Transcript CLIMATE CHANGE and DISABILITY

CLIMATE CHANGE and
DISABILITY
Pat Farr
Coordinator
Cook Islands National Disability Council
Global Warming will disproportionally
affect the World’s poor
• 20% of the poorest people worldwide are
people with disabilities
•
(World Report on Disability 2011)
• 82% of persons with disabilities in developing
countries live below the poverty line
•
(Elwan 1999)
6 key issues impact quality of life and
well-being of persons with disabilities
• Decreasing food security and malnutrition
• Decreasing access to clean water, sanitation
• Increasing emergencies due to extreme
weather events
• Reduced access to infrastructure, shelter and
basic services
• Increasing displacement
• Increasing human security issues
Decreasing food security and
malnutrition
• Approximately 20% of impairments worldwide
are thought to be caused by malnutrition
•
(DFID 2000)
• With increasing malnutrition more children
are likely to acquire disabling impairments
Many of the world’s poorest people
depend on ocean and inland fish as a
significant part of their diet
‘Fuel poverty’ (of firewood and other
fuels) can lead to malnutrition
It can be difficult to obtain adequate nutrition from
uncooked food (Northcott 2007)
Decreasing access to clean water,
sanitation and hygiene
• An estimated 6·8% of DALYs (Disability
Adjusted Life Years) worldwide are
attributable to unsafe and inadequate water
for drinking and sanitation
With decreased clean water, an
increase in resulting disability is
expected (Murray and Lopez 1997).
Increasing emergencies due to
extreme weather events
• Persons with Disabilities are among the most
vulnerable in an emergency and are
disproportionately likely to suffer from disease
and death...
• ...and at the same time being among those
least able to access emergency support
• In an emergency it is easy to lose assistive
devices such as wheelchairs, crutches,
prosthesis, white canes and hearing aids
Reduced access to infrastructure,
shelter and basic services
• As Climate Change places increased pressure
on national budgets, and resilient livelihood
opportunities diminish, there are less
resources available for affordable and
accessible services and infrastructure for the
poorest people.
Increasing displacement
• There are large numbers of climate refugees
worldwide, including many persons with
disabilities. With the disappearance of social
and support networks the resulting hardship
can be devastating.
• People moving from rural to urban
environments have no choice of suitable
housing
Increasing human security issues
• During the coming century it is expected that
scarce water and food resources caused by
climate change, may cause conflict in a
number of regions
• Such conflicts will increase the risks and
hardships for persons with disabilities. During
conflicts, persons with disabilities are
additionally vulnerable due to difficulty
moving to safety
• Conflict is known to be a leading cause of
physical and psychological disability
• Unable to access appropriate interventions
and assistive devices, new and existing
impairments become long-term disabilities
(IPCC 2007)
1 example
• Malaria is a key example of a disease which
will increase with Climate Change and may
cause disability.
• Roughly one in ten children will suffer from
neurological impairment after suffering
cerebral malaria, including epilepsy, learning
disability, changes in behaviour, loss of
coordination or speech impairments
(Jones 2002).
Recognising vulnerability and capacity
for adaption
• Vulnerability to the effects of Climate Change
will depend on the resilience of
•
each individual
•
each community
• and their ability to adapt
BUT...
• Climate related reports such as the IPCC and
the Human Development Report 2007-08 do
not identify persons with disabilities as
requiring particular inclusion measures in
adapting to their changing environment
(Wolbring 2009).
WHY NOT ???
• Climate Change is an issue currently facing the
entire global population
• People with disabilities should be included in
mainstream development, and initiatives
designed in an inclusive and accessible way
• Projections indicate that because of global
warming, more people might become disabled;
more disabled people are likely to become sick or
die; and that disabled people will be more
affected by factors such as famine, weather
disaster and consequent migration
• The obvious conclusion is that climate change is a
disability rights issue
(Shakespeare 2009)
References
Disability and Climate Change: Understanding
vulnerability and building resilience in a
changing world. David Lewis and Kath Ballard.
www.cbm.org
The Impact of Climate Change on People With
Disabilities. The Global Partnership for
Disability & Development and The World
Bank. e-discussion July 8th 2009
References
Brauch, H 2002, Climate Change and Conflict Prevention. German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature
Conservation and Nuclear Safety.
Choy, R 2009, ‘Disasters are always inclusive: Vulnerability in humanitarian crises’, Development Bulletin, Special Issue
No. 73, April 2009, Development Studies Network, ANU, Canberra.
DFID (Department for International Development) 2000, ‘Disability, Poverty and Development’, DFID, UK,
http://handicap-international.fr/bibliographie-handicap/4PolitiqueHandicap/hand_pauvrete/DFID_disability.pdf,
Elwan, A 1999, ‘Poverty and Disability; a survey of the literature’, The World Bank, Social Protection Discussion Paper
Series (1999): 9932.
IPCC, 2007. Fourth Assessment Report. Working Group II. Climate Change 2001: Impacts, Adaption and Vulnerability,
http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/wg2/en/contents.html, (accessed online 4 March 2011)
Jones, I 2002, Neurological Damage from Malaria http://malaria.wellcome.ac.uk/doc_WTD023883.html
Little, L and Cocklin, C 2010, ‘The Vulnerability of Urban Slum Dwellers’, In Global Environmental Change and Human
Security, ed. Matthew, R, and Barnett, J., The MIT Press, Massachusetts.
Murray, C and Lopez, A 1997, ‘Global mortality, disability, and the contribution of risk factors: Global Burden of Disease
Study’, The Lancet, Vol 349, http://old.spread.it/Volume/chapt04/add_04/Ref_04006.pdf
Northcott, M 2007, ‘A Moral Climate’, Darton, Longman &Todd Ltd, London.
Shakespeare,T 2009 Climate Change and Disability: a burning issue
WHO (World Health Organisation) 2003, Climate Change and Human Health – Risks and Responses. Summary,
http://www.who.int/globalchange/climate/summary/en/
Wolbring, G 2009, ‘A Culture of Neglect: Climate Discourse and Disabled People’, M/C Journal, 12(4),
http://www.journal.media-culture.org.au/index.php/mcjournal/article/viewArticle/173/index.html
World Report on Disability http://www.who.int/disabilities/world_report/2011/en/index.html
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