I was expecting Pope Francis to speak out about disasters, climate change and ecosystem degradation before the estimated 150,000 who gathered at the Tacloban airport. After all, Haiyan is the worst embodiment so far of the deadly and devastating combination of natural hazards, climate change and ecosystem degradation. And the Pope’s position on these issues is well known.
“An economic system centred on the god of money needs to plunder nature to sustain the frenetic rhythm of consumption that is inherent to it.
“The system continues unchanged, since what dominates are the dynamics of an economy and a finance that are lacking in ethics. It is no longer man who commands, but money. Cash commands.
“The monopolising of lands, deforestation, the appropriation of water, inadequate agro-toxics are some of the evils that tear man from the land of his birth. Climate change, the loss of biodiversity and deforestation are already…
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This is a post, a part of a series, to commemorate the Pope’s visit to the Philippines on January 15-19 2015.
The highlight of the Pope’s visit in the Philippines was his trip to Tacloban, otherwise known as ground-zero of the Haiyan devastation. On the day the Pope visited Tacloban, another storm hit the city. Interestingly, the storm was named locally as “Amang”, which translates to Father in English. The storm cut the Pope’s Tacloban visit short, killed a woman volunteer, and caused a plane carrying government officials to skid off the runway.
The Pope in a raincoat, as he waves to a crowd after holding a mass in an airport in Tacloban City, Philippines on January 17, 2015. Image from Damir Sagolj/Reuters
The Pope’s visit gives residents of Tacloban hope and inspiration as they continue to rebuild their city.
There’s another thing that Tacloban needs — Investment. As…
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I spent a fascinating morning this week at the launch of a special edition of Humanitarian Exchange on The Typhoon Haiyan Response in the Philippines. (Video to follow soon.)
We discussed how aid agencies can be more accountable to the people they serve. (“Accountability to Affected People”, AAP, in the jargon. Of which more below.) In general, this means enabling them to influence what we do.
Everyone agrees it is a good idea. Or even a foundation of good practice. In theory, it ensures that the assistance we provide is relevant and respectful to the people we serve.
In the Haiyan Response, there’s plenty of evidence that we’re getting better at it. And also that there’s a way further to go. (See also CDAC’s material on Community Feedback Forms: practical, powerful and deserving replication.)
Plan, World Vision & IOM are collaborating on a project to trial common tools for…
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Originally posted on One Day At A Time:
We finally made it to Tacloban! Our trip to Tanauan Leyte was planned for last September. But owing to the poor condition of the airport runway, we decided to postpone it to 22-26…
Heroes of Yolanda 