Women and Girls in Disasters

Overview

Pre-existing, structural gender inequalities mean that disasters affect women and girls in different ways than they affect boys and men. The vulnerability of females increases when they are in a lower socioeconomic group, particularly in the Global South. This vulnerability impacts preparedness, evacuation, response, number of deaths and recovery. The reasons for this vulnerability can often be traced to the roles females hold in society and existing gender and cultural norms where they live. This can include the duties women and girls carry out, the clothing they wear, the way they expected to behave, etc.

Cyclone Idai aftermath in Mozambique. (Photo by Denis Onyodi: IFRC/DRK/Climate Centre; CC BY 2.0)

This vulnerability is also part of the intersectional nature of the gendered impact of disasters. For example, women and girls of color in the U.S. tend to have higher rates of poverty, greater challenges accessing health care, reduced access to education and employment opportunities (and lower wages when they do find work). They often live in female-led households and are more likely to be tenants than homeowners.

Before a disaster, women and girls usually have the primary responsibility for caring for a home and the people in it including children, older family members and people with disabilities. Their caregiving responsibilities may prevent their ability to evacuate. About 80 percent of the people left in New Orleans after the mandatory evacuation was issued were women, despite representing only 54 percent of the population of the city. After a disaster, women will likely be responsible for caring for the sick and injured while still maintaining their daily chores. And if the main breadwinner is killed during the disaster, women often need to seek outside employment and, especially in an international context, girls are pulled from school to take care of the household.

In all countries, violence against women and girls is a factor post-disaster. Sexual assaults, physical abuse and human trafficking increase after a disaster. From an Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) perspective, this often stems from stress due to financial concerns, disaster-trauma heightened mental health issues, increased substance use, etc. Sexual violence may occur in crowded housing situations (e.g. against or by a host family member). Stress is exacerbated in crowded shelters or temporary housing which may lead to aggressive behavior, including sexual aggression. In war-torn areas – including refugee encampments and internally displaced persons camps – sexual violence is often seen as a means of control of the population.

In cultural communities that require modest clothing, women and girls may find it harder to run away from danger (i.e. an approaching tsunami or a collapsed building) because of the barriers their clothing may create. Additionally, modest dress and/or cultural norms may mean females engage in different cultural and recreational activities. This could mean girls may not be taught how to swim or to climb trees. This creates barriers that make it difficult to take care of themselves when trying to survive flooding.

During recovery, women and girls may have to work harder to carry out the functions of daily living for their families. This can include lining up for relief supplies, having to travel farther to access water or cooking in challenging conditions. These activities often happen during the day, limiting the access women and girls have to education or outside employment.

Key Facts

  • In some disasters, there is a distinct disparity in deaths between women and men. Researchers have found that, “61 percent of fatalities in Myanmar after Cyclone Nargis in 2008, 70 percent after the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami in Banda Aceh, and 91 percent after Cyclone Gorky in Bangladesh in 1991” were women. However, when economic and social rights are more equally distributed between men and women, researchers have discovered that the death rates are also more equal. There was negligible difference between female and male death rates after Hurricane Katrina; age was a much more significant factor.
  • During and after a disaster there is often a delay in reporting of sexual violence. This stems from a number of reasons, including victims focusing on basic recovery versus reporting and lack of access to or existence of support services (health clinics, rape counseling services, domestic violence shelters etc.)
  • Pregnancy and childbirth make women particularly vulnerable after a disaster. Reproductive health services for expectant and nursing mothers are important in evacuation and post-disaster shelters.After Typhoon Haiyan it was discovered that more than 230,000 pregnant women were affected by the typhoon. Ten days after the disaster, the United Nations Population Fund reported that nearly 900 women were giving birth each day, with around 130 likely to experience potentially life-threatening complications.
  • Building women’s empowerment and including women in disaster planning creates resilience. Women can help identify disaster risks for themselves and for girls that may not be understood by male planners. They can also help build security for their families, including increased income or awareness of personal preparedness and health.
  • Including women in recovery helps reduce stereotypes and discrimination about women’s roles. After the earthquake in Ecuador in 2016, the UN Volunteers coordinated programs to increase women’s involvement in running of camps; traditionally these are male-dominated spaces. This helped reduce violence and gave women more control over their space. They also helped by designing “small projects aimed at changing traditional gender roles and improving women’s participation, which led to women engaging in non-traditional activities such as cash-for-work initiatives and the removal of debris.” Women also got involved in the construction industry.

