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Climate change brings disasters on steroids

Bandaid solutions to natural disasters are simply not enough. It's time to be proactive, because the cost of inaction will be much higher.

Australia's $5 million contribution to address the devastating impacts of Cyclone Pam is a much-needed and welcome act.  But remedial responses like this are not enough.  Governments must also develop more proactive tools to help mitigate the impacts of disasters in the first place, including the displacement of people from their homes.

Climate change-related displacement is happening now.  It is not just a future phenomenon. Reportedly 45 per cent of Tuvalu's population has been displaced by Cyclone Pam. More frequent and more intense extreme weather events are consistent with climate change: disasters become disasters on steroids.  While history shows that many Pacific island communities are highly resourceful and resilient in the face of adversity, traditional coping mechanisms are being challenged by what the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator has called the "new normal".

The people most affected are generally the most vulnerable already – the poor, living in environmentally precarious parts of the country, without the social networks or resources to get out of harm's way early.  By way of comparison, Australian tourists caught up in Cyclone Pam have emerged relatively unscathed.  They have the financial resources to shelter in more solid, permanent structures, and to get out of the country in the aftermath.  Most locals do not have that option.

Humanitarian relief in such cases is essential.  It enables NGOs and UN partner agencies on the ground to provide urgent assistance, such as food, temporary shelter and medical care.  It can also affect whether, and how quickly, people can return home and rebuild.  But bandaid solutions like this are not enough.  As the Prime Minister of the Cook Islands told the Nansen Initiative on Disaster-Induced Cross-Border Displacement, "if we fail to plan, we plan to fail".

For the complete article, please see Sydney Morning Herald.