If Fertility
Rates Remain Constant Joseph
Chamie
What if current fertility rates of countries remain constant for the rest
of the 21st century? Under this assumption, the populations of high
fertility countries skyrocket while those of most low fertility countries
plummet and world population nearly triples in size by the century’s
close. If ... MORE >
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Extreme Floods, the
Key to Climate Change Adaptation in Africa’s Drylands Isaiah Esipisu
Extreme rainfall and heavy flooding, often amplified by climate change,
causes devastation among communities. But new research published on Aug. 7
in the scientific journal Nature reveals that these dangerous events are
extremely significant in recharging groundwater aquifers in drylands across
... MORE > >
Land Degradation
Jeopardizes Ability to Feed the World Ibrahim
Thiaw
We have known for over 25 years that poor land use and management are
major drivers of climate change, but have never mustered the political
will to act. With the release of the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate
Change (IPCC) special report on climate change and land, which makes the
... MORE >
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Burning Forests
for Rain, and Other Climate Catastrophes Miriam
Gathigah
The villagers living on the foothills of Mount Kenya have a belief: If
they burn the forest, the rains will come. “Generally, we believe that
the sky is covered by a thick layer of ice and only a forest fire can
rise high enough to melt this ice and give us rainfall,” Njoroge Mungai,
a resident ... MORE >
>
Overview: Climate change poses threats to environments, communities, and economies, yet no single “one-size-fits-all” solution can be implemented across different countries and contexts. The Cornell Climate Online Fellows will work together over a period of 14 weeks to identify, discuss, implement, and assess greenhouse gas mitigation actions they take locally and within their social networks.
Participants: Environmental and education professionals, volunteers, and university students from any country. Discussions will be in English. Students lacking a basic knowledge of climate science will need to complete parts of online course, Climate Science, Communication, and Action, prior to the fellowship.
Cost & Commitment: Free. This is a serious commitment,from 4 -10 hours of work per week. All fellows will be expected to actively participate in weekly Zoom conference calls Tuesdays from 8-10am New York time, to engage in weekly online discussions, and to implement a climate mitigation action in their networks.
Educational approach: Fellows will access existing online resources (asynchronous), post discussion question responses (asynchronous), participate in weekly small group and full fellowship discussions (synchronous, Tuesdays 8-10am, EST), and conduct individual action projects (asynchronous).
Technology: Zoom for weekly discussions and Edge-edX for readings and discussion questions. We will also use Facebook and WhatsApp for optional informal discussions and sharing.
Activities: Fellows will become familiar with Drawdown’s prioritized list of 100 actions to reduce reduce greenhouse gases and identify two actions to investigate further using online sources and local experts. (Example actions include educating girls, reducing food waste, plant-rich diet, wind energy, and silvopasture.) During weekly Tuesday meetings, fellows and Cornell faculty will discuss the potential for implementation of climate solutions in the different countries they represent. Fellows will then implement one Drawdown action with their social network (e.g., office, school, Instagram group), and evaluate the implementation process and outcomes. Each fellow will complete a final report or presentation that includes a description of their action and its outcomes, and their reflections on the process. Fellows will also be part of a research project assessing the fellowship process and its outcomes.
Application & Selection Process: Applicants complete an online application about their environmental and education work or volunteer activities, motivation for participating in the fellowship, ideas about climate action projects, and ability to commit the time to be an active participant in the fellowship over the 14-week period. Civic Ecology Lab staff will select the final fellows based on their applications and on our commitment to creating a group of fellows who bring diverse ideas and experiences and represent a wide group of countries.
Benefits: Participants who complete the fellowship will be awarded a Cornell University certificate. However, the main benefit of the fellowship is the opportunity to work with a diverse group of climate-concerned citizens globally who will provide support and provide feedback on your local climate actions.
Fellow outcomes. Fellows will:
Describe the feasibility and effectiveness of actions to mitigate greenhouse gases across different countries and contexts.