How to Help

  • Provide funding for programs specifically for women and girls. Gender-specific programming that addresses their unique needs, and is culturally-competent, helps build their resilience. While programs do not necessarily need to be women and girls only, they do need to have a very clear focus on gender-based needs.
  • Fund activities for women and girls in advance of a disaster to help build resiliency and self-sufficiency. In Togo and other African countries, women gather in a “Mother’s Club”. This is a group of 20 women who live close together. They are trained “in the field of maternal and child health, hygiene and environmental sanitation, nutrition and the creation of income-generating activities.”
  • Provide clear energy options when rebuilding homes. According to the World Health Organization, “around 3 billion people cook using polluting open fires or simple stoves fueled by kerosene, biomass (wood, animal dung and crop waste) and coal. Each year, close to 4 million people die prematurely from illness attributable to household air pollution…” Women and children are the most affected by this because of the division of household labor.
  • Fund gender-disaggregated data studies. To understand the needs of women and/or girls it is important that gender is considered when conducting research. All phases of disasters affect women differently and learning more about these impacts can lead to better solutions.
  • Provide funding to support sexual and intimate partner violence resources inside and outside of the disaster zone. It is important to also focus on evacuation zones or areas of resettlement after a major disaster. For example, training and support should be provided to encourage police officers in evacuation centers to take reports of victims from other jurisdictions.
  • Fund reproductive rights including family planning, doulas/midwives and other culturally appropriate birthing supports. CDP, as outlined in the What Funders Are Doing section, provided specific grants to support pregnant women and the services that support them. This led to a decrease in infant and maternal mortality and morbidity.
  • Support funding for permanently affordable housing for single-parent led households. Housing is a fast way to help families recover. While single-parent led households could be male-led, statistically they are more likely to be female-led. Building in affordability also addresses income disparities that exist for women.

What Funders Are Doing

All Hands Volunteers received $100,000 to rebuild earthquake-devastated schools with a total enrollment of 1,667 students in Nepal’s Nuwakot District, where nearly 90 percent of the schools were destroyed. (As noted in the Issue Insight on Education, disasters have a significant impact on education, especially for girls.)

Plan International USA received $219,690 to fund its Fighting Against Child Trafficking in Emergencies (FACTE) Project in Nepal.

Shakti Samuha received $61,264 to reduce vulnerability to human trafficking and other kinds of violence by providing income-generation skills and educational support for women and children in the districts of Sindupalchowk, Ramechhap and Sindhuli.

Direct Relief worked to ensure safe newborn deliveries in the Philippines by equipping midwives with essential supplies to ensure safe births among typhoon-affected populations, including distributing midwife kits to 100 trained and skilled midwives working in local health centers throughout remote regions in the Philippines.

Mercy in Action rebuilt a birthing center in Tanauan that was devastated by the typhoon to help bring a trusted birth center, run by licensed Filipina midwives, back to the community.

Save the Children used its CDP Typhoon Haiyan funds to improve access to clean birthing supplies and materials in typhoon-affected communities and communities at risk of such disasters. The organization sourced and distributed Birthing Essentials and Care of Newborns (BEACON) boxes to prevent excess maternal and infant morbidity and mortality.

  • In 2018, C&A Foundation gave CARE USA in Bangladesh a $572,774 grant to protect refugee women and girls from gender-based violence and build their resilience.
  • The GiveWell Community Foundation Inc. gave a $7,449 grant in 2018 to the Women’s Resource Center of Florida (WRC) for Hurricane Irma relief. WRC works to assist low income women and their families in setting and accomplishing short- and long-term goals to help them become self-sufficient.
  • Tory Burch Foundation gave a $50,000 grant in 2017 to PeopleFund to help 44 women entrepreneurs who were affected by Hurricane Harvey.
  • In 2016, following flooding in the Baton Rouge area, Foundation for Louisiana, provided $40,000 in funding to Sexual Trauma Awareness and Response (STAR) to support the hiring of an additional housing worker to help reduce the increased case load they were seeing post-disaster. As a result, STAR was able to eliminate its waitlist within a few months.
  • Oak Foundation gave MADRE an $800,000 grant in 2016 to provide financial and capacity-building support to the Organization of Women’s Freedom in Iraq. This helped MADRE provide immediate support to women and girls fleeing gender-based violence in Iraq and advocate for their rights. MADRE partners with grassroots women on the frontlines of war and disaster.
  • The Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal gave an $11,187 grant to Women’s Health Goulburn North East to engage with partner groups to co-design a ‘train the trainer’ program to deliver Gender in Disaster education within participant and other community organizations.

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Disaster Leadership Team

The worst disasters often strike places that have not dealt with them before. When community leaders suddenly find themselves having to deal with the aftermath of a disaster, it can be hard to know who to turn to for guidance and advice.

Thankfully, the Disaster Leadership Team (DLT) is there to support those who may be dealing with their first major emergency.

Photo credit: Carlene Anders, Disaster Leadership Team

Building and nurturing long-term recovery groups

Founded in 2016, DLT strives to speed up a community’s recovery from a natural disaster by providing direct mentorship for local community leaders. After a disaster, the DLT deploys a couple of their volunteers to work with local leaders, followed by a second deployment a few weeks later. In between deployments, and for as long as needed afterward, DLT volunteers stay in regular contact through phone calls.

DLT’s team of volunteers assists existing, new or developing long-term recovery groups (LTRGs) by providing information, guidance, mentorship, support and connections to resources. Each team member has experienced a disaster and helped lead recovery in their own community.

