A group of key UN and non-UN aid agencies attending climate change
talks in Bonn this week are calling for the humanitarian impacts of
climate change to be addressed in the successor agreement to the
Kyoto Protocol in Copenhagen in December.

Joining forces, the 18 organizations of the Inter-Agency
Standing Committee (IASC) argue that the next agreement on climate
change has to take the humanitarian perspective into account. It is
also essential for the agreement to set out a workable approach to
help the world counter the impacts of extreme weather events and
environmental degradation on vulnerable communities.

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target="" title=""> "BACKGROUND-COLOR: rgb(153,204,255)">Migration, Climate Change and
Environmental Degradation

"The scale of the potential humanitarian challenge presented by
climate change in the future is huge. This is a defining moment to
ensure that the challenge is not insurmountable and human suffering
is minimised," said John Holmes, United Nations
Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs.

There are three paramount concerns: First, the total number of
people affected by disasters has risen sharply over the past decade
with an average of 211 million people directly affected each year,
nearly five times the number affected by conflict in the same
period.

Extreme and slow-onset climate events – such as floods,
storms, droughts, rising sea levels and desertification – are
impacting more and more people each year, adversely affecting human
lives and livelihoods in many communities. The most vulnerable,
including women and children, are those already struggling with
poverty, insecurity, hunger, poor health and environmental
decline.

Second, climate change is expected to dramatically affect
patterns of migration and population movement.  While
migration is already a form of adaptation for some, the many
millions expected to be displaced by prolonged droughts, repeated
floods or storms will be especially vulnerable and require
significant assistance and protection.

More than 20 million people have been displaced by
climate-related sudden-onset natural disasters in 2008 alone,
according to a new study by the Norwegian Refugee Council's (NRC)
Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre and the Office for the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

"For the first time, we have a solid indication of the scale of
forced displacement as a result of sudden-onset natural disasters
in the context of climate change", said NRC Secretary General
Elisabeth Rasmusson.

Third, the Copenhagen agreement presents a rare opportunity to
shape and guide the international response to the humanitarian
consequences of climate change over the next decade. With the right
approach, many of these consequences can be averted or reduced over
the next decade. The humanitarian community – with its
expertise, systems and partnerships – can help to manage
these disaster risks.

But adapting to these climatic shocks will need a new
humanitarian business model – one that focuses on prevention
and preparedness activities and that also strengthens national and
local capacities to cope with the future impact of climate
disasters.

For media contact in Bonn on 8-9 June:

Ravini Thenabadu

Tel: +41 79 500 6549

E-mail: "mailto:thenabadur@who.int">thenabadur@who.int

 

For further information, please contact:

Siri Elverland

NRC Oslo

Mobile +47+ 47 93 21 82 19

E-mail:  "mailto:siri.elverland@nrc.no">siri.elverland@nrc.no

Paul Conneally

IFRC Geneva

Tel: +41(0)22.730.4669

E-mail: "mailto:paul.conneally@ifrc.org">paul.conneally@ifrc.org

Jemini Pandya

IOM Geneva

Tel: +4179 2173374

E-mail: "mailto:JPANDYA@iom.int">JPANDYA@iom.int

Veronique Taveau

UNICEF Geneva

Tel: +41 79 216 9401

E-mail: "mailto:vtaveau@unicef.org">vtaveau@unicef.org

Andre Wilkens

UNHCR Geneva

E-mail: "mailto:wilkens@unhcr.org">wilkens@unhcr.org

Ralf Suedhoff

WFP Rome

Tel: +39 06 6513 2776

E-mail: "mailto:ralf.suedhoff@wfp.org">ralf.suedhoff@wfp.org 

Marina Maiero

WHO Geneva

Tel: +41 76 2350115

E-mail: "mailto:maierom@who.int">maierom@who.int

Nicholas Reader

OCHA New York

Tel: +1-212-963-4961

E-mail: "mailto:reader@un.org">reader@un.org 

Elisabeth Byrs

OCHA Geneva

Tel: +41 22 917 2653

E-mail: "mailto:byrs@un.org">byrs@un.org