This brief shares key findings and insights from the first learning group (1) about integrating risk and resilience considerations for climate-resilient WASH programming. Definitions of climate risk and resilience and the application of the concepts are diverse and still evolving, including for the WASH sector.
• ‘Climate risk’ is commonly understood as the potential for an adverse outcome influenced by the climate or a climate change event.
• Social and environmental changes can increase or reduce climate risks.
• 'Climate resilience' is like the concept of 'sustainability' in lacking strong consensus on how to action definitions but with documented and replicable good practices that contribute to a resilient and sustainable future.
• Climate change creates complexity and uncertainty that governments, communities and practitioners need to be able to navigate to make decisions.

Water for Women (WfW) is unique in its role as an implementation and research fund that contributes to local, regional and global understanding of best practice in climate-resilient inclusive development. During the 2023–24 extension period, drawing on learnings from the implementation of climate-resilient and inclusive water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) projects and research across the Asia–Pacific region, WfW partners sought to explore a fundamental learning question: What does climate-resilient inclusive WASH development look like? In exploring this question, three dedicated learning groups considered:1. How do WASH programs commonly understand climate risk and resilience? How can this be further developed to
better inform the design of WASH interventions?
2. How do WASH governance systems commonly integrate climate risk and resilience?
3. Why and how is gender equality, disability and social inclusion critical to climate-resilient WASH?

Bibliographic information

Water for Women (2025). Integrating Risk and Resilience for Climate-Resilient WASH Programming Water for Women

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