and stability while preserving the independence of humanitarian actors serving crisis-affected populations.

The research reveals significant challenges in protecting the integrity of independence of both military and humanitarian actors in areas impacted by both conflict and disaster and underscores the need for principled humanitarian civil-military coordination to avert threats to both humanitarian aid workers and disaster affected populations. The findings are particularly relevant to South East Asia where the use of military in disaster response is common. The findings also underscore the need for research on the role of militaries in responding to disasters in light of anticipated impacts of climate change. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused the loss of millions of lives, disrupted the global economy, and created secondary impacts on livelihoods, education, and mental health across the globe. No country or economic group has been immune to the direct impacts of the pandemic, but marginalized communities are particularly vulnerable to the secondary impacts including some public health measures like extended lockdowns. Marginalized populations are those excluded from mainstream social, economic, educational, political, and/or cultural life. They can be excluded or discriminated due to multiple factors such as their race, ethnicity, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, religion, language, and/or displacement, among others. The Harvard Humanitarian Initiative's (HHI) Resilient Communities Program sought to understand how vulnerable or marginalized communities in the Philippines experienced COVID-19, and how communities coped and adapted in response to direct and indirect effects of COVID-19, including public health measures. To do this, HHI invited Filipino authors exploring this central question to submit papers for consideration to be selected to present and share in a symposium. In addition to its research objectives, the symposium sought to connect researchers and practitioners to create a network of professionals dedicated to serving the needs of marginalized communities in the country.

Watch the full symposium: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zC1FzWRUuo

A new generation of “climate science translators” (CSTs) is currently evolving, both as independent professionals and affiliated with humanitarian agencies. While people in this role represent an opportunity to foster communication and collaboration between climate science, humanitarian decision-support, policy and decision making, there are neither clear job profiles, nor established criteria for success. Based on an analysis of job opportunities published on one of the largest humanitarian and development aid job portals we show that the demand for CSTs has been increasing since 2011. Subsequently, we present a characterization of core skills for the next generation of CSTs aiming to establish a space for not only current CSTs to thrive, but also a path for future translators to follow, with milestones and opportunities for recognition.