Around the world, the impacts of climate change are forcing communities to take extreme adaptation measures or else risk losing everything. Communities in South and Southeast Asia face the most extreme rise in hazards at the same time that they are markedly underfunded to implement disaster risk reduction measures.

This week, our team has been in Asia meeting with several of the NGOs engaged intensively in disaster preparedness work. Most are in the midst of long-term projects, and it is worth checking in on the work completed as well as what's still to come. To better contextualize DPP, we're zooming in on four organizations involved in these long-term initiatives:

  • Guiuan Development Foundation, Inc. (GDFI) Philippines
    • Since its founding in 1988, Guiuan Development Foundation, Inc. (GDFI) has been empowering climate-resilient communities and preserving natural resources across the Philippines.  After 2013's devastating Typhoon Yolanda, which was the worst in the Philippines' history, we partnered with GDFI in collaboration with Build Change to support their disaster relief programming on the hard-hit island of Maliwaliw.
  • Bangladesh Environment and Development Society (BEDS) Bangladesh
    • The Bangladesh Environment and Development Society, or BEDS, is a unique collaboration between environmentalists and development workers seeking to preserve both the environmental landscape and social livelihoods in the southwest coastal region of Bangladesh.
  • An Organization for Socio-Economic Development (AOSED) Bangladesh
    • An Organization for Socio-Economic Development (AOSED) was established in 1999 by a group of young activists committed to the sustainability of ecological and indigenous systems alike.
  • Shontoug Foundation, Incorporated Philippines
    • Shontoug Foundation makes a regular practice of reaching out to marginalized communities and integrating their participation into its indigenous community development models, which focus largely on youth education, sustainable agriculture, and health programs.

Read the full article about disaster preparedness week at Give2Asia.