Early action, also known as anticipatory action or forecast-based action, means taking steps to protect people before a disaster strikes based on early warning or forecasts. 

The types of actions vary depending on the hazard and context. They can include everything from planned evacuations and reinforcing homes, to distributing health protection kits and setting up mobile cooling centres.

In the past 10 years, the humanitarian sector has been moving more and more towards taking anticipatory action before a disaster strikes, rather than simply responding when they do. 

The IFRC has been at the forefront of this change—scaling up anticipatory action in more countries, covering more people against more hazards, and working with a wider set of partners and funders. For instance, we have:

• Helped many National Societies to develop early action plans for climate-related hazards
• Developed community early warning systems, ensuring National Societies can communicate early warning messages effectively and quickly to at-risk communities
• Worked with local authorities, meteorological agencies, public health officials and others to develop early warning and early action systems, with a particular focus on heat (the most neglected and most rapidly rising climate hazard)

Throughout all this work, we help National Societies consider the specific risk factors and needs of the most vulnerable groups in their local communities.

For more information, read our technical explainer.

You can also visit our early action page and the Anticipation Hub - our anticipatory action platform hosted by the German Red Cross.

Social protection systems can be an effective and sustainable way of reducing the impacts of climate risks on vulnerable households. They are capable of supporting larger amounts of people than humanitarian interventions alone and can help people build their resilience beyond short-term coping strategies.

When designed well, they can also effectively anticipate, respond and adapt to climate shocks and stresses.

Our work in shock-responsive social protection will include:

• Filling gaps in national coverage by providing humanitarian cash and voucher assistance, focussing on marginalized and vulnerable groups who may otherwise miss out. IFRC network teams will help identify, pre-register, verify and conduct needs assessments with vulnerable households prone to climate risks.
• Providing technical assistance to governments so they can better deliver cash transfers as an early action. This will include providing assistance on market analysis, information management, registration, payment systems and monitoring—areas the IFRC has expertise in from running large-scale cash programmes such as the Emergency Social Safety Net.
• Improving early warning systems, connecting them with community preparedness initiatives, and increasing the use of forecast information in social protection systems.
• Promoting coordination between different in-country agencies which may not otherwise interact

Underpinning all this work is a commitment to community engagement and accountability (CEA) and participatory approaches so social protection programmes respond to the needs that communities themselves identify.

For more information, read our technical explainer.

Nature-based solutions are actions that protect, sustainably manage or restore an ecosystem in order to address societal challenges—such as disaster risk, climate change, food security, water security or human health.

IFRC network teams have been implementing nature-based solutions for many years, such as:

• Restoring mangroves along coastlines to act as a natural protective barrier against storm surges
• Helping communities engage in sustainable agriculture and water conservation
• Setting up soil and landscape restoration projects to regulate the flow of rainwater, in turn preventing flooding and helping increase crop yields

Funding generated by the Platform will support National Societies to improve and increase their work in nature-based solutions and help communities reduce their climate-related disaster risks.

We will also work with local and national authorities to help them integrate nature-based solutions into their disaster risk management and climate change plans, policies and regulations.

For more information, read our technical explainer.