On the occasion of November 12 Disaster Preparedness Day, our Program Expert, Rıdvan Öner, has shared insights into our "Locally-Led Empowerment" Program, which stands at the heart of our localization strategy in disaster response, and the experiences we’ve gained from implementing it in disaster-affected regions.
One critical lesson we have learned from conducting humanitarian interventions across different disaster-affected regions in Turkey is that local communities, themselves are often best positioned to understand and design the most functional solutions for local needs. The earthquakes of February 6 reminded us once again that community engagement and mobilization are essential for sustainable recovery, development, and disaster preparedness. The preparedness of local governments and communities directly impacts their resilience in the face of disasters. Recognizing this, Support to Life has been implementing the " Locally-Led Empowerment" Program for the past three years to enhance the response capacity of local communities in disaster zones. With November 12 Disaster Preparedness Day in mind, I’d like to highlight the importance of this localization-based program and its critical role in building disaster resilience.
Community-Led Crisis and Disaster Response
What is the "Locally-Led Empowerment" Program? It is Support to Life’s version of the "Supporting Community-led Response" (SCLR) approach that has proven effective in various disaster-prone regions globally, emphasizing community-led response, recovery, and preventive measures. This approach was first developed by "Local to Global" (L2GP), an organization established in 2009 through research on community responses to crises. The findings of this research laid the foundation for the community-led crisis response model. L2GP has implemented this approach in diverse regions, including Burma/Myanmar, Kenya, the occupied Palestinian territories, Philippines, South Sudan, Sudan, and Zimbabwe, through partnerships with international, national, and local organizations.
The SCLR approach marks a fundamental shift in the traditional humanitarian paradigm. It prioritizes strengthening local capacities in disaster preparedness and response, redefining the role of disaster-affected individuals from passive aid recipients to empowered actors capable of mobilizing local solidarity and resilience efforts. We believe that by empowering communities to identify and address their needs, post-disaster recovery can be more effective and sustainable. Observing that local communities are typically the first and last responders in disaster situations, Support to Life supports their projects and initiatives through micro-grants, providing assistance to communities during project implementation.
Local Solutions for Community Empowerment
I would like to briefly discuss our localization-based disaster resilience program’s journey in Turkey. We first implemented it in response to forest fires in the Aegean and Mediterranean regions and the floods in Western Black Sea in 2021. During this period, structural repairs, post-disaster rehabilitation, and disaster prepardness projects became the main focal areas. We documented these experiences in open-source reports. Since May 2023, the Empowerment through Local Leadership Program has been implemented in Adıyaman, Hatay, Kahramanmaraş, and Malatya, areas heavily affected by the February 6 earthquakes. Our report on Hatay and Kahramanmaraş provides detailed insights into this process.
The ideas and needs assessments of the communities involved in these projects highlight the importance of strengthening local capacities. Let’s look at what these communities have done, particularly those living in temporary shelters or working to normalize life in their regions post-disaster. Local communities have created projects like libraries and study centers for children and youth, theater events, sewing workshops for women, as well as health booths and communal kitchens. In Adıyaman, for example, a women’s collective sewing workshop is progressing towards becoming a cooperative, extending its impact. For communities working to return to normal, the events on the first day and the aftermath of the earthquake were particularly transformative. For this reason, they have strengthened communal spaces like village houses, condolence houses, and social facilities to address potential needs during future disasters. These spaces are being equipped with kitchens, children’s areas, ramps for people with disabilities, and necessary first aid, firefighting, and search and rescue equipment to increase their disaster response capacity.
Communities’ post-disaster experiences have shown how lifesaving collective action can be. In Malatya, for instance, a group of teachers formed a collective, establishing a search and rescue team and designing projects to procure essential equipment. Other supported projects include efforts to protect water sources and implement sustainable energy solutions to ensure uninterrupted power supply.
In the Locally-led empowerment approach, communities take full responsibility for all stages of micro-grant projects, from application to final reporting. On November 12, they emphasize their goal of comprehensive disaster preparedness by communicating their capacity-building and training needs to us or by connecting with relevant organizations.
The Spirit of Solidarity and Collective Empowerment
During our interviews, communities often shared that initially, they doubted their ability to carry out a project, but through solidarity, they discovered their skills in project management and collective efforts. This experience has strengthened their capacity for future collaborative work. By taking responsibility for disaster preparedness, many communities have realized for the first time that they can work together toward this goal. Some communities even come back to us after implementing their projects to propose new ideas based on identified needs. They share experiences with other communities, manage processes by directly liaising with public institutions, and some have even started to implement local risk management measures for potential disasters. To address identified vulnerabilities and build on their strengths, these communities are actively seeking further support and resources.
For myself and my colleagues who have been involved in this program from the beginning, the process has been highly instructive. Working hand in hand with communities, guided by their initiative and strength, and focusing on mutual aid has fundamentally and positively transformed our humanitarian practices and perspectives. Working with communities not as victims but as empowered actors capable of rebuilding their lives with dignity is invaluable. While assessing post-disaster needs together, we also gain the most realistic perspective, seeing the situation through the community’s eyes. We now understand the critical importance of seemingly minor details for a child, a woman, an elderly person, or a person with disabilities affected by the disaster.
Standing Beside Communities
On November 12 Disaster Preparedness Day, we once again emphasize that an informed society and effective disaster risk management are key to developing disaster response and prevention. We stand with communities and move forward together toward this goal. We organize meetings, workshops, and coordination networks with stakeholders from civil society, the private sector, and government agencies to strengthen localization and community-led empowerment. Although we have made significant progress, in this era of multiple disasters, we still have a long journey ahead. In the coming year, we aim to publish and promote a robust community-led empowerment strategy informed by the lessons learned from various disasters. Our greatest goal is to create a disaster-resilient, prepared, and informed society by strengthening local capacity.
*This article was published in Gazete Duvar on November 12, 2024.
Rıdvan Öner
Program Expert, Support to Life Foundation / Istanbul
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