Project Noah's Ark: Our committed response to the threat of climate change

6/25/2010 | Ayala Foundation

In the aftermath of Typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng, the organizations who were involved in the immediate relief operations thought that more could be done so that communities as well as supporting private and government institutions will be better prepared and equipped to face future calamities. Thus, a group of concerned private sector organizations banded together to form a group called OurLighthouse and conceptualized Project Noah's Ark.

Our Lighthouse is composed of the following organizations: Ayala Foundation, Inc. (AFI), ABS-CBN, Catholic Educators Association of the Philippines (CEAP), Corporate Network for Disaster Response (CNDR), De La Salle University (DLSU), Globe Telecom, Habitat for Humanity, League of Corporate Foundations (LCF), National Secretariat for Social Action (NASSA), Peace and Equity Foundation (PEF), Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), PLDT-Smart Foundation, Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan, Tulong Bayan, World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

The concept for Project Noah's Ark was inspired by a talk given by Jesuit physicist Fr. Jett Villarin. It aims to improve the capacity of schools and other community facilities to provide temporary shelter to evacuees or victims of disasters. This will be done by providing these schools with better bathrooms and toilets, kitchen facilities, and a clinic.

In addition, there will be a social component, which will ensure that the community is prepared and knows what to do when a calamity strikes. This will be done by training the existing Barangay Disaster Coordinating Council (BDCC) and other community leaders on disaster preparedness and management. The training workshop will result in a written set of guidelines and procedures the community will follow in times of disasters. The following basic requirements will be used to identify the communities for this project:

1.Highly vulnerable poor communities or communities that are prone to disasters or have been badly affected by disasters in the past years, or are situated in high-risk areas;

2.Communities that are least served by NGOs or GOs, with minimal resources to undertake disaster preparedness initiatives;

3.Presence of an active local organization that is prepared and willing to undertake disaster preparedness trainings and workshops; and

4.Functional Barangay Disaster Coordinating Council (BDCC) committed to undertake activities on disaster preparedness.

Habitat for Humanity has finished the designs for the standardized Ark modules. These are easy to install and replicate. CNDR will handle the capacity building of target beneficiary communities to manage Noah's Ark through disaster-preparedness trainings. WWF will handle disaster risk mapping, risk assessment, and early warning systems needed by the community to make the planning and implementation successful. Bro. Armin Luistro, President of DLSU chairs the consortium, while AFI serves as project manager. As project manager, AFI is tasked to encourage local government units (LGU) to match the funds raised from the private sector. Priority for implementation will be accorded to cities and provinces where the mayors and governors are willing to co-fund. By involving the LGUs, they will have ownership of the project and increases the probability for sustainability of the project in their area of responsibility.

Noah's Ark needs builders

Similar to the ark built by Noah and his family in time for the Great Flood, building Noah's Ark in high-risk communities will take time, physical resources and people. Several packages are lined up for our future co-builders. The expected project cost for the Ark and Covenant is shown below. This cost will be shared by the local government unit (LGU) and by OurLightHouse.

EVACUATION CENTER* (converted classrooms) for 120 families

5 cluster toilets PhP 244,000

4 cluster kitchens PhP 96,800

Clinic PhP 100,000

Disaster Preparedness

and Management training PhP 100,000

Mobilization cost (11%) PhP 59,200

TOTAL Php 600,000

We look forward to have you aboard and become a co-Ark builder through the different packages presented. Together, we can build Noah's Arks where they are needed most, and seal Covenants with the communities as our concrete, permanent, and collaborative response to the current threats of climate change.

·Breakdown of cost will be provided to interested Co-Ark Builders.

Visit http://www.ayalafoundation.org for more information.

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