Web-based guidance note

Welcome to the web-based guidance note to the ´Preparedness for climate change´ programme (PfCC2)

First of all, a warm welcome to all participants of the Preparedness for Climate Change Programme from the whole Climate Centre Team! We look forward to working with you and we hope that this programme will help to improve the capacity of both National Society and Federation to understand and address the humanitarian impacts of climate change.

Please note that your focal point at the IFRC zonal or regional office is in charge of the day to day guidance for this programme. This web-based guide might give you an overview of all aspects of the programme. If you have questions concerning the approach in the programme, please consult your IFRC contact.

The PfCC2 programme is only a one-year programme – everything has to be finished by end 2010. This will be tight planning, so we hope to get started quickly.

This web-based guidance provides you with some further background on the programme, including the different components that would typically be included (although, as noted below, you can adjust these to fit the needs and other activities of any specific national society). You will find an explanation of the purpose of each component, practical information and templates for documents. This web based guide which will also contain some example templates, links to useful resources and examples from Phase 1.

Building on PfCC1

This is not the first time that we offer a programme like this. Fortunately we can – in the coming year – draw upon the experiences of the first round of Preparedness for Climate Change (PfCC) which took place between 2006 and 2009. During this time, the IFRC region/ zone offices and the Climate Centre supported 39 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies to assess the implications of rising climate risks in the participating countries and its consequences for their work. The programme facilitated entry into the complex challenges related to climate change and it improved the ability to include climate risks in many plans and programmes of each National Society. In the end this has led to some concrete proposals improving the resilience of the most vulnerable communities. Phase 2 of the programme has been funded by the Dutch government and was designed in collaboration with IFRC Geneva, zones and National Society input via an external evaluation of Phase 1. The main difference between the two phases is that Phase 2 will aim to align even closer to Federation plans and activities by allowing enhanced flexibility and funding channelled via the Federation.

To read more about the evaluation of PfCC1, click here (pdf, 2 MB)

A flexible approach

Drawing from the lessons learned in PfCC1 we at the Climate Centre intend to work very closely with our Federation colleagues to improve overall capacity to understand climate change and integrate actions to address it into the ongoing plans of the Federation and National Societies. Please note that the order and content of the parts outlined in the tabs above are not rigid and if you find it useful to change the order or incorporate these elements in other activities you are encouraged to do so. Likewise, the actions in each step can be taken in conjunction with existing IFRC/NS plans and events or separately. The Preparedness for Climate Change Programme is a flexible one that is based on some key outputs. How you reach those outputs is entirely flexible.