WEBVTT - Humanitarian aid organisations cannot keep up with increasing climate disasters | EP 13

0:00:00.000 --> 0:00:02.310
<v Speaker 1>This is a C. N. A. Podcast.

0:00:07.160 --> 0:00:10.920
<v Speaker 1>The final months of 2022 are upon us. And already

0:00:10.920 --> 0:00:16.860
<v Speaker 1>there's a long list of disasters, devastating floods, historic droughts, wildfires,

0:00:16.870 --> 0:00:18.739
<v Speaker 1>hurricanes and tornadoes,

0:00:19.329 --> 0:00:23.500
<v Speaker 1>and when there's death, destruction and despair, the world's non

0:00:23.500 --> 0:00:27.040
<v Speaker 1>governmental organizations are there to pick up the pieces and

0:00:27.040 --> 0:00:31.170
<v Speaker 1>heal wounds. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red

0:00:31.170 --> 0:00:35.419
<v Speaker 1>Crescent Societies earlier this year already sounded out a warning.

0:00:35.430 --> 0:00:39.120
<v Speaker 1>There's an urgent need from money and support from richer

0:00:39.120 --> 0:00:44.129
<v Speaker 1>nations because the climate crisis has become one big humanitarian crisis.

0:00:44.920 --> 0:00:48.200
<v Speaker 1>Just how urgent is this need and what of NGO

0:00:48.200 --> 0:00:51.220
<v Speaker 1>has been witnessing over the last few years with me

0:00:51.220 --> 0:00:55.110
<v Speaker 1>in the studio today as Benjamin William, the secretary General

0:00:55.110 --> 0:00:59.500
<v Speaker 1>of the Singapore Red Cross. Benjamin, welcome to the climate conversations,

0:00:59.510 --> 0:01:00.850
<v Speaker 2>thank you very much for having

0:01:00.850 --> 0:01:01.210
<v Speaker 1>me

0:01:03.800 --> 0:01:07.270
<v Speaker 1>The Benjamin, you've served as a diplomat for 30 years

0:01:07.280 --> 0:01:09.600
<v Speaker 1>and have been with the Singapore Red Cross for 10

0:01:09.600 --> 0:01:12.380
<v Speaker 1>years now, which must have taken you to many places

0:01:12.380 --> 0:01:15.330
<v Speaker 1>around the world and allows you to see firsthand the

0:01:15.340 --> 0:01:19.100
<v Speaker 1>devastation and human suffering as a result of the impact

0:01:19.100 --> 0:01:22.959
<v Speaker 1>of climate change. From your perspective, how has the world

0:01:22.959 --> 0:01:25.899
<v Speaker 1>changed in the last few years as a result of

0:01:25.900 --> 0:01:26.510
<v Speaker 1>this

0:01:26.810 --> 0:01:30.200
<v Speaker 2>Over the last 10 years being involved in humanitarian work,

0:01:30.650 --> 0:01:34.900
<v Speaker 2>you can see actually whether patterns beginning to change, it

0:01:34.900 --> 0:01:39.210
<v Speaker 2>is not so much that countries are beginning to experience

0:01:39.220 --> 0:01:42.590
<v Speaker 2>whether that they are not used to. But the patterns

0:01:42.590 --> 0:01:45.480
<v Speaker 2>have changed. Let me give you an example, Philippines is

0:01:45.480 --> 0:01:50.780
<v Speaker 2>used to having typhoons, but when Typhoon Haiyan struck Philippines,

0:01:50.790 --> 0:01:54.970
<v Speaker 2>what was not strange was the fact that a typhoon hit,

0:01:55.250 --> 0:01:58.260
<v Speaker 2>but the fact that the path that the typhoon took

0:01:58.260 --> 0:02:01.680
<v Speaker 2>was very different from what the Filipinos are used to.

