Mercy Corps at COP25 to highlight importance of helping communities in fragile states adapt to the climate crisis

More investment urgently needed for millions of people to build resilience to shocks and stresses

MADRID, Spain – The global organization Mercy Corps is attending this year’s UN Climate Change Conference, COP25, to highlight the importance of helping communities around the world adapt to the climate crisis.

COP25, taking place from 2 - 13 December, is the world’s leading climate summit and brings together world leaders, decision-making bodies and global <> to find solutions for the climate challenge.

“The climate crisis disproportionately affects millions of people already burdened by poverty and conflict. For those on the frontlines, the struggle to earn a living, feed their families, and create safe and stable homes is made more difficult every day,” says David Nicholson, Mercy Corps Senior Director for Environment, Energy and Climate.

“This is where Mercy Corps and others can help communities adapt to their changing environments. Our <> show that with the right support and financing, people can build their resilience to climate shocks and stresses. But greater investment is urgently needed,” says Nicholson.

Mercy Corps supports people most at risk of the effects of climate change, in places as diverse as Puerto Rico, Ethiopia, Mongolia and Indonesia, to build resilience to an ever-growing risk of climate-related disasters, such as flooding and droughts.

At COP25, Mercy Corps will be:

• Partnering with the Red Cross Climate Center to host a session on ‘Can Remittances help communities prepare for disasters?”. As part of the Development and Climate (D&C) days (Dec 8th, 2:30pm), this session will introduce participants to the potential of how remittances can be used with Early Warning Systems (EWS) and be a powerful tool in preparing vulnerable communities for disasters.
• Speaking at a session co-hosted by the Global Resilience Partnership, looking at how innovative financing solutions, such as Flood Resilience Impact Bonds, are helping to build resilience to flooding in Indonesia. (Dec 8th, 2:30pm). Resilience impact bonds provide long-term infrastructural support to communities, helping to avert displacement after a disaster – in 2018, floods alone triggered 8.6 million displacements.
• Co-hosting an event with the Zurich Flood Resilience Alliance held at the Government of Bangladesh’s Pavilion (Dec 9th, 4.30pm) on how to increase funding for adaptation and flood resilience at local levels. This will include highlights from Mercy Corps’ research on working with local governments to budget for Flood Resilience Impact Bonds, and the demonstrable importance of getting funding to local communities.
• Speaking at the InsuResilience Global Partnership Forum (Dec 9th), represented by Alejandra Díaz Agudelo, Head of Growth at MICRO. MICRO is a global for-profit company, co-founded by Mercy Corps, that provides a unique hybrid insurance product to low-income microentrepreneurs who otherwise have no safety nets in the aftermath of extreme weather events.
• Speaking at a Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action roundtable (Dec 10th, 3pm), highlighting how AgriFin is scaling effective solutions to climate change for over 3.5 million smallholder farmers across Africa and Asia.