Community-led Initiatives for Climate Justice in Bangladesh

As the climate changes, many people face displacement by floods and rising seas, especially in vulnerable areas like coastal Bangladesh. From 2017 to 2022, CJRF provided $921,750 to COAST Foundation to work with some of the most climate-vulnerable people in Bangladesh who live on remote islands and the char lands. COAST used this funding to build a coastal advocacy network, increase access to information through a girls’ radio program, provide education for girls who have left school, and provide technical support and capital inputs related to water, sanitation, agriculture, and climate-adaptive livelihoods.

Our recent 2-year, $200,000 renewal grant starting in 2023 will strengthen COAST’s existing program of work to:

• Engage in several new initiatives such as developing a locally led climate displacement management plan of action to implement new policies and mobilize small scale fisherfolk to ensure access to government safety nets and implementation of sea safety measures.

• Continue community radio programming run by adolescent girls as an opportunity for skills-building and empowerment and offer communities valuable information on various health and climate topics.

• Strengthen COAST’s internal organizational development including human resources investments and staffing, disability justice surveying, and more.