0:02:01.690 --> 0:02:06.340
<v Speaker 2>So the devastation that it caused was much greater because

0:02:06.350 --> 0:02:08.730
<v Speaker 2>many of the parts that were hit had not been

0:02:08.730 --> 0:02:12.290
<v Speaker 2>used to typhoons and therefore the houses were not built

0:02:12.300 --> 0:02:16.500
<v Speaker 2>to withstand typhoons closer home Malaysia. It's not that Malaysia

0:02:16.500 --> 0:02:18.480
<v Speaker 2>is not used to floods, but I think in the

0:02:18.480 --> 0:02:21.500
<v Speaker 2>last few years the kind of rains that they are

0:02:21.500 --> 0:02:23.900
<v Speaker 2>experiencing during the monsoon season,

0:02:24.310 --> 0:02:28.810
<v Speaker 2>the rapid flooding that is taking place is quite different

0:02:28.810 --> 0:02:32.100
<v Speaker 2>from what you experienced a few years ago. Almost every

0:02:32.100 --> 0:02:35.630
<v Speaker 2>country is now concerned about the change in the weather pattern,

0:02:35.639 --> 0:02:38.310
<v Speaker 2>Not so much in the fact that they are experiencing

0:02:38.310 --> 0:02:42.230
<v Speaker 2>new kind of weather, but how often, how frequent the

0:02:42.240 --> 0:02:46.150
<v Speaker 2>areas that are affected and the extreme of the weather,

0:02:46.370 --> 0:02:46.820
<v Speaker 2>The

0:02:46.820 --> 0:02:50.970
<v Speaker 1>weather patterns, the severity and frequency have changed. As you said,

0:02:50.980 --> 0:02:54.500
<v Speaker 1>how are they impacting your humanitarian work? I wonder has

0:02:54.500 --> 0:02:56.440
<v Speaker 1>it intensified the workload

0:02:56.450 --> 0:03:00.690
<v Speaker 2>10 years ago when I joined the humanitarian sector, one

0:03:00.690 --> 0:03:02.239
<v Speaker 2>of the catchphrase was that

0:03:02.570 --> 0:03:07.700
<v Speaker 2>the humanitarian challenges facing us are tremendous. 10 years later,

0:03:07.710 --> 0:03:11.680
<v Speaker 2>I think it has multiplied several. For take Afghanistan for example,

0:03:11.690 --> 0:03:14.500
<v Speaker 2>a few months ago, they were suffering from drought. I

0:03:14.500 --> 0:03:17.440
<v Speaker 2>think in august, they were suffering from floods. They had

0:03:17.450 --> 0:03:21.919
<v Speaker 2>the civil unrest, they had the conflict zones and then

0:03:21.919 --> 0:03:22.760
<v Speaker 2>they had Covid.

0:03:23.270 --> 0:03:29.020
<v Speaker 2>So the complexity of the humanitarian challenges have multiplied manifold.

0:03:29.030 --> 0:03:34.120
<v Speaker 2>So you're constantly having to adjust your humanitarian response. Now,

0:03:34.130 --> 0:03:37.030
<v Speaker 2>you take COVID-19 is a pandemic and you might say

0:03:37.030 --> 0:03:39.590
<v Speaker 2>that it's unrelated to climate change,

0:03:40.200 --> 0:03:43.090
<v Speaker 2>but I think it's going to happen more and more.

0:03:43.100 --> 0:03:45.860
<v Speaker 2>I think we won't have to wait another 100 years

0:03:45.860 --> 0:03:49.830
<v Speaker 2>for the next global pandemic with the change in weather patterns.

0:03:49.830 --> 0:03:55.060
<v Speaker 2>Waterborne disease, even diseases like Dengue, we must be wise

0:03:55.060 --> 0:03:59.100
<v Speaker 2>enough to expect the next global pandemic in a much

0:03:59.100 --> 0:04:03.390
<v Speaker 2>shorter period. So it will complicate the humanitarian challenges even further.

0:04:04.160 --> 0:04:07.170
<v Speaker 1>So, Benjamin one phrase you've used in the past is

0:04:07.170 --> 0:04:11.210
<v Speaker 1>that each disaster is unique. If we take the deadly

0:04:11.210 --> 0:04:14.370
<v Speaker 1>flooding in Pakistan for example, a third of the country

0:04:14.370 --> 0:04:19.610
<v Speaker 1>was submerged underwater, 33 million people displaced and damages are

0:04:19.610 --> 0:04:23.080
<v Speaker 1>likely to run into billions of dollars. Have a listen

0:04:23.080 --> 0:04:25.089
<v Speaker 1>to what one flood victim has to say.