Building local disaster response and recovery leaders

DLT works to support local leaders as they create an LTRG. These groups are intended to help guide communities in making informed and considered decisions about priorities during recovery and how to fund the recovery of the community. To date, DLT has supported the establishment of 23 long-term recovery groups.

The success of DLT’s approach is evident in the transformation of mentees into mentors. Their volunteers are often invited to return for significant celebrations or commemorations of the disaster.

Donors play a vital role in ensuring that DLT has the resources to do its work. “Grants allow us to get in and build relationships and trust that provide the basis for long-term community-centered and community-focused support,” said DLT Executive Director Carlene Anders, “CDP [Center for Disaster Philanthropy] has been an integral part of allowing people to do what they need to do to recover.”

Photo credit: Carlene Anders, Disaster Leadership Team

Funding capacity and space for shared learning

In 2018, CDP provided a $50,000 grant to support DLT’s work in Texas after Hurricane Harvey. This allowed DLT to support communities through in-person meetings, video conference calls, PowerPoint presentations and webinars. Webinar subjects included long-term recovery formation, rebuilds, post-disaster policies and enabling LTRGs to remain sustainable and to respond to future disasters.

A portion of this grant was used to bring 16 LTRGs from across Texas to share information and advice with each other from their experiences.

In 2019, CDP provided DLT a second grant, this one for $20,000, to support their work after Hurricane Michael in Florida. With this grant, DLT convened a two-day event that brought together LTRGs in Florida in a similar manner as they did in Texas.

This event focused on sharing information and encouragement for both existing LTRGs and those that were in the process of forming after Hurricane Michael.

By providing advice and encouragement to people in the places where they are, DLT can support local capacity building and create a network of experienced LTRG recovery leaders. Many of the DLT’s existing mentors were once mentees who now share their hard-earned experience with leaders who are new to disasters and recovery. CDP’s support has allowed the DLT to reach more LTRGs by bringing them together for shared learning.

Lodgepole Complex Fires – Central Montana Foundation

When four fires in Montana merged to become the Lodgepole Complex in 2017, they burned close to 300,000 acres of dry, drought-stricken agricultural land, mainly in Garfield County. As the fires burned, the Garfield County Fire Foundation – part of the Central Montana Foundation – acted quickly to help those affected.

Montana community members share their wildfire recovery experiences. They discussed the challenges they personally faced and those faced by their communities as they continue to recover from the 2017 wildfire season. (Source: Montana Community Foundation)

Much of the foundation comprises first responders, enabling easy conversation and familiarity among the leadership team. Christine Weder, the Garfield County’s disaster recovery coordinator, says, “One day you’re fighting a fire and the next day you’re all sitting in a board meeting together.”

The Garfield County Fire Foundation (GCFF) received an $87,500 grant from the Center for Disaster Philanthropy’s (CDP) Midwest Early Recovery Fund to support community recovery from the Lodgepole Complex fires. The donation, made through the Central Montana Foundation, allowed GCFF to hire Weder as a disaster coordinator to lead the recovery. Under her guidance and with the support of CDP’s grant, the GCFF has provided mental health seminars for fire survivors and implemented a fire safety program to help teens and young adults better understand the risks associated with wildfires. They also began “Sheep on Weeds,” a mitigation program that uses sheep grazing to control weeds and other fuel sources.

Dogs protect sheep from predators on Kelly Witt’s ranch. Witt retained the herd on his ranch as part of Project Sheep on Weeds. (Source: Kelly Witt, Sand Springs, Montana)

GCFF sent funding applications directly to people who were affected by the Lodgepole Complex. Review and approval of assistance were carried out with strict anonymity to protect people receiving support from undue scrutiny and publicity. “No one needs to know,” said Weder. In some situations where ranchers did not want to accept help, the foundation estimated their needs and sent those ranchers a check even if they did not submit applications.

With the support of CDP’s Midwest Early Recovery Fund, the GCFF was able to expand its reach by having a dedicated recovery coordinator who could direct the daily work of the foundation. This position has allowed them to do more awareness-raising and information-sharing than they would have without a full-time employee. As a result, they are better prepared for the next time wildfires race across the plains.

2019 Spring Flooding – Heartland United Way

In spring 2019, heavy rains and melting snow combined to send water rushing over riverbanks and across the fields of Nebraska. The Heartland United Way found itself in the middle of the storm, with two of the communities in their region almost completely submerged. As they began to assess the people’s needs across their area, the organization turned to the Center for Disaster Philanthropy’s (CDP) Midwest Early Recovery Fund (ERF).

Photo courtesy of Heartland United Way

With CDP’s support, they hired a coordinator and two case managers to help people navigate the road to recovery. The $185,000 grant from ERF allowed this team to reach almost 200 people with case management support.

Disaster case management (DCM) can be a complex effort that involves assessing the needs of individuals or families and working to connect them with the necessary resources to meet those needs. Sometimes this can be a simple phone call to another agency. It can also be a highly complex and challenging project that involves coordinating multiple services and programs to get people and families back on their feet.

One of the most challenging cases for the Heartland United Way involved a single parent whose house was severely damaged by the storm. The foundation wall collapsed and allowed floodwaters into the basement, destroying all in its path, including the furnace and water heater. Because of mitigating circumstances, the family was unable to qualify for FEMA support and was left with no place to live.

Photo courtesy of Heartland United Way

Heartland United Way’s case managers successfully navigated the challenges brought on by the flooding and COVID-19 to secure a place for the family to live. The coordination of the contractors along with sweat equity from the homeowner helped to overcome the hurdles and get this family back into their home.

When the coronavirus pandemic struck, a planned volunteer blitz to rebuild their house had to be canceled. Still, the parent took the initiative and invested as much time as possible to rebuild their home.

“It was roadblock after roadblock, but we were able to get them back into their house this summer. That one feels like a success. These unique and challenging cases that have taken so long. We have been able to help manage to the point where the homeowner is so happy with where they are now,” recounted Elizabeth Troyer-Miller, Heartland Disaster Outreach Coordinator

Thanks to the work of the Heartland United Way, with the support of CDP’s Midwest Early Recovery Fund and the case managers the grant supported, this family returned to a rebuilt home with some family-centered upgrades in the summer of 2020. DCM provided by the Heartland United Way ensured that this family successfully navigated the challenges of rebuilding after a disaster without access to traditional supports like insurance or FEMA funding. After more than a year, this family is home again.

COVID-19 – Culture Aid

Culture Aid NOLA received a $90,000  grant from the Center for Disaster Philanthropy (CDP) to provide no-barrier, free food distribution and information dissemination to New Orleans residents most affected by COVID-19 and most at risk of economic collapse from widespread job loss and lack of public or private safety nets.

A masked volunteer loads a box of free groceries into the trunk of a car in New Orleans. (Photo courtesy of Culture Aid NOLA)

Executive Director Erica Chomsky-Adelson is a 12+ year disaster response veteran. When COVID-19 led to closures in New Orleans on March 13th, she was working as a program coordinator at Tulane University. She immediately knew that there was going to be a high need for food. She says, “I got on the phone with friends and said ‘What are we going to do? We know we’re going to go do something?’” The answer was “feed people.”

Building on her extensive network and relationships with nonprofits and other service providers, Chomsky-Adelson got to work. As restaurants began shutting down and cleaning out their kitchens, she and her friends took that food. She recalls, “We went to Liberty’s Kitchen [a nonprofit kitchen that trains at-risk youth] and cooked 500 meals. We were not prepared. I remember turning people away the first night and feeling very nauseous. That’s when we knew we couldn’t fail. The next week it was 750 meals.”

As connections grew, so did the volume. By the third week, they were serving 5,000 meals. The demand kept growing, so they transitioned to providing groceries instead of prepared meals, allowing people to prepare food tailored to their tastes and needs. As logistical operations expanded, Chomsky-Adelson formed Culture Aid NOLA, a coalition of several organizations including the New Orleans Musicians Clinic, Music and Culture Coalition of New Orleans, New Orleans Food Policy Advisory Committee, Second Harvest Food Bank, Lowernine.org and Trinity Loaves and Fishes.

Many of the Culture Aid volunteers were hospitality workers and culture bearers. This led to the operationalization of Culture Aid as a hospitable, no-barrier, stigma-free environment. Chomsky-Adelson explains, “A lot of times when you try to access any kind of resource, you have to provide ID, proof of income, copy of a lease, copy of a utility bill, but we know that’s not the best way to reach people.”

“People who are undocumented, people who don’t have those documents and particularly during coronavirus, people who are ashamed, don’t want to put themselves into the position of proving to a stranger that they have need.”

Culture Aid has two main modes to manage its massive food distribution program. From March 13 to Dec. 31, 2020 alone, Culture Aid NOLA served 95,000 people distributing 500,000 pounds of food. It partnered with community organizations and organizers at a very hyper-local level such as neighborhoods, community groups, Social Aid and Pleasure Clubs and Mardi Gras Krewes by providing grocery boxes they can deliver directly to their members.

“The one lesson we have not yet learned in disaster response is that there are existing and highly resilient support networks already in communities. We have a tendency to say ‘everything is broken right now’ after a disaster and we tend to view a community as a blank slate. But in marginalized communities, there are hundreds of support groups,” said Chomsky-Adelson. “We work with local community partners to enable them to support their own communities. For example, we work with a long-time community leader, super important to her community and leader of a well-known Social Aid and Pleasure Club. She is often overlooked because they don’t have the formal networks, formalized relationships, 501c3 status etc. We’re able to go in and say ‘you know your people, you know what they need, you know where they live, here is some food, go and take care of them.’”

The second method is weekly distributions in hard-hit neighborhoods. As cars arrive on site, they are greeted warmly by bilingual volunteers who say something like, “Hello, thank you for coming tonight. Are you here for your groceries? We have some lovely cabbages and carrots tonight. Can I interest you in a fresh mask?” During the food distribution, Culture Aid also pays local DJs and musicians to play. This employs musicians, brings joy to people in line and provides a soundtrack for the hard-working volunteers.

