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Hunger in Emergencies

Two women stare out of a tent. One of them is holding a young child.

As inequality continues to rise, increasingly unjust and broken food systems – and the pressures of conflict and increasing climate change – have led to over 800 million hungry people, a number that has grown over the last 3 years.

At the same time, crisis and humanitarian needs have grown significantly over the last 10 years. While we traditionally separate development for “stable” areas and humanitarian response for crisis zones, in 2019, few countries or regions in the world are truly stable. Poverty and hunger overlap in fragile contexts, with more than 80% of the global poor expected to live in fragility by 2030. In this new world, wars, conflict, natural disasters and impacts of climate change are commonplace in countries where long-term efforts to reduce chronic hunger and malnutrition are playing an increasingly important role.

800

million

hungry people in the world

Hunger and malnutrition are often caused by natural disasters and conflict or a combination of the two. Prolonged drought may destroy crops and cause food prices to skyrocket, or violent conflict may force people to flee their homes and livelihoods. In our programs all over the world, we work to prevent disasters and food crises through promoting environmental sustainability and empowering people economically so that they are better prepared for difficult times.

Key Approaches

Climate Vulnerability and Capacity Analysis (CVCA)

The Climate Vulnerability and Capacity Analysis (CVCA) is a tool used to gather and analyze information on community-level vulnerabilities to and capacities for climate change. It informs actions at the community level and above that support communities in increasing their resilience to climate change.

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Humanitarian and Emergency Response and Recovery

Working with local partners to close the gender and race gap in humanitarian and emergency response.

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