0:04:26.550 --> 0:04:30.350
<v Speaker 1>There is nothing left. Some of our young Children were

0:04:30.350 --> 0:04:33.060
<v Speaker 1>left behind and some managed to come with us. We

0:04:33.060 --> 0:04:36.070
<v Speaker 1>could not get anything from our home. We only had

0:04:36.080 --> 0:04:39.010
<v Speaker 1>one goat. It also drowned in the flood. Now we

0:04:39.010 --> 0:04:41.310
<v Speaker 1>have nothing with us and we are lying along the

0:04:41.310 --> 0:04:43.230
<v Speaker 1>road facing hunger.

0:04:44.540 --> 0:04:47.750
<v Speaker 1>So Benjamin, how dire is the situation there,

0:04:47.760 --> 0:04:51.600
<v Speaker 2>one of the challenges that we in the humanitarian sector

0:04:51.610 --> 0:04:55.540
<v Speaker 2>constantly facing in Pakistan now is how to bring clean water.

0:04:55.550 --> 0:05:01.020
<v Speaker 2>So the need for water filtration, simple water filtration. Family size,

0:05:01.029 --> 0:05:03.730
<v Speaker 2>Community size is something that is needed.

0:05:04.140 --> 0:05:06.760
<v Speaker 2>We were just in touch with one of our partners

0:05:06.770 --> 0:05:09.890
<v Speaker 2>who is working on the ground trying to put food

0:05:09.890 --> 0:05:13.870
<v Speaker 2>on the table for 100 families in many crisis. You

0:05:13.870 --> 0:05:16.279
<v Speaker 2>think of one week, two weeks, but I think in

0:05:16.279 --> 0:05:19.920
<v Speaker 2>Pakistan they are now projecting three months because some of

0:05:19.920 --> 0:05:23.489
<v Speaker 2>the areas that have been flooded are fertile agricultural ground,

0:05:24.000 --> 0:05:27.020
<v Speaker 2>So a lot of food resources have been destroyed. You

0:05:27.020 --> 0:05:32.770
<v Speaker 2>imagine 33 million people affected that six times the population

0:05:32.770 --> 0:05:37.780
<v Speaker 2>of Singapore. How do you house them in some disasters

0:05:37.790 --> 0:05:43.150
<v Speaker 2>you can shift populations to schools or community premises, but

0:05:43.150 --> 0:05:46.870
<v Speaker 2>all the schools and community premises are also being inundated

0:05:46.870 --> 0:05:49.650
<v Speaker 2>with water. So they need tents in high ground. But

0:05:50.110 --> 0:05:53.870
<v Speaker 2>even as we look to deal with the immediate needs,

0:05:53.880 --> 0:05:56.680
<v Speaker 2>we have to also bear in mind that medium term

0:05:56.680 --> 0:06:00.570
<v Speaker 2>needs waterborne diseases are on the rise. So you need

0:06:00.580 --> 0:06:04.630
<v Speaker 2>to also think in terms of medical supplies, bring in

0:06:04.630 --> 0:06:08.620
<v Speaker 2>medical teams, Most of these are not in yet because

0:06:08.620 --> 0:06:12.250
<v Speaker 2>of the logistical challenges. I fear this is just the

0:06:12.250 --> 0:06:13.560
<v Speaker 2>tip of the iceberg.

0:06:20.890 --> 0:06:23.950
<v Speaker 2>Hi, I'm Adrian Tan and I'm Christina robert. We are

0:06:23.950 --> 0:06:26.830
<v Speaker 2>the host of a new podcast called working, we're here

0:06:26.830 --> 0:06:27.320
<v Speaker 2>to get into

0:06:27.320 --> 0:06:28.360
<v Speaker 1>the essential things

0:06:28.360 --> 0:06:31.180
<v Speaker 2>that no one tells you about working in company culture

0:06:31.180 --> 0:06:34.620
<v Speaker 2>from office politics to dealing with burnout. If you've ever

0:06:34.620 --> 0:06:38.100
<v Speaker 2>wanted to eavesdrop on an interesting conversation by the water cooler.

