VEHA
Guidance
Guidance
Virtual Environmental and Humanitarian Adviser Tool – (VEHA Tool) is a tool
to easily integrate environmental considerations in humanitarian response. Field Implementation guidances are useful for the design and execution of humanitarian activities in the field.
The development of a green economy should maintain, enhance and, where necessary, rebuild natural capital as a critical economic asset and source of public benefits. The green economy takes a “cradle to cradle” approach to sustainable sourcing and processing, reducing waste, re-using all by-products so that new virgin raw materials are no longer required or are used and replenished sustainably.
Natural capital comprises land, soil, water, forests, animal and plant biodiversity, mineral resources, and the flow of all benefits from the use or existence of these resources. In a green economy, growth in income and employment is driven by public and private investments that reduce carbon emissions and pollution, enhance energy and resource efficiency, create green jobs, and prevent the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services.
Promoting and facilitating access to job opportunities in the green economy reduces the risks of human and labor rights violations since businesses in this sector tend to be more ethically run and better monitored. This results in reduced environmental degradation once green businesses adopt sustainable solutions and, in some sectors of the green economy, on environmental enhancement. However, it’s not unusual to observe “greenwashing”, where non-sustainable businesses create a positive image that doesn’t reflect their true social and environmental practices. This, therefore, requires an assessment prior to negotiating job opportunities.
Prioritizing the green economy on socioeconomic integration activities is a good strategy to add an environmental lens to humanitarian livelihoods activities, reducing the operations’ environmental impacts while humanitarian organizations contribute to the SDGs, stimulating less damaging economic activities.
People who face harassment or discrimination that restricts their access to livelihoods, community resources, and/or goods and services can be forced into environmentally damaging coping mechanisms.
Climate change may affect livelihood practices, making those more dependent on natural resources impracticable in extreme cases. These processes tend to deeper affect vulnerable groups such as women and the elderly, which also have less capacity to adapt, for example, to relocate to regions where they can still practice their livelihoods activity.
Gender imbalance is a common feature of most labor markets. Investing in socioeconomic integration applying an AGD approach can reduce it and the green economy sectors tend to be more favorable to it.
Some livelihood activities in the green economy may be associated with “women jobs”, which turns out to be the result of the lack of access to better opportunities. The “women jobs” are commonly less formal and put workers at risk of human and labor rights violations. It’s crucial to empower these groups to access better opportunities while sectors such as recyclable waste pickers can be supported by humanitarian organizations to professionalize their practices, making them safer.
Air pollution
Soil pollution
Water pollution
Deforestation
Desertification
Eutrophication
Climate change
Loss of biodiversity and ecosystems
Natural Resource Depletion
Soil erosion
Noise pollution
Visual Intrusion
Cultural acceptance
Impact on wellbeing / mental health
Increased drought/flood
Humanitarian investments in the green economy such as supporting businesses in the adoption of more sustainable practices in return for hiring members of affected populations may increase “greenwashing” practices as businesses see it as opportunities to attract funds.
The benefits of green economy livelihoods should include reductions in air, soil, and water pollution; more sustainable use of natural resources; reduced impacts on ecosystems and gradual re-greening and increased soil quality and watercourse quality and increased biodiversity of local areas; reduced greenhouse gas emissions; Improvements in employee health, safety, and wellbeing; gradual improvements in the local economy.
All contexts have opportunities for the development of green economy sustainable livelihoods. All livelihoods can be adapted so that they contribute to the green economy. For example, construction and manufacturing can reduce waste, source sustainable raw materials, reduce the use of plastic, use renewable energy, re-use any waste they do generate, and fundamentally change the design of products and buildings so they have a much lower or even beneficial impact on the environment.
It is essential that humanitarian actors support such initiatives or environmental degradation and natural resources depletion will continue to grow. These strategies are also important to reduce the risks of disasters involving environmental issues such as dam rupture and industrial accidents that generate contamination and associated health impacts.
Humanitarian investments in the green economy such as supporting businesses in the adoption of more sustainable practices in return for hiring members of affected populations may increase “greenwashing” practices as businesses see it as opportunities to attract funds.
The benefits of green economy livelihoods should include reductions in air, soil, and water pollution; more sustainable use of natural resources; reduced impacts on ecosystems and gradual re-greening and increased soil quality and watercourse quality and increased biodiversity of local areas; reduced greenhouse gas emissions; Improvements in employee health, safety, and wellbeing; gradual improvements in the local economy.
Map local livelihoods and identify those that are most polluting and work with local people to adapt them to make them more environmentally sustainable, such as redesigning products and services so they do not harm the environment.
Map opportunities to introduce new forms of green economy livelihoods, such as renewable energy generation and installation, sustainable construction, manufacturing re-useable, repurposable and recyclable products. Consider the sectors’ levels of formalization, the technical expertise required, working conditions, Age, Gender and Diversity aspects, geographical distributions, etc. Market assessments should also consider measures to reduce risks of unfair competition promoted by humanitarian actions that could harm local economies.
Promote new livelihood opportunities in the green economy focused on the opportunities mapped, and provide labor skills training and technical guidance on better practices facilitating labor market insertion.
Support the establishment of livelihood activities, including entrepreneurship, in the green economy, with a focus on sectors that generate environmental enhancements such as reuse and recycling. Cash and Voucher programmes as “seed capitals” may be considered to support new business in the green economy and to structure existing practices among the affected populations, always combined with technical guidance on sustainability, finance management, etc. Such activities could have restrictions placed on vouchers or supply chains to encourage the adoption of sustainable practices.
Implement demonstration projects in sustainability, such as renewable energy generation at shelters and refugee camps, and take advantage of them to create capacity-building opportunities for affected populations to facilitate their socio-economic integration.
