Toolbox: Planning relocations to protect people from disasters and environmental change

This Toolbox seeks to provide concrete suggestions for States and other actors who are contemplating or planning to relocate people in order to protect them from disasters and environmental change. It identifies five cross-cutting elements that repeatedly surfaced in lessons from prior experience. These elements are relevant to all Planned Relocations:

• Establishing and complying with an appropriate legal framework;
• Understanding and addressing the needs and impacts of Planned Relocations on affected populations;
• Providing information to, undertaking consultation with, and ensuring the participation of, affected populations;
• Understanding and addressing complexities related to land issues; and
• Undertaking monitoring and evaluation, and ensuring accountability.

This Toolbox is intended to complement the Guidance for Protecting People from Disasters and Environmental Change through Planned Relocations, which was developed by UNHCR, the Brookings Institution and Georgetown University through a series of meetings between 2011 and 2015. These meetings brought together representatives of States, international organizations and experts from a wide range of disciplines and experiences.