0:06:38.110 --> 0:06:39.180
<v Speaker 2>This podcast

0:06:39.180 --> 0:06:40.360
<v Speaker 1>is for you look

0:06:40.360 --> 0:06:43.089
<v Speaker 2>out for our episodes wherever you get your podcast.

0:06:51.110 --> 0:06:53.770
<v Speaker 1>I wonder how do you ensure that funding goes to

0:06:53.770 --> 0:06:56.920
<v Speaker 1>the right place? The right people where it's most needed,

0:06:56.920 --> 0:06:59.219
<v Speaker 1>especially when you're dealing with foreign governments.

0:06:59.230 --> 0:07:03.040
<v Speaker 2>This is a very challenging element that we have to

0:07:03.040 --> 0:07:04.270
<v Speaker 2>constantly deal with.

0:07:04.700 --> 0:07:07.850
<v Speaker 2>You quoted me in one of my previous interviews where

0:07:07.850 --> 0:07:11.510
<v Speaker 2>I say every disaster is unique and this element of

0:07:11.510 --> 0:07:16.580
<v Speaker 2>governance and financial management is one area where each situation

0:07:16.580 --> 0:07:19.810
<v Speaker 2>is unique. So if you're dealing with a country scenario

0:07:19.810 --> 0:07:25.420
<v Speaker 2>where you have proper banking systems and credible watchdogs and

0:07:25.420 --> 0:07:28.750
<v Speaker 2>all that, it's so much easier to deal with it.

0:07:29.190 --> 0:07:32.710
<v Speaker 2>So we are constantly having to come up with innovative

0:07:32.710 --> 0:07:36.390
<v Speaker 2>ideas on how to ensure that our funding goes where

0:07:36.390 --> 0:07:37.700
<v Speaker 2>it is supposed to go.

0:07:38.100 --> 0:07:42.790
<v Speaker 2>One thing that we try to minimize is just transferring

0:07:42.790 --> 0:07:46.060
<v Speaker 2>funds to our partners from time to time we do,

0:07:46.070 --> 0:07:50.000
<v Speaker 2>especially in the beginning when relief supplies are needed badly.

0:07:50.010 --> 0:07:52.800
<v Speaker 2>But we normally then twin it with some of our

0:07:52.810 --> 0:07:55.330
<v Speaker 2>team members going down on the ground to ensure that

0:07:55.330 --> 0:07:58.760
<v Speaker 2>the relief items are actually distributed. So in that way

0:07:58.760 --> 0:08:00.000
<v Speaker 2>we minimize

0:08:00.250 --> 0:08:04.110
<v Speaker 2>the risk of leakage of the funding because this is

0:08:04.110 --> 0:08:06.050
<v Speaker 2>one of the questions that a lot of our donors

0:08:06.050 --> 0:08:06.320
<v Speaker 2>ask

0:08:06.320 --> 0:08:09.440
<v Speaker 1>Us. But Benjamin, the reality is the need is greater

0:08:09.440 --> 0:08:12.760
<v Speaker 1>than what the world is giving and many of the

0:08:12.760 --> 0:08:15.440
<v Speaker 1>rich donor countries have been suffering from what they call

0:08:15.440 --> 0:08:16.940
<v Speaker 1>a donor or eight

0:08:17.015 --> 0:08:19.785
<v Speaker 1>fatigue. Would you say it's gotten harder to get their

0:08:19.785 --> 0:08:22.425
<v Speaker 1>attention to get them to help out these days?

0:08:22.435 --> 0:08:24.665
<v Speaker 2>It is a good question. I think the answer is

0:08:24.665 --> 0:08:28.235
<v Speaker 2>a bit more complicated. Take Singapore for example, Singaporeans are

0:08:28.235 --> 0:08:31.965
<v Speaker 2>quite generous when they see a need, especially when the

0:08:31.965 --> 0:08:36.944
<v Speaker 2>images are very reel. They're willing to loosen their purses

0:08:36.945 --> 0:08:38.585
<v Speaker 2>and donate generously.

