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Rationale of the Resilience Knowledge Exchnage Series Session 6 Webinar:

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought pervasive fears and new policies that change our way of life. As local efforts and hopes center on contact tracing and finding a vaccine, little attempts have been undertaken to view the environment in direct relation with COVID-19.

The environment is ultimately interconnected with mankind. Its degradation affects the quality of life of all individuals and living beings on earth. Locally, there has been no significant inquiry into how the environment, especially its degradation, might have influenced the pandemic. Neither is there any grand investigation on how the pandemic has affected the environment in turn. Could certain signs detected from environmental patterns and elements point us to the trends, causes, and cures of the pandemic? This question remains unasked, and therefore, unanswered.

The COVID-19 and the Environment webinar attempts to address this question, as two researchers discuss the impact of environmental degradation on the pandemic, including the current research and proposed projects in monitoring COVID-19. One such research focuses on waterways as early warning systems or a monitoring system for disease detection, especially for COVID-19. The other research centers on hazardous waste for the same purpose.

Though similar proposals have already been implemented internationally, no such research inquiry has been localized yet. Through this research, monitoring will be much more efficient, as specific areas and focus will be detected earlier.

Discussing innovative perspectives and tools offers us an alternative way of assuaging anxieties during this time of crisis. At the same time, it helps widen our understanding to include elements previously thought to be lateral but are actually quite essential: the environment.

The presentation on wastewater-based monitoring for predicting pandemics and outbreaks aims to explain the concept, importance, and potential of the said topic. This presentation was created and presented by Dr. Marilen Parungao Balolong, DRPH, DPAM, Professor and University Scientist at the University of the Philippines Manila.

To access a soft copy of this material, click here.

Requested by INCREASE local partner, CorDis-RDS, an informational material in Filipino language was created to outline specific steps that families can do when a member is infected with the virus.

Click the image below to enlarge and download this material.

INCREASE or “Philippines – Increasing Resilience to Natural Hazards” aims to aims to increase the resilience of 45,00 women and men small scale farmers and fishers, including 720 extremely poor female-headed households, to natural hazards and the effect of climate change. The project will run from 2019-2021 in different parts of the Philippines, namely 36 barangays across 8 municipalities in the provinces of Cagayan, Mt. Province, Northern Samar, and Surigao del Sur. Its project components and activities include early warning systems, alternative livelihood, and climate and disaster governance.

This community-level minimum health standards design was created to be printed in strategic locations to help disseminate preventive measures for COVID-19.

View and download a copy of this material here.

From PUIs to PUMs, the Philippines has shifted to a new classification of COVID-19 patients. To make sure that communities are informed of these changes and to help them to better understand COVID-19-related news and information, this infographic was created.

Click to the image below to enlarge and save a soft copy of this material.

The global pandemic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has affected millions worldwide. Presently in the Philippines, there are more than 250,000 cases, with more than 58,000 active cases, and 4,000 dead. The government responded to the crisis using public health measures including travel restrictions, strict community quarantine protocols, work suspension, and promotion of proper hygiene and a strong immune system.

Metro Manila is the center of COVID-19 crisis in the Philippines. At least 54% of the total number of cases in the country is found in Metro Manila. The protracted quarantine measures resulted in severe consequences for urban poor communities. This includes economic displacement particularly for daily wage earners and workers in the informal sector, limited access to basic services, and issues with safety and security. Restrictions were also met with difficulties as urban settlements are often densely packed, overcrowded, and often lacking basic facilities, thereby increasing the risk to spread infection.

The COVID-19 Philippines Inter-Agency Rapid GenderAssessment (RGA), of which the NCR RGA is a part, was conducted to document stories of women, men, and other vulnerable sectors from urban poor communities in Metro Manila. It is a collaborative study aimed at identifying the different needs, risks, capacities, and coping strategies of women, men, girls, and boys in the COVID-19 crisis. The research design was developed by GBV Sub-cluster member agencies UNFPA, Plan, CARE, and Oxfam.

The NCR Rapid Gender Analysis was conducted from 15 April- 27 May 2020 in six cities in Metro Manila. A total of 145 participants from multiple sectors form part of the study. Semi-structured phone interviews were used as the primary data collection method to ensure the safety of both partner organizations and participants.

The NCR RGA is structured to surface stories according to eight (8) key areas of inquiry: 1) Gender Roles and Responsibilities, 2) Access to Basic Services, 3) Impact of Interventions, 4) Access to Information and Technology, 5) Coping Strategies and Capacities, 6) Addressing Social Stigma, 7) Protection and SRHR Issues, and 8) Leadership and Participation. The NCR RGA is an inter-agency initiative coordinated by CARE, with participating INGOs Oxfam Pilipinas, Plan International, Asmae; local organizations ACCORD Inc., ChildHope, Kanlungan sa Er-ma Ministry Inc.; and individual volunteers from DFAT.