Promote lessons learned exchange, provide technical guidance, and advocacy with key stakeholders, from suppliers to the local government, on the adoption of better practices to move towards a green economy, contributing to reduce environmental impacts and increase livelihoods resilience against climate change.
Improve supply and logistics practices, reducing humanitarian organizations’ environmental footprint. The adoption of “green supply” strategies stimulates the green economy and generates opportunities for the affected population. Suppliers may receive direct support to qualify and improve their practices, creating job opportunities for the beneficiaries as a counterpart.
The main contribution humanitarians can easily make to the green economy is to map local livelihoods and identify those that are most polluting and work with local people to adapt them to make them more environmentally sustainable, such as redesigning products and services so they do not harm the environment.
In addition to this, humanitarians can look for opportunities to support new and existing green economy businesses in obtaining certifications on social and environmental sustainability as a way to improve their practices, potentiate export opportunities, and access to grants. Promote environmentally sustainable coping mechanisms such as waste recycling, efficient cookstove production, renewable energy production, production of soil stabilised construction blocks.
Advocate local government, and provide support, on developing and implementing social and environmental certifications, and advocacy for the adoption of “green procurement” practices at local governments, generating better opportunities for affected populations. Certification can be required for access to certain credits or prioritized for awarding Government contracts. As such they are used as a way to stimulate sustainable practices.
Incorporate (1) sectors of the green economy that are mostly formal, but that is not represented by any specific NCEA (such as “Sustainable Rural Production”, “Ecotourism” and “Ecogastronomy”, which are mixed with similar jobs from the Traditional Economy on the RAIS basis) and (2) sectors of the Green Economy that – in spite of being mostly informal (and therefore not counted by RAIS) – offer a large number of jobs and a great potential for “dignified relationships” in the coming years, such as recyclable waste pickers. Support existing livelihood practitioners in adopting sustainable methods and tools, through providing training and assets.
Where packaging cannot be reduced, create livelihoods opportunities, for example, repurposing of plastic packaging into marketable items, or set up recycling schemes for main packaging items. Support existing recycling livelihoods such as cooperatives and support the implementation of new recycling livelihoods, including processing organic waste and the production of organic fertilizer and biogas. Improve health and safety of workforce who produce or work with chemicals and other hazardous materials. However, in any recycling and packing scheme, it is important to rely on accurate expertise and data (related to plastic, paper, and biodegradable matters).
Support urban smart agriculture to generate livelihood opportunities in the green economy and reduce food and nutritional risks. Decentralized projects will also contribute to urban planning solutions, increasing cities’ biodiversity, improving water cycles, protecting soils, etc. The local government can act as a key partner, providing areas for implementation and procuring production to supply public schools and hospitals, for instance.
In remote and rural settings, promote green livelihood activities on reforestation, soil restoration, waste management, and production of bio charcoal for cooking, among others. Humanitarian organizations can support implementation, provide capacity building, and procure production, which may also result in better opportunities for socioeconomic integration in the case of relocation of affected populations.
Take advantage of the higher level of social and environmental awareness among green economy businesses to promote the socio-economic integration of specific and vulnerable groups such as women, the elderly, or people with disabilities, applying an AGD strategy to livelihood activities.
Develop partnerships with companies that issue sustainability certificates for the private sector, professional and sectoral associations, financial institutions, among others, using them as connectors between potential contractors and the beneficiaries.
These partnerships not only facilitate the labor market insertion but can also provide inputs for capacity-building strategies, helping to define areas for labor skills training where there’s a lack of skilled labor. Specific projects such as including hiring refugees in the certifier scoring system can be developed.
In Nigeria, the charity Tearfund has supported young entrepreneurs in developing green economy livelihoods that reduce waste, recycle, reduce pollution and build high-quality goods that sell well.
# of formal job opportunities generated in the green economy by humanitarian activities
# of existing livelihoods adapted to be significantly more sustainable
# of existing entrepreneurship activities in the green economy supported by humanitarian activities.
# of new entrepreneurship activities in the green economy supported by humanitarian activities.
# of partnerships established to boost labor market insertion in the green economy.
# of pilot projects to introduce better practices implemented.
# of beneficiaries that concluded training programmes (labor skills training, environmental and financial education, better and sustainable practices, technical guidance for adaptation to new markets, etc.).
% of jobs and business generated in the green economy (to monitor indirect environmental impacts reduction by decreasing the percentage of opportunities in the “gray economy”).
# of women and other vulnerable groups on the green economy (to monitor the reduction of gender imbalance etc.).
Identified awareness increase among stakeholders regarding social and environmental sustainability.
Prevention of environmental damage
Mitigation of environmental damage
Environmental enhancement
Support to livelihoods provision, recovery, strengthening, diversification, and protection with reduced environmental impacts and promotion of environmental enhancements through livelihoods activities, directly contributing to the SDGs.
It takes significant time, expertise and patience to work with communities in poverty or humanitarian crisis to support them in behavior change towards understanding how adopting more sustainable livelihoods reduces their vulnerability.
In times of reduced economic activity such as during pandemic outbreaks, the green economy tends to be more severely affected, primarily in non-essential sectors such as green tourism or eco-wine production.
Requires straight collaboration with the private sector and local governments and institutions as well as a clear understanding of local legislation and cultural aspects of labor and business.
Financial resources are necessary to support livelihood activities, implement new ones, introduce and pilot better practices, and develop advocacy campaigns and events to generate opportunities.
Depending on the sector, such as smart agriculture, and the type of intervention, such as supporting the implementation of new livelihood practices, medium-term programmes are fundamental to ensure the activities’ sustainability and autonomy through time, which not always is aligned with humanitarian action’s cycles. In this context, bringing local actors as partners that can support implementation and further M&E is a good strategy.