0:08:39.070 --> 0:08:41.929
<v Speaker 2>And here I'm saying about the cross section of Singapore.

0:08:41.940 --> 0:08:45.579
<v Speaker 2>A lot of money come from institutional giving or donors

0:08:45.580 --> 0:08:49.030
<v Speaker 2>from high net worth individuals. But you will be amazed

0:08:49.030 --> 0:08:52.370
<v Speaker 2>at the general population who take out and give their

0:08:52.370 --> 0:08:57.370
<v Speaker 2>$5.10 and it all adds up. I'm optimistic that fatigue

0:08:57.460 --> 0:08:58.660
<v Speaker 2>set in there.

0:08:59.240 --> 0:09:04.270
<v Speaker 2>I think what is true is that the immediate needs

0:09:04.280 --> 0:09:08.110
<v Speaker 2>will continue to grow. Take, for example, Pakistan let's say

0:09:08.110 --> 0:09:10.590
<v Speaker 2>the immediate needs in terms of food and water is

0:09:10.600 --> 0:09:12.930
<v Speaker 2>say five billion. Where are you going to get the

0:09:12.929 --> 0:09:18.339
<v Speaker 2>five billion? So I think more and more humanitarian organizations

0:09:18.340 --> 0:09:22.280
<v Speaker 2>have to think in terms of how to attract more

0:09:22.280 --> 0:09:25.330
<v Speaker 2>than just their normal donations. You need to,

0:09:25.340 --> 0:09:28.270
<v Speaker 2>in terms of partnerships, we need to think out of

0:09:28.270 --> 0:09:32.090
<v Speaker 2>the box. I am a strong believer in this concept

0:09:32.090 --> 0:09:37.209
<v Speaker 2>of the one billion coalition for resilience. The idea is

0:09:37.210 --> 0:09:40.760
<v Speaker 2>that the humanitarian challenges facing the world are too great

0:09:40.770 --> 0:09:44.310
<v Speaker 2>for one organization, whether it's the red cross or the U. N.

0:09:44.320 --> 0:09:47.929
<v Speaker 2>You really need to bring on board everyone. One billion

0:09:47.940 --> 0:09:49.040
<v Speaker 2>and the one billion

0:09:49.240 --> 0:09:56.140
<v Speaker 2>includes individuals. Includes the private sector includes innovative organizations, civil

0:09:56.140 --> 0:09:58.790
<v Speaker 2>society and that's the only way we're going to be

0:09:58.790 --> 0:10:01.830
<v Speaker 2>able to even mitigate some of the challenges that

0:10:01.840 --> 0:10:03.350
<v Speaker 1>far along are we. Do you

0:10:03.350 --> 0:10:05.349
<v Speaker 2>think? I think we are a long way to go.

0:10:05.360 --> 0:10:09.890
<v Speaker 2>I always like to talk about this anecdote humankind, we

0:10:09.890 --> 0:10:10.890
<v Speaker 2>are very strange.

0:10:11.040 --> 0:10:15.559
<v Speaker 2>We spend billions and trillions of dollars in investment to

0:10:15.559 --> 0:10:20.470
<v Speaker 2>develop weapons that can destroy human beings. But the amount

0:10:20.470 --> 0:10:24.520
<v Speaker 2>that we are willing to invest in mitigating the humanitarian

0:10:24.520 --> 0:10:28.410
<v Speaker 2>challenges facing us are miniscule 10 years ago. What we

0:10:28.410 --> 0:10:30.970
<v Speaker 2>were doing in the humanitarian sector is almost exactly what

0:10:30.970 --> 0:10:33.170
<v Speaker 2>we are doing now with a bit of innovation here

0:10:33.170 --> 0:10:33.619
<v Speaker 2>and there.

