The companies in PREP are: Calvert Investments, Earth Networks, Entergy, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc., Levi Strauss & Company, Starbucks, and Swiss Re. Other partners in PREP include BSR and Ceres. Oxfam America serves as PREP's secretariat. Read the PREP Mission Statement.

The goals of the Partnership are to:

• Promote practices and economic growth that help both vulnerable communities and business adapt to the impacts of climate change ; and
• Promote public policies that facilitate adaptation efforts to prepare for and respond to the consequences of a changing climate.

Managing risk

From extreme weather events to glacial melt, from water scarcity to rising sea levels—the effects of climate change on global economic stability and global security can no longer be ignored. Even with aggressive mitigation efforts to reduce emissions, the consequences of climate change on communities across the planet are significant. For many, the results are more severe weather-related disasters, increased food and water insecurity, scarce natural resources, and health problems.

Community risks are business risks. On a functional level, the impact of climate change on companies’ global supply chains is already visible. For example, changes in weather patterns affect growing conditions for crops like coffee and cotton. Climate change threatens the global operations of some businesses, such as when severe floods displace families and workers in areas where manufacturing facilities are located. Such climate-related risks, and their links to broader community needs, are just beginning to be understood by the private sector.

Businesses are also just beginning to identify adaptation growth opportunities as the demand for certain products and services increases. For example, increasing water scarcity will necessitate improved and more efficient irrigation technologies. As companies anticipate and respond to these shifts in demand they should look to partner with communities with an aim towards investing in local jobs and improving livelihoods.

PREP partners

The Convention, which in its current form expires this year, is a binding international treaty that holds major food aid donors – the US, EU, Japan, Canada, Australia and others – to a minimum level of food aid for addressing emergency needs. Oxfam is calling for substantial reforms to this treaty to help address increased need and highly volatile prices.

“In the vast majority of emergency food crises the problem is not a scarcity of food but people’s ability to buy the food that is available,” said Eric Munoz, policy advisor for Oxfam America. “In most cases hungry people need money to buy food and cannot afford to wait for the arrival of a ship to travel halfway around the world.”

“The Food Aid Convention needs to ensure our aid dollars provide a bigger bang for the buck.  It must be brought up to date with modern approaches to deal with food crises and strip the inefficiencies that cost time, money and lives,” said Munoz.

Far too much emergency aid to address hunger is too slow, and much is wasted on the shipping costs of food stocks, particularly from the US and Japan. On average, more than 50 percent of the cost of food aid shipped from the United States goes to pay shipping and procurement costs. Reforms to the Convention, especially those that encourage the local and regional purchase of food aid, can help to cut inefficiencies and provide taxpayers with a much greater return on their investments.

A reformed Convention would broaden its approach to addressing emergencies including by providing cash to purchase food locally and providing agricultural inputs to farmers to recover from disasters. This assistance should be “need-based”, driven by the levels of aid necessary to meet humanitarian requirements.  Instead of focusing purely on the amount of food pledged, the Convention should focus on the number of people it needs to reach.

A new approach would improve people’s means of obtaining enough food to eat during and immediately after a crisis.   The Convention must also be integrated into the emerging global food security mechanisms such as the UN’s Committee on World Food Security, which will help create a more coherent strategy between emergency and longer-term efforts to tackle global hunger.

“Negotiators should work to bring greater transparency and accountability to food aid. The current Convention is shrouded in secrecy making it extremely difficult to know if and how members are meeting their commitments. This information is not publicly available. Increasing transparency will help to determine how effective food aid programs are and what changes must be made to reduce hunger,” said Munoz.

Weather-related disasters have devastated the lives and livelihoods of poor people during 2010. The UN climate talks in Cancun, Mexico, will be held from 29 November to 10 December.

A new Oxfam report “More than ever: climate talks that work for those that need them most”, says that 21,000 people died due to weather-related disasters in the first nine months of 2010 – more than twice the number for the whole of 2009. This year is on course to experience more extreme-weather events than the ten-year average of 770. It is one of the hottest years ever recorded with Pakistan logging 53.7°C – the highest ever in Asia.

Report author Tim Gore of Oxfam said: “This year has seen massive suffering and loss due to extreme weather disasters. This is likely to get worse as climate change tightens its grip. The human impacts of climate change in 2010 send a powerful reminder why progress in Cancun is more urgent than ever.”