Implement and evaluate an action to reduce greenhouse gases among their social networks.
Make adjustments in their action plans based on new information, including research, feedback from fellows, and outcomes of the action.
Demonstrate critical thinking skills related to gathering and assessing sources of information and adapting their views and actions based on new information.
Participate actively in an ongoing global online community of climate-concerned citizens.
Fellowship Leaders: Marianne Krasny, Anne Armstrong, Alex Kudryavtsev, Yue Li, Kim Snyder (Cornell University Civic Ecology Lab)
Haiti’s Civil Protection Directorate (DPC) and partners are preparing for the hurricane season
Preparedness for the hurricane season, which began on 1 June and will continue until 30 November, is currently a top priority for OCHA, its humanitarian partners and development organizations in Haiti, all who are working closely with Haiti’s Civil Protection Directorate (DPC).
While the DPC has well established structures and communication procedures in place on national, departmental and local levels, including an early warning system, it still faces operational challenges. For example, the Emergency Operation Centers in the departments (COUD – Centres d’Opérations d’Urgence Départementaux) generally lack resources such as sufficient fuel, water supplies, telecommunication/internet and human resources. There is also a need at the governmental level for strengthened capacities in response coordination, needs assessments and information management/data analysis.
Following several field missions to look at COUDs in the Nord, Nord-Ouest, Nord-Est, Sud and Nippes departments, OCHA and the DPC has engaged with the private sector to establish partnerships in order to improve operational capacities. For example, discussions with two mobile providers are ongoing to provide COUDs with free internet and key DPC staff with free mobile credits in case of emergency.
In order to improve coordination between humanitarian and military actors following large scale natural disasters, OCHA Geneva (CMCS) recently conducted a Civil-Military Coordination (CMCoord) mission to Haiti in order to sensitize key actors on CMCoord and kick off the revision of country-specific CMCoord guidelines.
Other joint preparedness activities currently underway include pre-positioning and mapping of relief stocks, emergency shelter rehabilitation, sensitization of at-risk populations and conducting of simulation exercises and capacity building efforts for key stakeholders including the Departmental Coordinators of the DPC (CTD – Coordonateur Techique Départemental).
A dedicated working group is actively working on mainstreaming Protection and Protection against Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) in all preparedness activities, in part through inclusion of modules on these topics in all trainings, and by ensuring better coordination in the areas of sensitization/prevention, complaints mechanisms and victim’s assistance.
Interviewing
Skills: Career Advancement Techniques
Professional
Development
Moving forward in your career means mastering the
interview process. In this new video, engaging career expert Jeff Havens
will help you enhance the skills you need before, during, and after an
interview with easy-to-follow tips. Whether you are new to the
humanitarian and development sector or a seasoned professional, this
video will help you begin your next job search with confidence.
Not rendering
correctly? View this email as a web page here.
Have You Been Affected by a Natural Disaster?
Coping with the aftermath of a natural
disaster or other traumatic event can take a toll on anyone. It's
important to know that you are not alone in these moments and there is
help available. SAMHSA’s Disaster Distress Helpline offers 24/7 crisis
counseling and emotional support to those in need. Call 1-800-985-5990
or text TalkWithUs to 66746.
FEMA Releases 2019 National Threat and Hazard
Identification and Risk Assessment
The Federal Emergency Management
Agency today released the latest National Threat and Hazard Identification and
Risk Assessment (THIRA). The National THIRA is the process through which FEMA
identifies catastrophic threats and hazards, the consequences of those threats
and hazards, and the capabilities the nation needs to address those hazards.
The 2019 National Threat and Hazard
Identification and Risk Assessment (THIRA): Overview and Methodology is
available on FEMA’s website at https://www.fema.gov/national-risk-and-capability-assessment. The document outlines FEMA’s approach to that process,
which uses the same standardized impact and target language that states,
tribes, territories and members of the Urban Area Security Initiative grant
program use for their THIRAs. For more information on the community THIRA,
stakeholders are encouraged to consult the Comprehensive
Preparedness Guide 201, 3rd edition,
which outlines the steps in this standardized approach.