0:10:34.360 --> 0:10:36.559
<v Speaker 2>And I dare say we went back 50 years is

0:10:36.559 --> 0:10:40.240
<v Speaker 2>the same thing. So I'm a strong believer that we

0:10:40.240 --> 0:10:44.780
<v Speaker 2>need to put in much more investment into mitigating the

0:10:44.780 --> 0:10:49.020
<v Speaker 2>humanitarian challenges facing us. And I think climate change is

0:10:49.020 --> 0:10:51.880
<v Speaker 2>a good example. If you left the government to deal

0:10:51.880 --> 0:10:54.410
<v Speaker 2>with climate change is never going to happen. And if

0:10:54.410 --> 0:10:59.040
<v Speaker 2>humanitarian organizations only think in terms of responding to a

0:10:59.050 --> 0:11:03.160
<v Speaker 2>crisis after it has happened like Pakistan, it's not sustainable.

0:11:03.309 --> 0:11:07.099
<v Speaker 2>So I believe very strongly that while we think in

0:11:07.100 --> 0:11:10.150
<v Speaker 2>terms of the short term and medium term response to

0:11:10.150 --> 0:11:14.179
<v Speaker 2>climate change and the disasters much more focus will now

0:11:14.179 --> 0:11:17.939
<v Speaker 2>have to go into the long term response to climate

0:11:17.940 --> 0:11:18.510
<v Speaker 2>change

0:11:18.920 --> 0:11:24.560
<v Speaker 2>community preparedness. If the communities in Pakistan had been prepared

0:11:24.570 --> 0:11:27.700
<v Speaker 2>to deal with the flooding, it would have mitigated many

0:11:27.700 --> 0:11:31.380
<v Speaker 2>of the problems that are being faced now. But when

0:11:31.380 --> 0:11:35.990
<v Speaker 2>the floodwaters received in Pakistan, will people be thinking about

0:11:36.000 --> 0:11:38.849
<v Speaker 2>the next flood in two years time and then we

0:11:38.850 --> 0:11:42.170
<v Speaker 2>need to invest more in innovation. We talk about climate

0:11:42.170 --> 0:11:44.870
<v Speaker 2>change and humanitarians are the ones who speak loudest about

0:11:44.870 --> 0:11:46.460
<v Speaker 2>climate change and the disasters,

0:11:46.840 --> 0:11:49.300
<v Speaker 2>but a lot of the things that we bring into

0:11:49.300 --> 0:11:54.650
<v Speaker 2>a disaster site actually add to the problem of pollution

0:11:54.650 --> 0:11:58.340
<v Speaker 2>and all that number of temporary tents just discarded, adding

0:11:58.340 --> 0:12:00.490
<v Speaker 2>to the plastic waste. I think we just need to

0:12:00.500 --> 0:12:07.120
<v Speaker 2>put more into innovation in terms of clean water, sustainable housing,

0:12:07.420 --> 0:12:11.470
<v Speaker 2>solar energy. But there are challenges because when a donor

0:12:11.470 --> 0:12:15.670
<v Speaker 2>gives you $100,000 he wants to know whether $100,000 went

0:12:15.670 --> 0:12:17.200
<v Speaker 2>to the ground. If you tell him that I have

0:12:17.200 --> 0:12:20.720
<v Speaker 2>set aside 20,000 for innovation, he's not going to be happy,

0:12:20.720 --> 0:12:23.330
<v Speaker 2>but I think we need to bring a mindset and

0:12:23.330 --> 0:12:26.880
<v Speaker 2>that is where I think the coalition is important because

0:12:26.880 --> 0:12:29.210
<v Speaker 2>a high tech organization that puts in a lot of

0:12:29.210 --> 0:12:31.290
<v Speaker 2>money into research and development,

0:12:31.540 --> 0:12:36.390
<v Speaker 2>If they can set aside 5% of that for humanitarian mitigation,

0:12:36.400 --> 0:12:38.340
<v Speaker 2>what a change it will bring to the world

0:12:38.770 --> 0:12:41.430
<v Speaker 1>and Benjamin events in Pakistan and other parts of the

0:12:41.429 --> 0:12:45.770
<v Speaker 1>world have certainly highlighted the emerging climate inequality that divides

0:12:45.770 --> 0:12:49.620
<v Speaker 1>the rich carbon emitting world from poor countries that emit

0:12:49.620 --> 0:12:54.320
<v Speaker 1>little but bear the consequences. What other challenges make you

0:12:54.320 --> 0:12:59.120
<v Speaker 1>feel frustrated or worried most right now. And what other

0:12:59.120 --> 0:13:02.650
<v Speaker 1>hurdles do you anticipate as we continue to see more

0:13:02.650 --> 0:13:04.090
<v Speaker 1>climate induced disease

0:13:04.415 --> 0:13:05.564
<v Speaker 1>across the world?

