Overview
For far too long society has pitted people vs the planet, arguing which was more important and suggesting that saving one must come at the cost of the other. But we have learned in recent decades as the impacts of climate change have become ever clearer that not taking action to address climate change only further exacerbates existing inequalities, and threatens to push millions more people into poverty.
Comic Relief has been at the forefront of the fight for a world without poverty for the past 40 years, and through its work supporting communities has helped change the lives of millions of people for the better. Through our conversations with our funded partners, it has become clear that climate change is something we cannot afford to ignore if we are to continue our mission, and we must face the new challenges it poses to those we work with.
Our role
The work of Comic Relief within our climate justice pillar 2024 - 2026 will focus on three main areas:
Integrating climate change risks and opportunities into our funding: Integrating climate into our broader work on poverty and injustice can help increase the resilience of all the communities we work with — helping them identify potential risks, adapt to increasing impacts of climate change and invest in solutions that are developed with the long-term needs of communities facing a radically changed climate.
Building resilience in those most vulnerable to climate change impact: We know that communities facing poverty are facing the greatest impacts of the climate crisis. In this area, we will aim to mitigate that impact through supporting local communities to develop and implement their own solutions to build resilience into their physical surroundings, institutions, and economies, and assist in the adaptation to an ever-changing climate.
Amplifying the voice and agency of communities impacted by the climate crisis: In this area, we will focus on movement strengthening in the climate justice space to ensure that those in the Global South most impacted by these issues have the resources they need to influence decision making at every level, and have a voice in decisions, rather than others speaking on their behalf. We will do this through channelling resources directly to movements helping them become more robust and effective, able to both take advantage of new opportunities and to withstand unexpected obstacles.
Climate Justice
Individual funding programmes
We are partnering with the following organisations on climate justice:
Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty
Fundacion Avina
Southern Africa Resource Watch
Southern Africa Trust
Rwenzori Sustainable Trade Centre