A volunteer bags groceries and meals for hungry families in New Orleans. (Photo courtesy of Culture Aid NOLA)

Chomsky-Adelson says that the atmosphere contributes to the comfort level of those picking up their groceries. “The only question we ask on site is ‘How many people are you trying to feed?’ There is no paperwork. We are setting the expectation that people are deserving of and welcome to the food. There is no stigma. There’s a lot of shame around the inability to feed your family. We try to show people hospitality, dignity, grace. In fact, we have a banned words list – ‘need, food bank, desperate’ etc.”

CDP’s grant provided significant capacity-building support for Culture Aid. Chomsky-Adelson was still working at Tulane and running Culture Aid (she left in October to focus on continuing to expand the organization), but the funding enabled the organization to hire a few part-time staff members to help manage activities. The timing of the grant coincided with the pending expiration of a crucial USDA waiver. She says, “We spent a significant portion of CDP grant on local food from local suppliers and managed to place a standing order with Sprout, a local farmers’ collective. The grant came at a make it or break it point for us. It kept the operation moving.”

She added, “Having the support of a trusted funder like CDP let us leverage that grant to attract other funders. It gave us a solid foundation to build a long-term commitment to the community and a promise that we wouldn’t leave people behind. The understanding from CDP of the importance of general operational support was crucial. It was overnight capacity building for us and our partners.”

COVID-19 – National Domestic Workers Alliance 

National Domestic Workers Alliance (NDWA) received a $125,000 grant from the Center for Disaster Philanthropy (CDP) to help stand up a $30 million direct cash assistance fund for domestic workers  in critical need and to support those workers with information, other resources and personal protective equipment so they can continue to work safely. Additionally, funds allowed NDWA to advocate on workers’ behalf for local, state and federal policy changes to improve their work conditions and allow them access to available support resources.

NDWA We Dream in Black members in North Carolina urge Senators Burr and Tillis to pass the HEROES act to provide essential domestic workers with access to PPE and other support. (Photo courtesy of Gina Esquivel, NDWA)

Founded in 2007, NDWA works “for respect, recognition and inclusion in labor protections” with and on behalf of the more than 2.5 million domestic workers in the U.S.”

Domestic workers are nannies, housekeepers and home care workers who work with the elderly or people with disabilities to help them live more independently. The majority are women of color — Black, Latina, Asian and Indigenous. Almost all are women, some are undocumented. They are paid low wages, have little to no benefits and there is little to no pathway for enforcement of their rights, given their intentional exclusion from federal labor laws protecting workers. Discrimination is ever-present, as is potential wage theft. Because their workplaces are private homes, these jobs can easily conceal abuse, especially for those in live-in situations. Domestic workers are in urban cities and rural places across the country in all kinds of households.

They are also usually one paycheck away from a crisis, so COVID-19 has become a life-or-death situation for many on the frontlines of the industry. Jennifer Dillon, Communications Director for NDWA, said:

“They care for people. Care doesn’t take a day off.”

“As COVID started to get more socialized in the U.S., everything that was happening across the country was multiplied for domestic workers, both in their job(s) and their household overall. As things were shutting down, they had to make a choice if they would go to their clients’ houses or not get paid.”

For many domestic workers, not getting paid means they cannot afford groceries or pay their rent. There is no social safety net for domestic workers and many were ineligible for the financial assistance provided by the government because of their documentation status.

Domestic workers are often undervalued, in part because the majority are women of color and immigrant women. They have been historically left behind through economic policies, according to Dillon. NDWA, she says, “works to be able to improve conditions of domestic workers but also to build power for domestic workers through connecting them, educating them and organizing them.”

Kaylyn Kvochak, NDWA’s Deputy Development Director, said, “Our bread and butter is the organizing piece. We strive to be led in everything we do by the workforce—in our policy advocacy, culture and narrative change and in our product and innovations strategies. We look at how to build power for domestic workers and for women of color more broadly.”

Dillon added, “The reason that we have multiple strands of work that we do is because we’re trying to change the care sector but also the lives of immigrant women and women of color. We have to have layers of strategies that are interconnected to make major wins for their lives.”

Kvochak explained that situations varied for domestic workers when the lockdowns started and as the pandemic continued. During the initial lockdowns, some home care workers continued to work because their clients were vulnerable and depended upon them. But they had to try to figure out how to shoulder the additional burden. For example, some employers asked care givers to take private transportation, which put pressure on already tight household budgets.  Many workers had their own kids out of school, which meant they needed to secure child care.

NDWA members working on a mural in Atlanta. (Photo courtesy NDWA)

“Nannies and housekeepers saw their incomes evaporate overnight as we were asked to limit exposure to people outside of the home,” Kvochak said. “We saw people talking about food and housing insecurity. This could have been predicted but now the value of care and the precarity of care work came into sharp relief into ways that they hadn’t been thought about before. All of a sudden, everyone had care issues and were thinking about the ramifications of what that meant. We asked ourselves, ‘how do we help our workforce navigate the immediate crisis but also use the moment to accelerate the conversation around expanding the safety net to protect all workers.’”