0:13:05.575 --> 0:13:08.724
<v Speaker 2>One of the frustration is always whether you can do

0:13:08.725 --> 0:13:13.065
<v Speaker 2>more Singapore across is a small organization. Singapore is a

0:13:13.065 --> 0:13:17.335
<v Speaker 2>small organization. And so while you think, you know the answers,

0:13:17.335 --> 0:13:19.885
<v Speaker 2>you think you want to do more but your constraint.

0:13:19.895 --> 0:13:23.334
<v Speaker 2>So where do I think we can make a difference

0:13:23.345 --> 0:13:26.405
<v Speaker 2>is maybe to work with Southeast Asia. For example, if

0:13:26.405 --> 0:13:30.165
<v Speaker 2>you can work within Southeast Asia with your partners and

0:13:30.165 --> 0:13:31.560
<v Speaker 2>you can see some change,

0:13:31.820 --> 0:13:34.319
<v Speaker 2>that would be great. I'll give you an example. I'm

0:13:34.320 --> 0:13:37.260
<v Speaker 2>very keen to work with Vietnam Red Cross because Vietnam

0:13:37.260 --> 0:13:41.490
<v Speaker 2>Red Cross has taken on the government's plan to plant

0:13:41.490 --> 0:13:43.870
<v Speaker 2>a billion trees. So Vietnam Red Cross has sort of

0:13:43.870 --> 0:13:47.620
<v Speaker 2>sub contracted that KPI from the government. So I'm very

0:13:47.620 --> 0:13:51.890
<v Speaker 2>keen to get our youth in exchange programs with Vietnam

0:13:51.890 --> 0:13:55.309
<v Speaker 2>Red Cross. Substantively they can say that they have contributed

0:13:55.309 --> 0:13:58.400
<v Speaker 2>towards this KPI but you think about it.

0:13:58.850 --> 0:14:01.460
<v Speaker 2>A lot of our rice production and all that comes

0:14:01.460 --> 0:14:05.189
<v Speaker 2>from countries like Vietnam. So if you improve the climate

0:14:05.190 --> 0:14:08.740
<v Speaker 2>situation in Vietnam, you're actually impacting yourself because we are

0:14:08.740 --> 0:14:11.770
<v Speaker 2>so dependent on everyone right? But at the same time,

0:14:11.780 --> 0:14:14.790
<v Speaker 2>you're also changing the mindset of our young people because

0:14:14.790 --> 0:14:17.270
<v Speaker 2>in Singapore, we still don't feel the impact.

0:14:17.790 --> 0:14:20.570
<v Speaker 2>You look at the situation in Pakistan. We are so

0:14:20.580 --> 0:14:24.609
<v Speaker 2>blessed in Singapore. The rains in Singapore, the same rains

0:14:24.610 --> 0:14:27.580
<v Speaker 2>in kale and kale is flooded and people are stuck

0:14:27.580 --> 0:14:29.910
<v Speaker 2>and all that and here, half an hour later the

0:14:29.910 --> 0:14:32.400
<v Speaker 2>water is drained away. So we need to get our

0:14:32.400 --> 0:14:35.090
<v Speaker 2>young people to understand

0:14:35.440 --> 0:14:39.090
<v Speaker 2>that climate change is their responsibility

0:14:39.100 --> 0:14:42.600
<v Speaker 1>and Benjamin in having led SRC for nearly a decade now,

0:14:42.610 --> 0:14:44.560
<v Speaker 1>what's your wish for the planet?

