Indonesian Red Cross Involvement in Climate Change

Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) has mandate to deliver direct service of emergency response to natural disaster and conflict for the victims. Rely on that mandate, PMI services focus on humanitarian impact arising as the impact of the disaster. As the frequency of disaster tends to increase as the result of climate changees impacts, PMI does not have any choice except carrying out climate change adaptation efforts by preparing itself and community in facing the impact of climate change. In order to integrated climate change adaptation in its services, PMI has facilitated National Workshop in March 2008. The workshop was attended by boards, staff and volunteers from ten chapters of PMI, Disaster Education Consortium for Disaster Education, UN representatives, etc. In that occasion, PMI tried to identify strategy to reduce risks and impacts of disaster through climate change adaptation efforts through these following steps: - implementing advocacy, awareness and orientation about climate change adaptation - developing strategy,

approach and tools about climate change adaptation - integrating climate change adaptation in disaster management and community based program - promoting climate change adaptation through disaster preparedness and health behavior Integrating Climate Change Adaptation in PERTAMA Programme With the support of International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC), Netherland Red Cross (NLRC) and German Red Cross (GRC), PMI tries to integrate climate change adaptation component in Program Risiko Terpadu Berbasis Masyarakat (PERTAMA Integrated Risk Community Based Programme) by implementing pilot programme in four Kelurahan in West Jakarta and East Jakarta since 2005. Kelurahan which are locations for this programme have been selected because of their vulnerability against extreme climate change as well as the disaster threat emerged as the result of climate change, such as flood. The main objective in implementing this programme is to improve community capacity to confront disaster threat as well as to reduce community vulnerability against negative impact of climate change. Communicating Climate Change Communicating climate change to the PMI board members, staff, volunteers and community is a challenge. Climate change issue is a complex issue, yet it has to deliver with an easy and effective way. A number of orientations have been implemented and many IEC material (information, education and communication) such as brochure, film, banner, etc. Have been produced to provide information about climate change. In the practice, community is able to absorb information about climate change according with the local context, which associating weather phenomenon with climate change. Climate Change Assessment in Community Community is the expert in experiencing threats, risks, vulnerabilities and capacity in the context of climate change. Through a number of assessment tools that have been developed by PMI such as VCA (Vulnerability and Capacity Assessment), PHAST (Participatory Hygiene and Sanitation Transformation), mapping, community is facilitated to identify uncommon climate change phenomenon as well as the tendency for the past couple years. Future Plan By the support by International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC) and Partner National Society, PMI has committed to integrate Climate Change Adaptation in PMI Strategic Plan. Next step for PMI is to re-study its activities such as disaster emergency response, disaster preparedness, water and sanitation, health, PMR and volunteer management, advocacy and socialization, and et cetera as well as implementing adjustment in the context of climate change.