A weekly Spanish-language survey was conducted, each one drawing a sample of domestic workers from NDWA’s digital network of over 230,000 workers, allowing NDWA to track the changing needs of workers throughout the pandemic and providing complementary economic data for workers who are often underrepresented in more formal indicators. These internal surveys showed that more than 70% of domestic workers experienced a significant loss of income in the early months of the pandemic.

Kvochak noted that CDP’s grant, which NDWA received in the early stages of the pandemic, helped them leverage different strategies and respond in real time. For example, the grant helped fund an intense communications and narrative campaign to get domestic workers’ stories front and center in the news media. They also used the funding to distribute PPE to keep their workforce safe. They created resources such as COVID-19-ready training for home care workers to keep themselves and their clients as safe as possible. And it helped support the extra support staffing needed to distribute over $30 million raised for cash assistance to impacted workers, which NDWA did through Alia, its existing benefits platform, designed specifically for the needs of the domestic workforce.

The policy work CDP funded was also critical.

“Response is usually charitable, but it doesn’t look at the needs further along or the inequities that created the conditions,” said Dillon.

“We wanted to explore how do we create something different – not just address the short-term piece. CDP’s funding allowed us to fund immediate needs and long-term policy advocacy.”

COVID-19 – HIAS

HIAS received a $200,000 grant from the Center for Disaster Philanthropy (CDP) to mitigate COVID-19 related risks among women, girls, LGBTQ and other marginalized groups to ensure gender-based violence (GBV) survivors can access response services. The grant will also help service providers’ preparedness to support survivors in future waves of the pandemic.

Photo of staff from HIAS’ gender-based violence (GBV) team in Lima, Peru, commemorating the 16 Days of Activism Against GBV. (Photo courtesy of HIAS)

HIAS began in 1881 as the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society to assist Jews fleeing pogroms in Russia and Eastern Europe find refuge in the U.S. The organization describes its history in this way, “Because we have helped more than 4.5 million people escape persecution, HIAS is uniquely qualified to address the modern refugee situation, which has mushroomed into a global humanitarian crisis. We understand better than anyone that hatred, bigotry, and xenophobia must be expressly prohibited in domestic and international law and that the right of persecuted people to seek and enjoy refugee status must be maintained. And because the right to refuge is a universal human right, HIAS is now dedicated to providing welcome, safety, and freedom to refugees of all faiths and ethnicities from all over the world.”

HIAS’ work has since expanded to people from other countries, religions and backgrounds. Jessica Reese, HIAS’ Associate Vice President, Strategy and Development, said, “We began to take our resettlement and integration expertise that we had with the Jewish population and apply it to other populations. Today, the majority of the people we serve are not Jewish. In the early 2000s, we expanded to Kenya and Ecuador as our first international offices. We saw the need to serve people as they navigated the resettlement process and build safe communities for refugees in the countries of first refuge where the majority now remain indefinitely.”

HIAS now supports refugees and asylum seekers in 16 countries globally and across 20 American cities, including along the southern U.S. border. They are one of only a handful of international organizations working in Venezuela. Their work includes international and domestic policy advocacy, humanitarian assistance, and domestic legal support and resettlement. HIAS’ international programs are based in four areas of work: legal assistance, livelihoods, psychosocial support and prevention and response to gender-based violence (GBV).

Heid Lehmann works for HIAS as the Senior Director, Technical Excellence. She said, “We are always aware of how underlying gender inequality is going to be impacted by a crisis. In the situation of COVID-19 we saw right away that it was exacerbating different kinds of violence, and so we focused on getting support to survivors. Because of our multidisciplinary programming, we are able to meet a variety of survivor needs.”

Open street event sponsored by HIAS where women write messages of hope, resilience, and empowerment, as part of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence. (Photo courtesy of HIAS)

CDP’s grant provided support for HIAS’ work in Costa Rica and Peru. In both countries, many of the women that HIAS serves work in the informal economy.  Women and girls suffered more than men and boys from the economic impact of the pandemic’s lockdowns. The responses in each country were shaped to meet the specific needs presented by women and girls.

In Costa Rica, HIAS noted 11 cases of femicide in 2020 and 4,302 cases entered in Domestic Violence Courts in 2020. HIAS worked hand-in-hand with domestic violence survivors to help them leave their abusive relationships. This included the provision of legal information, assistance in obtaining basic ID and overall survivor accompaniment. Lehman said, “We helped them get everything they need, walking with them every step of the way.”

In Northern Costa Rica they deployed a specialized staff member with training on GBV to get information to survivors who were coming into the country from Nicaragua as quickly as possible. Lehman said:

“We recognized how many women had experienced violence on the way to Costa Rica. Besides homes, borders are one of the most dangerous places for women and girls.

In Peru, knowing that there was limited mobility because of lockdowns, HIAS used mobile protection units to get as close to the survivors as possible. They would go out into the communities and explain, “We can help you get from service point A to service point B,” Lehman said. “We provided a lot of help and counseling. But the reality is that a lot of survivors cannot leave. So, we provided counseling and safety planning to keep them safe, even in the homes where violence was happening. Because of CDP’s funding, alternative and safe short-term shelter became an option.”

Lehman explained that they also recognized early on the likelihood of a disproportionate impact on adolescent girls, so they established funding to run programs specifically for them. This funding enabled small peer groups among the young women where they could provide support to each other.  She added, “In those groups, we would have semi-structured discussions about relationships and around risks, particularly [related] to trafficking, child early marriage and forced unions. Our goal was to try to reduce their risks of these issues. When it’s all said and done, and COVID is in the review mirror, we will be shocked by the amount of trafficking that went on. In Peru especially, our program was really part of addressing the impact this was having on adolescent girls.”

“Girls are seen as disposable and can be a source of revenue for a family.”

Both Reese and Lehman pointed out that CDP’s flexibility in allowing HIAS to identify the needs, the funding gaps and the best solutions based on the individual countries and their experience was critical to their success. And as one of the first funders to make significant grants, CDP’s support helped increase awareness of gender-based violence among other donors. Reese said, “We raised $3.4 million in direct COVID funding from individuals, private foundations etc. CDP’s name carries a lot of weight and it allowed us to not just to leverage funds, but it also encouraged donors to take the pandemic seriously.”

She added, “Between Heidi and I, we have been doing this for decades. This is a crisis like no other. We have humanitarian workers who are burned out and yet are still providing services. We have responded for months, but the acute crisis isn’t over. People who were vulnerable at the start of COVID and now even more vulnerable; the needs are just as urgent today.”

The Camp Fire – North Valley Community Foundation

The Camp Fire was the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California history – and it did nearly all of that damage in a single day. It started just before 7 a.m. on Nov. 8, in a place with no homes nearby, located in the middle of nowhere. Driven by winds, including those created by the fire, it spread at the rate of a football field every second. The fire killed at least 85 people and displaced roughly 54,000 people from their homes. It took 17 days to control the fire.

Damage from the Camp Fire in Paradise, California. Photo: Brennan Banks, CDP

Paradise, a small town in Butte County located about 85 miles north of Sacramento, ordered all 26,000 people to evacuate with just a moment’s notice. Some people never received the orders. Cell towers and phone systems failed. Power was out in a lot of places, too. By early afternoon, the fire had incinerated 14,000 homes, most of the town of Paradise and significant chunks of the foothill communities of Magalia, Concow and Butte Creek Canyon.

The Camp Fire was the most destructive and deadliest fire in California history. It was also the world’s most expensive natural disaster in 2018 based on insured losses.

Officials estimate that the fire caused approximately $16.5 billion in damages, 25% of which was uninsured properties. Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) accepted blame for the faulty transmission line and, after filing for bankruptcy, made a $13.5 billion settlement to those affected by the Camp Fire and other wildfires. The utility company pled guilty to 84 counts of involuntary manslaughter on June 16, 2020.

Supporting Relief and Recovery

The Center for Disaster Philanthropy (CDP) contributed a $500,000 grant to the North Valley Community Foundation (NVCF) after the Camp Fire to provide staff support, training, counseling services and capacity building across Butte County schools.

In the early days of the fire, CDP also provided advice and support to NVCF to help them prepare for what was ahead.

Nearly two years later, in September 2020, CDP spoke with NVCF’s David Little, executive vice president of programs and communications, and Kim DuFour, program officer. DuFour said, “CDP’s advice made a huge difference with organizations such as ours and other funders who said don’t spend all your money right away. Our hearts were so broken, it was hard not to give it all away. We’re in it for the long haul.”

NVCF has awarded more than $35 million in grants since the Camp Fire through the Butte Strong Fund, Camp Fire Relief Fund and donor-designated funds. The Butte Strong Fund, which was a partnership between NVCF, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. and the Aaron Rodgers NorCal Fire Recovery Fund, was set up to work alongside communities for years after the fire.

Better Prepared

In the summer of 2020, the North Complex Fire affected the same communities. NVCF was better prepared. Little said, “Unfortunately, we have gotten so much better at this than we were. We used to have seven part-time employees, now we have 21 people. We’re more efficient and we have relationships in the community. When the fire hit [in 2020] we were on the phone immediately. We got $40,000 in grants out on the same day to six organizations. Same thing with coronavirus – $1 million in grants. We couldn’t have done this with seven part-time staff two years ago.”

He added, “We know who the players are now because we’re still talking to them. When the Camp Fire hit and we were such a large disaster, we didn’t have one organization in our community that specifically responded to disasters. Now, there are 10 different nonprofit organizations that make up the core of case management and donations management. We just had 50 AmeriCorps Case Managers sworn in during August 2020.”

The Long Road Ahead

Little and DuFour said the biggest overriding concern they have had in the two years since the Camp Fire is housing. Little explains:

“You just don’t replace that housing overnight. While 320 homes [of the 14,000 that burned] have been rebuilt and occupied, the task remains monumental.”

Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic is making relief and recovery even harder. In September 2020, 2,000 more structures – including several hundred homes – had burned from the North Complex Fire, exacerbating delays in recovery efforts. COVID-19 meant no congregate living, including shelters, but the area was also out of hotel rooms. People were sleeping on the grass in fairgrounds or parking lots and trying to get a travel trailer to have a place to go.

Post-Camp Fire, Chico – the biggest town in Butte county – went from 100,000 to 120,000 residents. In fact, every town in Butte gained residents in a county of just 220,000. Every county in the area gained residents. Just about every state is represented in the Camp Fire diaspora. DuFour said, “A lot of people just had to go to where they had family and where they could get to.”

Before the fire, a high percentage of people lived precariously in Paradise and the surrounding communities. Caregivers often lived in a room in the home of the people they served. Many others had permission to place a trailer on someone’s property. DuFour explained, “When FEMA asked for their ‘pre-disaster address,’ they didn’t have one. They couldn’t produce a bill with their name on it. That’s the population that is really struggling.”

Little and DuFour stated that the homes previously located in the Camp Fire’s burn scar area were primarily affordable and low-income housing. It was relatively inexpensive to rent an apartment. There was a lot of multi-generational housing with families living together or grandparents raising grandkids. Paradise also had 37 mobile home parks, some over 200 units in one park, representing nearly 1,700 of Paradise’s housing stock. Many people did not have insurance because they owned the home free and clear, which meant they received very little or nothing to replace their homes.

The local unmet needs committee, Little and DuFour explained, sees cases from people that received some money from FEMA, but the relief money is gone. They may have bought a car or a trailer or paid off their mortgages.

Two years after the Camp Fire, RVs are still home to many residents in Paradise, California. (Photo: Melanie Davis-Jones)

They had to survive for more than a year before they could even think about rebuilding on their lot as clean-up was taking place. Little elaborated, “Paradise is the biggest city in California that’s not [connected to a municipal sewer system]. Everyone was on septic and many of those plastic septic systems melted.” On top of that, burnt cars, trucks, the rubble of homes and contents, trees and other debris had to be removed. The toxic soil needed to be trucked out of the community.

Paradise was also a retirement community. Many people took their insurance money and left; some moved in with their children. However, a lot of people did not have these options. As a result, many are living in RVs on their lot that burned. The town has issued a deadline of Dec. 31 for people to be in a more permanent housing situation.

Helping Rebuild Stronger Communities

NVCF tried to be strategic with how they approached housing and other issues. Although it provided a lot of direct assistance, it also wanted to create permanent changes. It partnered with Samaritan’s Purse on Welcome Home, an initiative that allows families to own a home mortgage-free. CDP, American Red Cross and Wells Fargo also supported this project.

Susan Van Horn holds up “PAID IN FULL” sign for her new home during an NVCF Welcome Home event. (Credit: Patrice Berry, NVCF)

The grant from CDP allowed them to hire school-based counselors in conjunction with the Butte County Office of Education to support trauma response and recovery. In their mid-term report in March 2020, they noted:

“Suicide and suicidal ideation became much more of a concern starting in late Fall, then growing over the next several months. It started in Paradise initially, but then appeared in four other districts in the county. … The continuing magnitude of the recovery is both daunting and hopeful. Because of the initial terror and trauma experienced by so many, followed by the continuing sense of loss and uncertainty about the future, we gain new insights into needs every week. For example, the Paradise Unified School District is reporting more than double the typical suspensions and expulsions due to increased issues with substance, vaping, and behavioral issues. School staffs have found the Employee Assistance Programs to be lacking in available resources for counseling.”

As CDP outlines in its new Mental Health, Grief and Bereavement toolkit, there’s a shortage of funding for long-term mental health, and it is one of the reasons that CDP supports mental health services.

Little and DuFour remain worried about the kids. There are 19 different counselors providing support for young people from the burn scar and in areas outside of it. The burn scar’s remote nature means children are spread out and parents have to drive them to school.

The Key Phoenix, created by local artist Jessie Mercer, is made of 18,000 keys donated by Paradise residents. The sculpture represents the community’s fierce determination to rise from the ashes. It has taken what was lost to affirm the promise of the Paradise’s future. (Photo: Melanie Davis-Jones)

COVID-19 also moved learning online, but the Bear Fire meant that 57 students no longer had a school to go back to. Although they were provided with hotspots and Chromebooks, DuFour and Little were unsure if all students were able to grab them during recent evacuations. School also was more than just a place of learning. It is where many students accessed meals and other services.

Little said, “It’s incredible how far we’ve come because of the Center for Disaster Philanthropy and other organizations who found us. People who stood up and said you need help. We thought people in our community would step up, but people stood up from across the country for this little community they’ve never heard of. For a little while, in one November, the world was looking at us. It’s still bad, but we’d be so much worse off without the outside help. Our community is so grateful.”