The presentation focuses on the importance of investing in human capital in building and strengthening community resilience against disasters. It is evident that poor health and education impact longer term employment opportunities and income prospects for young people entering into job market. Lower income and/or employment opportunities thus in turn affect the capacity of individuals, families and communities as a whole to respond effectively and efficiently to shocks, stress and disasters. That’s why it becomes crucial to invest for building human capital which in the longer run helps strengthening resilience and coping capacity. The presentation targets to build awareness and sensitization among the stakeholders involved in community resilience and disaster risk reduction.

1. Human Capital and
Disaster Resilience
Role of investment in human
capital in reducing disaster risk,
increasing resilience and
enhancing coping capacity

2. Introduction of digital artifact
• The artifact focuses on the importance of investing in human
capital in building and strengthening community resilience
against disasters. It is evident that poor health and education
impact longer term employment opportunities and income
prospects for young people entering into job market. Lower
income and/or employment opportunities thus in turn affect
the capacity of individuals, families and communities as a
whole to respond effectively and efficiently to shocks, stress
and disasters. That’s why it becomes crucial to invest for
building human capital which in the longer run helps
strengthening resilience and coping capacity.
• The artifact targets to build awareness and sensitization
among the stakeholders involved in community resilience and
disaster risk reduction.

3. What is Resilience
• Resilience is the ability of women and
men to realize their rights and
improve their well-being despite
shocks, stresses and uncertainty.
(definition by Oxfam, an
international charity organization).
• Oxfam’s definition of resilience is not
only about coping or ‘bouncing back’
from disasters, it is about going
beyond preparedness and risk
reduction (although these are
important) and ensuring that poor
and marginalised people can realize
their rights and improve their well-
being despite a range of shocks,
stresses, and uncertainty.
Without learning new
ways – changing
attitudes, values and
behaviours – people
cannot make the
adaptive leap
necessary to thrive in
new environments.
Ronald A. Heifetz and
Marty Linsky

4. • the ability of a substance or object to spring back
into shape; elasticity.
• the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties;
toughness.
Resilience

5. Resilient development: a short video
https://youtu.be/o0kketD-vWA
Access to quality healthcare
and education are crucial to
break the cycle of poverty
and to build a stronger
human capital so that
children can reach their full
potential.
There is a high need to build
climate resilience in the face
of the growing threat of
natural hazards by
strengthening early warning
systems and disaster
preparedness in high climate
risk areas.

6. Investment in Human Capital =
Resilience
Resilience is seen as outcomes in the following three
components:
1. Absorptive capacity is the capacity to take intentional
protective action to cope with known shocks and stresses.
It is necessary because shocks and stresses will continue
to happen, for example due to extreme weather events,
protracted conflict and natural disasters.
2. Adaptive capacity is the capacity to make intentional
incremental adjustments in anticipation of or in response
to change, in ways that create more flexibility in the
future. It is necessary because change is ongoing and
uncertain, and because intentional transformation takes
time and sustained engagement.
3. Transformative capacity is the capacity to make
intentional change to stop or reduce the drivers of risk,
vulnerability and inequality, and ensure the more
equitable sharing of risk so it is not unfairly borne by poor
and vulnerable people. It is necessary because resilience
is not about surviving in unjust contexts or adapting to
whatever is coming. Resilience is about justice and
inclusive development.

7. The six social change processes
There are six closely connected social change processes that together develop
absorptive, adaptive and transformative capacities. Our role, in partnership with
others, is to enhance these processes through all our programmes. The processes
are:
1. Gender justice and empowerment: processes for promoting gender
justice and enhancing voice, empowerment and participation, including
processes of conflict resolution
2. Securing and enhancing livelihoods: processes for securing and
building human, social, natural, physical and financial capital and
household assets, based on the sustainable livelihoods framework
3. Informing: processes that develop information and knowledge to support
decision making and action
4. Flexible and forward-looking planning: processes that enable and
enhance collective, forward-looking and flexible decision making
5. Accountable governing: processes that secure accountable and enabling
states and institutions
6. Learning: processes that enable people to learn together, support
experimentation and increase the potential for innovation (social and
technological)

8. Change in communities
There are several elements that together will lead to greater resilience of vulnerable people.
These include:
• building on existing capacities on resilience especially as a result of decades of DRR and
CCA work
• increased access to contingency resources and support, so that vulnerable people are better
protected against harm from disasters and shocks
• increasing income, food security and productive assets (e.g., making agriculture more
resilient to climate variability)
• supporting innovation (e.g., on new agricultural techniques, or using social media to gain
voice)
• facilitating greater access to information (e.g., weather forecasts, Early Warning Systems)
• supporting communities to have access to a sustainably managed natural resource base
underpins their
• livelihoods, helps them cope in times of stress and can play a protective function (e.g.,
mangroves)
• poor communities should be supported to better exercise their rights, including women’s
roles in decision-making, and use their talents and resources to build safer and thriving
communities for themselves.

9. Conclusion
There is a need to build resilience to disasters and
to tackle the climate shocks that exacerbate
them. There is critical importance of building
human capital, particularly given how
technological advances affect jobs, the financial
sector, and other aspects of development.
World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim