MSF Innovation Newsletter October 2023
Tackling the health impacts of climate change
In many places where MSF works, our teams are responding to situations that are linked to climate change, such as increases in vector bone diseases like malaria and dengue.
We also recognise the need to play our part to help curb climate change. In 2022, the MSF Movement adopted an emissions reduction target of -50% by 2030. The Climate and Environment Roadmap sets out the MSF Operational Center Geneva's direction until 2030 in terms of what needs to be done to meet its environmental and climate goals. This work is organised under three pillars: operations, our ecological footprint and advocacy.
In this issue, we spotlight two initiatives where MSF has adapted its operations in response to climate change as well as an advocacy campaign by MSF Switzerland to raise awareness about the consequences of the climate emergency on the health of the populations we support.
In Honduras, MSF and partners use the so-called 'Wolbachia' method to combat dengue. As part of this method, mosquitos carrying the natural Wolbachia bacteria are bred and released into the community. The bacteria reduces mosquitoes’ ability to transmit arboviruses, such as dengue.
Just like Honduras, Mozambique is especially vulnerable to the effects of the climate crisis. Through the recently launched Roof Reinforcement Project, MSF is working with the community in the Mogovolas district to ensure that health centre's roofs can withstand more frequent extreme weather events such as storms and heavy rainfalls.
We hope you enjoy the read!
Innovation updates from the MSF movement
MSF uses mosquitos to combat dengue in Honduras
Dengue is a viral infection transmitted through the bite of infected mosquitoes. Cases globally have increased 30-fold over the past 50 years and more than half the world’s population is now at risk. Another billion people are expected to be exposed to dengue fever in the coming decades due to climate change.
In Honduras, outbreaks are growing increasingly severe with more than 10,000 dengue cases reported yearly. To combat dengue in the country, MSF, the local community and health authorities are working together to implement an innovative initiative – releasing mosquitos to fight the disease.
The so-called Wolbachia method includes releasing Aedes aegypti mosquitoes carrying the natural Wolbachia bacteria, which reduces mosquitoes’ ability to transmit arboviruses, such as dengue and Zika.
The World Mosquito Program’s Wolbachia method is safe for humans and the environment and has been successfully deployed in more than 12 countries, reaching some 10 million people. Curious about the next steps for this buzzing innovation? Check out this article or watch this 2.5-minute video.
Hospital out of thin air
As climate change intensifies, so does the chance that hospitals and other healthcare facilities will face extreme weather events like tropical storms and flooding.
Mozambique is regularly affected by natural disasters, including floods, drought and cyclones. In 2022, MSF helped repair several healthcare facilities that were damaged in tropical storm Chalane and cyclone Eloise. In preparation for the next rain and cyclone season (October-April), our teams are taking a more proactive approach.
MSF recently launched the Roof Reinforcement Project in Mogovolas district of the Nampula province in northern Mozambique, in close collaboration with local community members. Through this project, MSF reviews and helps secure the roofs of health centres that are deemed to be at risk for severe damage in case of a cyclone or heavy rainfall.
"Roof reinforcement in health centres is a vital step toward ensuring the safety of patients, healthcare providers, and the continuity of essential healthcare services during cyclones and strong wind events,” says Hannes Depuydt, Logistic Coordinator for MSF's Planetary Health project in Mozambique.
Resource highlights
Free online course: Humanitarian Action in the Digital Age
The Humanitarian Congress Berlin ran from 10-12th of October, this year under the theme 'Out of Sight, Out of Mind? Unveiling Attention and Neglect in Humanitarian Action and Global Health'.
All sessions were recorded and the recordings are available here. Topics covered include:
Humanitarian responses to climate change challenges
New mechanisms and tools to generate responsible awareness
Potentials and dangers of digitalization in humanitarian action
The Humanitarian Congress Berlin is a collaboration between MSF, Médecins Du Monde, the German Red Cross, and the Berlin Chamber of Physicians.
Bonus tip: At the 2021 Humanitarian Congress Berlin, Marpe Tanaka, Head of the MSF Sweden Innovation Unit, moderated a discussion about what greener humanitarian actions look like. The recording is available here.
Read, watch, listen:
[MSF] Ethics, climate change and health – a landscape review
An MSF article in Wellcome Open Research explores ethics, climate change and health, highlighting that countries with low Human Development Indexes are under-represented in research on the health impacts of climate change. Given the myriad of ways climate change impacts human health, the authors call upon climate policymakers to ensure that policy discussions are properly informed by health expertise, not just climate science and economic disciplines. This involves health engagement in fields including, but by no means limited to, the global economy and governance, energy policy, food and nutrition and pollution. Read here »
[MSF] National Planetary Health campaign by MSF Switzerland
Last week, MSF Switzerland launched a national campaign to raise awareness about the consequences of the climate emergency on the health of the populations we support. This initiative shares the voice of our colleagues on the field, speaking on behalf of MSF, but also as members of communities directly affected. Read all the testimonies here »
[GPPi] Humanitarians and the Climate Emergency: The Ethical, Practice and Cultural Challenges
“It is extremely important that today’s humanitarian institutions recognize that the climate crisis demands a massive evolution in the way they think, work and behave.” In this web essay, author Hugo Slim (Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Ethics, Law and Armed Conflict at the University of Oxford) argue that "many of today’s large humanitarian institutions are already maladapted for the climate emergency" and discusses what the climate emergency means for humanitarian professionals. Read here »
[IFRC] Climate-smart programmes and operations for National Societies
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies - IFRC and its specialist Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre have published a comprehensive new guide to climate-smart programming and humanitarian operations for Red Cross Red Crescent National Societies. Available in full and summary versions, the guide focuses on how to use climate-related information to reduce risk and human vulnerability, and includes detailed annexes and user-friendly tools. While initially developed for the organisation's own staff, the document is relevant for all humanitarian professionals. Read here »
Accelerating climate action to better meet growing needs
November 8, 2023 | 09:00-17:00 CET (in-person & online)
How can aid and health stakeholders respond to the growing needs of populations caused by the climate emergency while moving faster on reducing their emissions? How can solutions favour adaptation, resilience and mitigation together?
In this one-day event on the 8th of November, Climate Action Accelerator and partners share views and experiences related to these questions.
PS. Climate Action Accelerator co-constructed the MSF Operational Center Geneva's Climate and Environment Roadmap.
In our headphones
What's Unsaid – A podcast by the New Humanitarian
The UN is not climate neutral
In this episode, Jacob Goldberg explains why the UN’s climate neutrality claims are problematic, how the investigation evolved, and what the next steps for the UN may be. The episode also looks at different international humanitarian agencies' approaches to reducing their carbon emissions, spotlighting MSF's Climate and Environment Roadmap. Listen here »
Can't Take the Heat – By the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre
Can nature-based solutions help solve our biggest climate challenges?
In this episode, host Carolina Marghidan Pereira interviews Nathalie Doswald, Senior Officer for Nature-based Solutions at the IFRC, and Veronica Ruiz, Nature-based Solutions Program Officer at IUCN. They discuss the benefits and challenges of using nature-based solutions to adapt to climate change. Listen here »
Until next time👋
As always we would love to hear of any global health innovation insights or thoughts. Anything you would like to feature in the next newsletter? Reach out with any questions or comments on comms.siu@stockholm.msf.org or simply reply to this email—we would be delighted to continue the conversation!
Best wishes,
The MSF Sweden Innovation Unit Team