At HelpAge, we are calling for the voices of older people to be heard in the climate change debate. Voices of people like Daisy, below, who is 55 with six children and two grandchildren.

She grows crops and looks after chickens to earn a living and is very aware of the changing climate. She says: “Climate change is affecting food production, we don’t produce enough food.”

The camera may be shaky, but the evidence stands firm. Older people have views on climate change and want to be heard.  Watch the clip and listen to Daisy.

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The climate change conference in Copenhagen is coming to the end of its first week. 56 newspapers around the world have shown unprecedented solidarity by featuring a shared editorial on the climate change negotiations COP15.

“Fourteen days to seal history’s judgment on this generation”, as it is called in the Guardian, is a strong, unwavering call for real changes to be made to halt global warming by measurably reducing carbon emissions.

At HelpAge, we are looking at how climate change is affecting older people in developing countries now.

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Since stories of the current drought in Ethiopia and its impact have started filtering through in the media, comparisons have been made with the events that inspired Live Aid almost 25 years ago.

This time, however, the focus and apparent cause of increasing and longer droughts is climate change. This is particularly noticeable in the run up to the climate change conference in Copenhagen, as the development world is awash with climate change policy, campaigns and petitions.
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‘Age helps’ sums up HelpAge’s core position. We believe that older people are a benefit to society and a positive force for change.

Unfortunately, we find that most messages about older people in the media are extremely negative and focused on older people’s vulnerability – something that we are constantly challenging and trying to change.

I found a really interesting article in PlusNews this week, “ZAMBIA: Orphans grow up without cultural identity” which finally showed the need for older people’s experience in communities, and was a rare example of an ‘age helps’ message.

It highlighted the crucial and unique role that older people play as educators and mentors around the world and why it is so important for us to empower older people and fight for their rights.

Growing up without cultural identity

UNICEF’s latest report on Orphans and Vulnerable Children shows that there are 20,000 households in Zambia led by children, with the number increasing.
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With increased numbers of natural disasters happening, such as the current drought in East Africa and the recent succession of typhoons and earthquakes in South East Asia, it is easy to overlook the gradual but devastating effects of climate change on our planet’s weather patterns.

While not classified as a conventional emergency, freezing temperatures as low as -30C and extended winters which drag on for months in the Central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan are stretching its older people’s coping strategies to breaking point.

Constant Crisis

HelpAge conducted a study “Constant Crisis” on the vulnerability of older people in Kyrgyzstan and the results were shocking. Poverty increases in extreme conditions and this situation is no exception.

Many of the country’s already poor families fall into ultra-poverty during the winter months, due to restricted heating and energy sources, fluctuating fuel and food prices, as well as poor nutrition. The need for more heating due to the extreme cold, yet the decreased access to it due to cost, is just one of the many harmful and heartbreaking by-products of climate change.

Where older people are unable to heat their homes, they face a higher risk of ill health and many are forced to stay in bed, as it is the only way of keeping warm. Children are also affected, as many cannot go to school in the winter for lack of adequate shoes or clothing for the cold.
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For millions of people in South East Asia the past two months have been a living nightmare. Typhoons Ketsana and Parma devastated vast areas of Vietnam and the Philippines, and Indonesia has been rocked by earthquakes.

Only a few days ago, another typhoon, Mirinae struck the region leaving 7 people dead and destroying 2,000 homes in the Philippines alone. And although relief and aid are being distributed, the road to recovery will be long.

When reading about such disasters, it is sometimes hard to picture the situation, the emotions and reactions of the people involved. What would I do if my house was flooded, if I lost my business or even worse, a relative or a loved one?

The best way to understand the effects of these destructive events is by hearing what it’s like for those who have lived through them. Here are just a few incredible stories of hope and survival from the people we have encountered and assisted in recent months.

Le, 59, Vietnam

Le is a widow and lives alone. Typhoon Ketsana completely destroyed her house.

She has been fortunate to receive relief support from local authorities and individuals, including 500,000 VND (US$27USD). Her real dream though is to rebuild her home. For three weeks, Le has spent hours every day diligently collecting the left over bricks of her collapsed home. She says, “If I had enough money, I would rebuild my house and buy a cow.”

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The UN turned 64 on 24 October. To celebrate this, events were organised around the world, including a flag raising ceremony in Fiji and, in Tanzania, UN staff rebuild class room floors in schools.

However, the main focus of the day and indeed the article, The UN at 64: Climate change in the spotlight was, unsurprisingly, climate change. With the UN Climate change conference in Copenhagen fast approaching, it calls on the world community to join efforts to mitigate climate change.

Climate change is a universal issue

Most of us already know we need to act. Climate change is a huge threat to us and our planet - potentially the biggest we have ever faced. However, if climate change is a universal issue, why is everybody not treated equally in its light?

Having just hit the very impressive age of 64, the UN is an older being. It has a wealth of experience, understanding, knowledge and skills to offer the climate change debate. Exactly like older people all around the world. However, time and time again we find that older people and their potential contribution to climate change mitigation are forgotten.

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Since typhoon Ketsana struck the Philippines on 26 September, our partner in Manila, the Coalition of Services of the Elderly (COSE) has worked tirelessly to provide relief for the older people affected. They have done an incredible job, having given assistance to 1,815 older people from 35 urban and poor areas around Manila since the programme began on 13 October.

Let’s not forget that Ketsana has affected over 4 million people, damaged 42,000 houses and caused around 700 casualties. The need for relief is huge, yet COSE responded immediately and has helped countless older people.

The relief programme, partly funded by HelpAge and headed by the Task Force Ondoy (Ketsana) Relief Operations team, set up a focal point in COSE’s office from which to distribute relief packages. COSE staff, older volunteers from different older people’s organisations and student volunteers then sorted and repacked the donated goods which included rice, canned goods, used clothes and essential toiletries. They all gave their time willingly, showing great solidarity and spirit.

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As the climate change debate rages on, with the International Day of Climate Change on 24 October and the countdown to Copenhagen well under way, is there is a glimmer of hope that people are starting to make the link between climate change and ageing?

Twice this week while watching the news and reading articles online, I was amazed, surprised and thrilled simultaneously. News outlets were mentioning older people when referring to the challenges the world faces due to climate change. I thought, “I must write about this!”

On the BBC News at Ten, 19 October, a rural village in China was featured. Due to droughts, their crops were failing and younger generations were forced to leave to find work in big cities, leaving older people behind. This is an issue faced by many communities worldwide, which HelpAge is trying to address by raising awareness of how climate change is affecting older people.

Additionally, on AlertNet, an audiovisual montage shows older people’s frustration at the unpredictability of the weather. Their crops have failed and their livestock is dying. They plead with their Gods to bring them rain, asking why their usual means to ensure their survival are failing.

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There is no avoiding the impending threat of climate change and the impact it is already having around the world - most often affecting already struggling and developing regions of the globe.

Age change

Another phenomenon that is transforming the world as we know it and is often overlooked by organisations, governments and policy makers is global ageing.

By 2050, 1 in 5 people will be over 60. Globally, the number of people aged 60 plus will outnumber children aged 14 and under.

The missing link

Climate change and ageing are two of the most important issues facing humanity this century, yet explicit links between the two are rarely made.  So why does the climate change debate completely disregard the impact of climate change on older people?

At best, older people are mentioned as a “vulnerable group”. But they are more than this - older people’s knowledge and experience can help us reduce the effects of climate change.

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