COMMITMENT TO THE ENVIRONMENT AND THE SURROUNDING WORLD

THE CLIMATE CRISIS EXACERBATES HUNGER BY DIRECTLY AFFECTING HEALTH AS WELL AS SOCIAL INEQUALITIES

So we at Action Against Hunger are committed to being at the forefront of the fight against hunger by moving forward and adopting a climate- and environment-friendly approach with a focus on gender inequality.

Our Environment and Climate Policy (2022-2025) outlines our commitments to address the climate crisis and environmental degradation, establishing core principles and a set of minimum standards to guide our interventions. It incorporates global and local perspectives that protect the environment and identify and mitigate environmental risks.

As part of our policy commitments, and in line with the fight not only against the consequences but also the causes of climate change, we have produced carbon footprint reports for 2019 and 2021. This report accounts for and reports the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions associated with Action Against Hunger activities, identifying the main sources of emissions and the quantities of GHGs emitted. The aim of these reports is to provide an overview of the current situation by showing the calculated baseline results, and to make us aware of the impact we have on the environment and to establish a specific action plan for improvement.

The carbon footprint is a count of greenhouse gases (GHG) that are released into the atmosphere as a result of human activity and that have humanitarian consequences, such as natural disasters, food insecurity, displacement. The carbon footprint is therefore the tool that allows us to measure and understand the direct impact of our activity on climate change and to establish measures to reduce it. The core mandate of our organisation is not to protect the environment and climate change, nor is it a direct and explicit objective to be achieved in our strategy. But it is a cross-cutting strategic objective to integrate the environment and the impact of climate change into all our programmes, with communities at the centre and with a way of working with our teams and stakeholders (public and private donors, local and international partners). If our operations have a negative impact on the environment, this could indirectly increase the vulnerability of populations and thus undermine the rationale for humanitarian action, and the resulting environmental damage can also undermine recovery and development activities. Those who suffer the most from climate change are often those who contribute the least. In line with our environmental policy, we understand that a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment is fundamental to the full realisation of a range of human rights, including the right to life, health, food, water and sanitation. Assessing the potential environmental impact of our operations will ensure that these rights are respected, and that even in worst-case scenarios we focus on critical issues while protecting resources. We therefore have a responsibility to preserve the environment wherever we intervene, in line with the principle of "do no harm", which means that all humanitarian action must reduce its negative impact on the environment. By behaving in an exemplary manner and implementing measures to mitigate the impact of our actions on the environment, we contribute to global efforts to combat environmental and climate crises and encourage other organisations to adopt environmentally friendly behaviour.

In addition, we have adhered to the Spanish Foundations Climate Pact, through which we recognise the urgency of dealing with the climate crisis, as well as to the Climate and Environment Charter for Humanitarian Organisations.