A Climate Fund to help the hardest hit

While climate change cannot be held responsible for a specific weather-related disaster, climate models indicate that the weather extremes of this year are likely to get worse due to climate change. Therefore people who are already vulnerable are likely to be at even greater risk.

The Pakistan floods affected more than 20 million people, submerging about a fifth of the country, claiming 2,000 lives and causing $9.7 billion in damage. Summer temperatures in Russia exceeded the long-term average by 7.8°C, doubling the daily death rate in Moscow to 700 and causing fires that destroyed 26 per cent of the country’s wheat crop. Russia banned grain exports as a result and soon after world grain prices increased, affecting poor people particularly.

In Cancun, Oxfam is calling for a fair Climate Fund so that money can get to those who need it most and can use it best. This fund should prioritize women because they are vital in helping communities to adapt successfully to climate impacts.

$1 on adaptation could save $60 in damages

Countries should identify new ways to raise the billions of dollars needed, such as putting levies on unregulated international aviation and shipping emissions and agreeing on a Financial Transaction Tax on banks. The sooner the money is delivered, the cheaper it will be to tackle climate change. Estimates suggest that every dollar spent on adaptation could save $60 in damages.

It is crucial that countries must make their informal pledges to cut or control emissions part of the formal negotiations. They should agree to increase these pledges enough so that global warming is kept below 1.5°C. They must use the Cancun talks to clear the path toward a comprehensive, fair and legally binding global deal.

Gore said: “Now is not the time to walk away from the UN. It is the only forum where the world can decide on an effective global response to an unfolding global crisis. The UN process has helped to generate international pressure in the past few years. This has pushed countries to initiate their own domestic policy, set targets they otherwise would not have done, and start to address the adaptation needs of poor and vulnerable communities.

“Cancun will not deliver everything that a global response to climate change should be. But it can deliver outcomes that will benefit poor people. One of the most important achievements would be a fair climate fund because this would also help to re-build trust and put the talks back on track.”

Read the report here. 

The open letter to climate negotiators will be formally launched by one of the signatories:  ambassador and campaign photographer Helena Christensen at a press conference in Katmandu today, after seeing steps Oxfam is taking to help people survive the changing weather in Nepalese communities. The letter calls on negotiators to put people at the heart of their discussions in Cancun to ensure a safer future for future generations.
 
The letter describes the opportunity negotiators have to break through the current stalemate by setting up a new global climate fund that is fair and safe and enables vulnerable people, especially women, in poor countries to build resilience to the growing threats of a changing climate. Progress on climate funding will also help restore trust between poor and rich countries, opening new doors for more constructive dialogue.

To the negotiators, it states: “We know that the destructive impacts of climate change will mean more misery and pain for the world’s poor, and increasing instability and insecurity around the world unless action is taken.  As you prepare for a new round of talks in Cancun, it is abundantly clear that you must do better.  And fast.”

Tim Gore, senior climate change policy adviser, said: “Negotiators must remember that they are not merely talking numbers and dollars, but negotiating the lives of poor people already affected by climate change. Climate funding holds the key to unlocking the talks and steering the world to a global solution that tackles the threat and the reality of climate change.”

In a new report released today, which is based on the experiences of the three organizations with farming communities in Vietnam, India, and Mali, SRI is shown to increase yields by 50% or more using 25-50% less water and almost 25% lower costs. As a result, farmers, in particular women, saw significant income improvements. In Vietnam, farmers introduced to SRI saw their income increased by about 50%, while in Mali farmers almost doubled their income.

“SRI can be a game changer helping to increase farmer incomes and reduce hunger for millions of poor people around the world,” said Raymond C. Offenheiser, President of Oxfam America.  “This can be a win-win-win for donors, poor farmers and our planet.  Even modest investments can lead to immediate and impressive results, improving farmer livelihoods and community food security.  This shouldn’t be a question of ‘if’, but ‘how-much’ to invest in SRI.”

The report calls on all major rice-producing countries promote adoption of SRI, with a goal of at least 25% of their current irrigated rice cultivation systems converted to SRI by 2025 and all new irrigation schemes designed to support SRI farming.  Additionally, bilateral and multilateral aid agencies are urged to significantly increase their investment, through aid or loans, in supporting farmers toward SRI and complementary technologies and practices.

“This is a no-brainer,” said Offenheiser.  “SRI is a low-cost, high-impact strategy to address food security needs, improve rural livelihoods and increase resilience to a changing climate. USAID and other international donors should move fast to support and implement SRI wherever they can.” 