View and download the full Rapid Gender Analysis Report here.

COVID-19 remains to be an unfamiliar threat that currently has the world in distress. Despite the fact that the Philippines has amassed extensive experience and knowledge on reducing risks and building resilience amidst natural disasters, conflict, changing climate, and degraded ecosystems, communities and local authorities are still not adept in dealing with the risks of the nature and scale of the COVID-19 pandemic which include not only health and economic impacts, but social and environmental impacts as well.

In the Philippines, the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded amidst multiple humanitarian emergencies — compounding negative impacts and exacerbating pre-existing vulnerabilities of crisis-affected individuals particularly those from marginalized sectors. We know that emergencies and responses are not gender-neutral and that different groups of women, men, boys, and girls experience crises differently. The Rapid Gender Assessment (RGA) elevates these gendered experiences, needs, capacities, and coping strategies, to (1) shape and influence the response plans and operational guidelines of LGUs, CSOs, and other humanitarian actors responding to COVID19; and (2) strengthen existing interventions to ensure they are gender-responsive.

This inter-agency RGA surfaces the voices of 145 individuals from the most marginalized communities — urban poor, barangay health workers, persons with disabilities, solo/young parents, the homeless, senior citizens, LGBTQI — in six cities of Metro Manila. It was conducted within the first three months of enhanced quarantines when NCR was the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, through phone interviews and online surveys organized by CARE, ACCORD, Plan, Oxfam, ASMAE, ChildHope, and Kanlungan sa Er-ma Ministry, Inc. It is part of a larger national Gender and Inclusion Assessment (GIA) that engaged 27 I/NGOs and 950 respondents across 11 target constituencies in six regions.

Read, view, and download the complete PDF version of the presentation deck here.

Routinely cleaning and disinfecting our homes has become much more of a necessity nowadays as it helps keep ourselves and our families safe and healthy even when we spend most of our time at home.

Did you know that cleaning and disinfecting are two different things? What steps should be taken to make sure our homes stay clean even when we come from outside?

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Learn more about CARE Philippines and its initiatives for COVID-19 through:

CARE Facebook Page

CARE Philippines Website

To extend the RILHUB’s reach, we launched the Resilience and Knowledge Exchange Series (RKES) last June 2020 – monthly webinars where stakeholders and key decision-makers can share experiences, best practices, lessons learned, ideas, and innovations.

In this session entitled “Planning for Typhoons During a Pandemic: A Practical Guide”, we held discussions on gaps and challenges of existing Contingency Plans for Typhoons in light of the current pandemic as well as replicable typhoon response practices. We also formulated a practical guide that aims to help communities update their current contingency plans.

A contingency planning checklist was developed from the inputs of more than 600 registrants. The document below was the one used during a special session of the RILHUB Resilience Knowledge Exchange Series for National Disaster Resilience Month. A more detailed and comprehensive checklist will also be uploaded after completion to include additional inputs from attendees and partners.

View and download the full contingency planning checklist here.

Barangay La Flora in the municipality of Talacogon, Agusan del Sur is fully submerged in water three months out of every year. Farming activities are stalled until after the water subsides, and clean drinking water becomes scarce.

But a lot has changed in La Flora since then. They eventually found a clean water source, and with the aid of a cash-for-work program for indigenous people implemented by the DSWD, the laying of water hoses as part of the water system was completed in 10 days through the efforts of 68 people. Recognizing the link between water quality and the state of their environment, the project implementation also required the creation of a village-protected forest park.

“With the cooperation of various government agencies, NGOs, and the ‘Proud of My Purok’ Project, we were able to implement the whole project. The people became active [participants]. Whenever I call for a meeting or a village assembly, they diligently attend because they want to be informed. Before all this… not many would come,” says Romeo Otacan, La Flora barangay captain,

The projects of CARE and ACCORD in Talacogon covered La Flora, along with San Nicolas, Maharlika, Sabang Gibong, and Buena Gracia.

COVID-19 cases are continuously rising causing an immediate need to address hospitals’ surge capacity in the country. MOVE UP, PfR, and a Czech-funded urban resilience projects responded to this challenge by translating the Alternative Temporary Shelter System (an urban resilience strategy addressing the lack of dignified space and shelters for internally displaced families affected by disasters) into CQFs. The CQFs are made to complement the government’s effort to address the increasing need for isolation facilities for cases of COVID-19.

To learn more about Community Quarantine Facilities, view and download the link to the factsheet by clicking on this link.