Community-Driven Disaster Risk Management and Reduction in the Philippines

Urbanisation in the developing world, mostly driven through the spread of informal settlements, is occurring at a rapid pace, and this growth has direct implications upon strategies that seek to address adaptation to climate change. This brief explores the work of the Homeless People’s Federation Philippines, Incorporated (HPFPI) in their campaign to provide post-disaster assistance and reduce disaster risk in relation to their wider goal of improving the living conditions of the urban poor in the Philippines. By helping to initiate community-driven
programmes to improve living conditions, assess disaster risk and secure land tenure, the HPFPI’s work aims to address poverty and improve the resilience of poor communities to climate impacts. Their work does not engage with climate change mitigation. This case has been selected because it demonstrates how supporting the organisational capacity of the urban poor can lead to empowerment in the face of adversity and affect positive outcomes in the quest to address vulnerability to poverty and climate impacts.