SRI addresses one of the major challenges of this century: how to increase the amount of food necessary to feed the world’s growing population as climate provokes more erratic weather patterns and water shortages. Current rice production practices are highly water intensive, accounting for one-quarter to one-third of the planet’s annual freshwater use, an unsustainable practice given predicted impacts of climate change.

Rice is the major source of calories for half the world’s population and the single largest source of employment and income for people, especially women, who live in rural areas.  Around 80% of the world’s hungry live in rural areas, thus, any viable solution to eliminating hunger must address the challenges of small-scale farmers, particularly rice producers.  Global warming and more extreme weather conditions are making farming more uncertain, as evidenced by recent droughts in India and the floods in Pakistan.

Implementing SRI is simple, and once learned can be spread farmer to farmer to achieve rapid impact with only modest initial investments from donors. Farmers transplant younger single seedlings into un-flooded soils and space them in a square pattern wider than in traditional practices. Soils are kept moist rather than continuously flooded.  The plants develop with higher grain yield and more resistance to climate extremes, pests and diseases.  Farmers, who are often primarily women, require less time for transplanting seedlings and can harvest their crop 1-2 weeks sooner. This allows additional time to diversify production with higher value fruits and vegetables or livestock to further enhance their diets and incomes.

“I have experienced the benefits of SRI, this simple, easy to use farming practice that has made my life and the lives of my fellow farmers better,” said Le Ngoc Thach, a Vietnamese farmer and president of the Dai Nghia Cooperative who traveled to Washington, DC for the report release. Mr. Thach introduced SRI practices to his fellow cooperative members in 2006 and after only four cropping seasons, all households had seen the obvious benefits and adopted SRI methods on the cooperative’s 420 acres, reducing their use of water and agrochemical inputs and increasing their incomes.

The benefits of SRI have been documented in 42 countries, where more than one million farmers are using some or all of the recommended SRI practices. Increasingly, the principles are being applied with success to other crops such as sugar cane, teff and wheat. Private sector partners such as retailers, wholesalers, distributors and international food brands can accelerate conversion to SRI practices by targeting their rice purchases and designating, for example, that 10-25% should be SRI-grown.

“SRI is a ready opportunity that can benefit everyone from farmers to businesses to consumers immediately,” said Offenheiser. “We cannot wait 10 or 20 years for research and development efforts to deliver new tools to improve food security.  SRI does not require major investments in infrastructure or research and once implemented can quickly bear results.  If we are serious about increasing the impact of our aid dollars and making development work to bring people out of poverty, we will get serious about SRI.”

Note: the report is available in its entirety online: http://www.oxfamamerica.org/publications/more-rice-for-people-more-water-for-the-planet

“The Interagency Climate Change Adaptation Task Force’s recommendation to support communities in the US and developing countries who are vulnerable to climate change is an essential step to further the administration’s commitment to build climate change resilience and prevent short and long term catastrophe.  It’s critical that existing US government programs at home and abroad help protect the communities and people on the front lines of climate change.
 
“Climate change has been called a major threat to global security by military experts who warn that as increased droughts, floods, storms and disease grow worse, poverty and hunger, water scarcity, mass migration, and armed conflicts over resources are likely to present major challenges to American security interests.   Already small farmers who grow our food from Iowa to Mozambique are being pushed to the brink of subsistence as climate change impacts have made land, water and other resources increasingly scarce.

“If we’ve learned anything from the horrific images of this summer’s extreme weather, it’s that we need to prepare for the consequences of climate change now or pay the expensive and punishing price later.  Failing to prioritize climate adaptation would be costly to American taxpayers and drive millions more poor people abroad into extreme hunger and desperation.”

“There is still a lot to play for in Cancun,” said Kelly Dent, Senior Climate Change Advisor for Oxfam, in Tianjin, referring to the upcoming UN climate change conference in Cancun, Mexico in December. “Establishing a climate fund that helps the world’s poorest men and women adapt to a changing climate will save lives and could help salvage hopes for a global deal.”

World leaders promised in Copenhagen to establish a new climate fund to help poor countries tackle climate change.  Climate finance is one of a handful of issues where concrete progress is possible by Cancun. Getting an agreement on financing will help rebuild trust in the talks and pave the way to the fair ambitious and binding deal, which is still urgently needed.

