Caritas India in collaboration with Caritas Asia, organized an international webinar to observe the World Humanitarian Day celebration on August 19th, 2021. This webinar was organized under Caritas Institute for Developmental Action and Learning (CIDAL) to discuss the issues around climate change and how it has led to increasing series of disasters leading to a higher increase in demand for humanitarian work and aid.

The World Humanitarian Day 2021 is marked by an accentuated global ecological crisis. Climate change and the global COVID-19 pandemic have put hundreds of millions into highly precarious and vulnerable situations.  For the past few years, climate change has created millions of climate migrants who have left their homes and agricultural lands in search of survival means. These people on the move are now once again exposed to the pandemic and made highly vulnerable.

In 2009, the UN General Assembly formalized August 19^th as World Humanitarian Day (WHD) to pay tribute to humanitarian workers who lost life and injured in the course of their work, and to honor all aid and health workers who continue to provide life-saving support and protection to people in need, and the current pandemic situation in particular. This year, the WHD highlights the immediate human cost of the climate crisis by pressuring world leaders to take meaningful climate action for the world’s most vulnerable people.

Through this webinar, we plan to produce a joint message which will contribute to the Caritas Confederation effort in echoing the region’s concerns on climate change in the upcoming COP  (Conference of the Parties) scheduled to take place in the UK in November 2021. This year’s gathering is crucial as the pandemic struck the world which is drastically changed the outlook of the world as we see it. It envisages discussing the factor that “Climate Change has no Borders” which is a larger-than-life reality today due to the pandemic which has left no country untouched across the globe.

The webinar was organized with the objective to share how the perspective of Climate Change has become complex due to the pandemic and how technology adoption is made possible at the community level, to share how can Climate Change be tackled through a GLOCAL approach, to produce a joined message to contribute to Caritas Internationalis position paper in the upcoming COP 26and to explore various possible ways of Caritas MOs in Asia to strengthen their initiatives in responding to the impact of climate change.

Dr. Benedict D’ Rozario, the President of Caritas Asia in his welcome address shared some shocking results of the recent IPCC report including flood situation, drought, and forests in many parts of the world caused by climate change. Fr. (Dr.) Paul Moonjely, Executive Director of Caritas India in his message emphasized the need of focusing on People, the Planet, Peace, and prosperity. He expressed concern over the entitlements of land for the poor people, water conservation measures, and the need to promote courageous innovations.

Ms. Clare Westwood opened our eyes on the increase of global temperature and pollution. She said Warming depends on choices and today, everyone is at risk of climate change. Prof. Vinod Chandra Menon mentioned the contributions of Humanitarian practitioners in emergency situations and difficult times and many of them lost their lives while they are at humanitarian services. He said the situation of malnutrition, loss of food security, epidemic, pandemic, disasters like floods, droughts, landslides, groundwater depletion, etc. are on their hike. He said we have to be part of the solutions. Fr. Antonio Labias shared the road map for sustainability and resilience and the initiatives taken by the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines on promoting the ‘Laudato Si’ National Plan, He also mentioned the eco-convergence of church and CSOs. The webinar ended with open discussions on the issues of climate change and the resilience options that can be taken up by the Caritas Confederations.