0:14:44.570 --> 0:14:45.330
<v Speaker 2>Which is facing

0:14:45.330 --> 0:14:48.500
<v Speaker 1>possibly the hardest challenge, hardest test in the form of

0:14:48.500 --> 0:14:49.400
<v Speaker 1>climate change

0:14:49.410 --> 0:14:53.030
<v Speaker 2>Over the last 10, 11 years or so, the first

0:14:53.030 --> 0:14:57.050
<v Speaker 2>part was about improving our disaster response. I mean in

0:14:57.050 --> 0:14:58.420
<v Speaker 2>terms of international right?

0:14:58.970 --> 0:15:01.620
<v Speaker 2>But we have pivoted a bit, we still want to

0:15:01.620 --> 0:15:05.830
<v Speaker 2>improve our disaster response. We continue to train our volunteers,

0:15:05.840 --> 0:15:09.900
<v Speaker 2>we continue to improve our systems and processes, but we

0:15:09.900 --> 0:15:13.060
<v Speaker 2>want to do more and more capacity building. My goal

0:15:13.060 --> 0:15:17.710
<v Speaker 2>for Singapore across is to make a significant difference globally

0:15:17.710 --> 0:15:20.690
<v Speaker 2>and regionally. But to have a national Impact,

0:15:21.060 --> 0:15:24.410
<v Speaker 2>let me explain, I want to see Singapore across being

0:15:24.410 --> 0:15:29.010
<v Speaker 2>instrumental in increasing the capacity in the national societies in

0:15:29.010 --> 0:15:30.080
<v Speaker 2>Southeast Asia.

0:15:30.590 --> 0:15:33.710
<v Speaker 2>We launched an initiative called the Center of Excellence for

0:15:33.710 --> 0:15:37.740
<v Speaker 2>pandemic preparedness because my view for example, which covid 19

0:15:37.740 --> 0:15:39.920
<v Speaker 2>showed when a pandemic strikes the region,

0:15:40.460 --> 0:15:43.260
<v Speaker 2>nobody is safe until everybody is safe. So at a

0:15:43.270 --> 0:15:46.640
<v Speaker 2>regional and global level internationally, I want to see Singaporean

0:15:46.640 --> 0:15:50.470
<v Speaker 2>across making a significant difference and I think the significant

0:15:50.470 --> 0:15:54.400
<v Speaker 2>difference that we can make is to help in capacity building,

0:15:54.400 --> 0:15:57.710
<v Speaker 2>especially in the areas where we have knowledge and expertise

0:15:57.890 --> 0:16:00.970
<v Speaker 2>and then to help the coalesce Southeast Asia to work

0:16:00.970 --> 0:16:06.210
<v Speaker 2>together to tackle some of these major challenges. Disaster pandemics,

0:16:06.220 --> 0:16:07.550
<v Speaker 2>climate change,

0:16:07.560 --> 0:16:10.200
<v Speaker 1>that's a great vision and I really appreciate your time

0:16:10.200 --> 0:16:12.420
<v Speaker 1>coming in here and speaking to us. I wish you

0:16:12.420 --> 0:16:14.870
<v Speaker 1>the best of luck with the life saving work that

0:16:14.870 --> 0:16:17.170
<v Speaker 1>you and your team do. Thank you very much for

0:16:17.170 --> 0:16:17.940
<v Speaker 1>coming in today.

0:16:17.950 --> 0:16:19.040
<v Speaker 2>Thank you. Thank you for having

0:16:19.040 --> 0:16:19.370
<v Speaker 1>me.

0:16:23.540 --> 0:16:26.859
<v Speaker 1>Thanks to my guest, Benjamin William and thanks to all

0:16:26.860 --> 0:16:30.140
<v Speaker 1>of you for tuning in, We hope you enjoyed this episode.

0:16:30.150 --> 0:16:33.940
<v Speaker 1>Do remember to subscribe and like this podcast. So, you know,

0:16:33.940 --> 0:16:37.290
<v Speaker 1>when a new episode drops, you can find CNN's climate

0:16:37.290 --> 0:16:41.920
<v Speaker 1>and sustainability coverage online at sienna dot asia. The team

0:16:41.920 --> 0:16:46.570
<v Speaker 1>behind this podcast is Joanne, chan Jacqueline, chan Danieli and

0:16:46.570 --> 0:16:49.660
<v Speaker 1>Christina robert and I'm julie you signing off