Reaching agreement on a new Fund at Cancun is entirely possible, but it is crucial that developed countries in particular do not hold it hostage to decisions in other areas of the negotiations. Moreover, it is urgently needed and a necessary part of any global agreement, treating the new Fund as a bargaining chip will only deliver deadlock.

“Negotiators in Tianjin don’t need to go far to see what climate change is doing to the lives of the world’s poorest people. Millions of poor Chinese are already struggling to feed their families because of increasingly unpredictable weather. And there are millions more like them across the world and they need help to adapt,” added Dent.

China is home to 20% of the world’s poor people and is one of the countries most at risk from a changing climate. According to the Beijing Climate Center extreme weather events have increased in recent years. Earlier this year, almost 20 million people in south-west China were left without adequate water supplies as a result of the worst drought in a century. In June, 800,000 people were displaced and an estimated 1.24 million acres of farmland was affected after torrential rain led to the worst floods in a decade.

The Tianjin Climate Change Conference marks the first time a Chinese city hosts a UN international meeting on the subject of climate change and the last week of negotiations before Ministers gather for a Climate Summit in Cancun, Mexico in December.

As a major emerging economy China is responsible for a growing share of global emissions but is also the world’s biggest investor in green growth:

• China is the world’s biggest emitter of carbon dioxide but its per capita emissions are less than a quarter those of the US

• China accounts for nearly three-quarters of the net global growth in energy consumption but was the largest investor in green energy in 2009. The Chinese government dedicated one-third of its economic stimulus package (US $221 billion) to infrastructure that will promote energy efficiency, making it the largest green stimulus package in the world.

Oxfam is calling on world leaders to establish a new $100 billion Climate Fund in Mexico and for funds to start flowing by 2013. They must also ensure the fund gets money to the poor and vulnerable communities that need help adapting to a changing climate.
Cancun must also outline a process for deciding how the $100 billion in climate finance should be raised. A significant proportion of this money should come from innovative sources.  Charges on pollution from the global shipping and aviation industries or a financial transaction tax on the banking sector will raise billions without putting the squeeze on tax payers.

Oxfam is calling on government officials and international shipping regulators to consider measures to reduce uncapped and rising shipping emissions, while at the same time raising billions of dollars a year in new climate funding through emissions trading systems. Progress on this would bring the world closer to raising the $100 billion per year pledged by developed countries at last year’s UN climate talks to help poor countries protect themselves from the impacts of climate change and develop in a low carbon way.

“This is a chance for shipping to go from scourge to solution when it comes to the climate crisis,” said Heather Coleman, senior climate change policy advisor for Oxfam America.  “The industry could help vulnerable communities access the resources they need to fight climate change by both controlling a rising source of emissions and generating desperately needed funding to cope with their devastating effects.”

The global shipping sector was responsible for 847 million tons of CO2 emissions in 2007 – this is higher than Germany and 15 of the top 20 emitting countries including the U.K., France and Saudi Arabia.   Emissions from the shipping sector have doubled since 1990 and the upward trend is predicted to continue at a rate of 2.5 per cent per year.  Mid-range emissions scenarios show that, by 2050, in the absence of policies, ship emissions may grow by 150% to 250% (compared to the emissions in 2007) as a result of the growth in shipping. 

“Shipping plays a vital role in maintaining vibrant global trade but it is also a major cause of climate change. The International Maritime Organization could implement a fair system to control emissions, that won’t penalize trade from developing countries and will provide some of the vital resources needed to tackle climate change.”

The IMO is a specialized agency of the UN that governs international standards to regulate the shipping industry. Members are gathering for a five-day meeting from Monday 27th September – Friday October 1st.  Among other agenda items, the meeting will consider an internal expert report into possible mechanisms to control greenhouse gas emissions and raise revenues which could be used as climate finance.   The IMO is meeting just ahead of the next round of UN climate talks in China (4th–9th October) and the last gathering of the Advisory Group on Finance (AGF), which was established to identify ways to raise the $100 billion per year pledged at Copenhagen. The group’s recommendations are due to be published in October.

“Despite continuing economic struggles, developed governments can raise the funding required to help poor countries cope with climate change without dipping into their cash strapped budgets,” said Coleman. “The shipping industry can’t do it alone, but it can be part of a package of innovative finance-raising measures including those addressing uncapped emissions from international aviation, grants from developed countries and a re-direction of fossil fuel subsidies. No stone should be left unturned in the search for new climate funding and the shipping industry must play its part to ensure poor communities get the resources they need.”