FEMA designed the THIRA methodology to
support collaboration between state and local governments, federal agencies,
and other emergency management entities. Because the National THIRA process
described in this document uses the same language as the community THIRA, FEMA
and federal departments and agencies will be able to compare state, tribal,
territorial, urban area and—eventually—federal and national preparedness
estimates against the national-level assessment. This common assessment will
allow FEMA and other federal agencies to track progress over time and provide
concrete answers in specific, measurable terms to the question: “How prepared
is the nation?”
U.S. EPA honors Berkeley teacher with
environmental education award
SAN FRANCISCO — The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency today announced that Jacqueline Omania, a teacher at Oxford
Elementary School in Berkeley, Calif., is one of 11 winners to receive
the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental
Educators (PIAEE). The PIAEE awards recognize innovative educators who
bring environmental education into their classrooms through hands-on,
experiential approaches. “Ms.
Omania’s dedication to her students has rippled throughout the community as her
students reach out to their peers and families to share what they have
learned,” said EPA Pacific
Southwest Regional Administrator Mike Stoker. “She has gone
above and beyond in her teaching career to better her student’s understanding
of our natural world and conservation of its precious resources.” Ms.
Omania has helped her students think critically about how they generate waste
in their daily lives and ways to reduce it. She created the Plastic-Free Planet
curriculum and leads an Heirs to Our Oceans chapter for students that meets
weekly during lunch and provides a space for students to connect, practice
public speaking and plan action projects both at school and in the greater
community. “I
am so honored to receive this award. I dedicate it to my students who inspire
me daily with their persistence and passion to work together to solve the
complex environmental challenges of our times,” said 3rd grade Oxford Elementary School teacher
Jacqueline Omania. After
learning about the ways landfill waste affects our environment, Ms. Omania’s
class decided to challenge themselves to adopt a zero-waste classroom
philosophy. After changing many personal habits and classroom practices, the
students were able to reduce the waste they generated during the school year to
one quart-sized jar. These efforts saved nearly two dumpsters’ worth of
landfill waste and more than 4,000 disposable plastic utensils. Her class was
also involved in helping the City of Berkeley pass its Disposable-Free Dining
Ordinance by collecting signatures and speaking at various venues about the
problems of plastic pollution and their vision of a zero-waste city. Two
teachers in EPA’s Pacific Southwest Region received an honorable mention in
this year’s awards: Kelly Porter of Edison High School in Huntington
Beach, Calif., and Rachna Nath of Arizona College Preparatory’s Erie Campus in
Chandler, Ariz. From
across the country, 19 educators and 200 students were recognized for their
remarkable efforts that promote environmental education and stewardship. Eleven
educators received the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental
Educators, and eight educators were recognized with an honorable mention
distinction. Additionally, the 200 student award recipients – who worked as a
team or individually on 17 projects – received the President’s Environmental
Youth Award. Altogether, EPA received 162 project applications from 26
states. Established
by the 1990 National Environmental Education Act, PIAEE supports, encourages
and nationally honors outstanding kindergarten through high school educators
who integrate environmental and place-based, experiential learning into school
curricula and school facility management across the country. Under the act, the
White House CEQ assists EPA in administering the awards program. The
PIAEE program seeks to recognize, support and bring public attention to the
outstanding environmental projects performed by these innovative teachers who
go beyond textbook instruction to incorporate methods and materials that
utilize creative experiences and enrich student learning. The program
recognizes up to 20 elementary and secondary (K-12) education teachers, school
administrators, and their local education agencies and provides funding to help
support those educators in their environmental education work. For
a list of past PIAEE winners, visit: https://www.epa.gov/education/presidential-innovation-award-environmental-educators-piaee-winners
