UK charities need to plan for climate change: 04/02/10
UK charities need to plan for climate change: Feb 10
New guidance for voluntary and community groups encourages them to think beyond reducing their own carbon footprint to consider how the people and communities they help may need extra support to deal with flooding, heat waves and rising costs brought on by climate change.
We all have a role to pay in response to climate change and the third sector’s size, reach into people’s lives, independence, influence and trusted status combine to make it a critical component. However, to many third sector organisations climate change seems outside of their mission and, despite its future impacts, not something they have time to worry about.
Who was involved?
Global Action Plan, together with The National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) and Green Alliance, took part in the special initiative on climate change called The Big Response. Through this we completed a pilot project with four major UK charities working with vulnerable people – Equinox Care, RNIB, British Red Cross and Friends of the Elderly - to work through what climate change means for them, how they can take action and what they need to do now to protect services and people in future.
The detailed findings from this initiative will be published by the Baring Foundation in March 2010. A practical output of The Big Response can be found on the NCVO website in the form of an online guide for third sector organisations who wish to prepare for climate change.
Watch this video for an engaging account of our work on The Big Response
What did the charities who took part find?
Equinox Care learnt more intense heat waves and localised drought in Britain could make it difficult to administer methadone to recovering drug addicts who could become dehydrated. It is now expanding its service to ensure beneficiaries understand the dehydration dangers of hot weather and is investigating how best to deal with water shortages.
The British Red Cross recognised it could become overwhelmed by the number and scale of climate-related emergencies in the UK. Climate change is now built into the organisation’s next five-year strategy, acknowledging it is one of the most likely factors for increasing demand on its services.
Friends of the Elderly found that some of its care homes were in areas that will have a high risk of flooding by 2020 and is ensuring climate change is factored into risk management processes.
The Royal National Institute for Blind People (RNIB) realised climate change will have a greater impact on its beneficiaries compared with the general sighted public. Climate change is now part of ongoing analysis by the charity of possible opportunities and threats in the future.
Voluntary and community groups can find advice on how to explore the possible effects of climate change on their beneficiaries and the work they do, along with tips on ways to respond to this challenge on NCVO’s website.
The Big Response project was funded by the Baring Foundation to work specifically with charities that help vulnerable groups.
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