Measuring Climate in SRHR-Focused Projects

Though this guide focuses heavily on projects that intentionally integrate climate change into their SRHR programming, many funders and implementers may also wish to monitor how past, present, and future SRHR-focused investments may be impacted by climate change or contribute to climate resilience. Many of the resources throughout this guide will be relevant to SRHR-focused projects implemented in climate-affected areas, so we encourage you to explore these resources in full.

Climate-Responsive Design in SRHR-Focused Proposals and Projects

Because climate change is already disrupting health, social, and economic systems around the world, integrating climate risks into SRHR activities is an essential part of ensuring that these projects achieve their aims. Many of the principles of climate-responsive design also apply to SRHR-focused proposals and projects. 

  • Evidence-based understanding of the climate context: Does the project’s proposal recognize how climate change contributes to the SRH challenge that the project is addressing and/or how climate change may impact implementation? 

  • Sound theory of change and clear aims: Does the project’s theory of change acknowledge climate change as a potential barrier or risk? 

  • Climate just, adaptive interventions and implementation strategies: Does the project integrate activities that are responsive to climate risks and promote climate justice and adaptation, as appropriate? 

  • Climate-integrated project management: Does the project include climate risks in its risk management plan?

Learn more about principles of climate-responsive design by visiting Climate-Responsive Project Design.

Monitoring Exposure to Climate Change in Active SRHR-Focused Projects

SRHR projects can leverage the data they gather about key SRHR outcomes to build the evidence base related to climate change and SRHR. Though these projects may not explicitly track exposure to climate hazards, exposure to climate hazards can be retroactively linked to project data. These data can then be used to demonstrate the impacts of climate change on SRH and health systems, as well as the value-add of such investments for strengthening local capacity to respond to climate change effectively.

Tool: The EM-DAT Global Disaster Database

The EM-DAT database tracks a range of hazards and disasters worldwide, including climate-related hazards and disasters. All included disasters are geolocated, time-referenced, and have documented human impact, meaning that this database can be readily linked with SRHR project data without requiring extensive experience with climatological datasets.

Evaluating a SRHR-Focused Project’s Contribution to Climate Adaptation and Resilience

There is no one universally accepted way to measure climate adaptation or climate resilience. Whether and how much a particular activity contributes to climate adaptation and climate resilience will depend on how each is defined and measured. 

With that said, to demonstrate a SRHR-focused project’s contribution to climate resilience, focus on the project’s outcomes. Did the project result in people being healthier? Did it generate economic benefits or improvements in gender equity? These types of changes can be considered across a range of domains that may contribute to climate resilience: 

  • Health and health systems, including SRH

  • Exposure to climate extremes

  • Preparedness and planning

  • Awareness and skills for adaptive behaviors

  • Poverty reduction and sustainable livelihoods

  • Bodily autonomy

  • Food security 

  • Infrastructure and energy

  • Social services and social protection

  • Natural resource management

  • Leadership and equity

  • Policy

Learn more about measuring a project’s contribution to climate resilience by visiting Indicators for Climate-SRHR Action, Indicator 10: Climate-SRHR action contributes to greater climate resilience beyond the health sector.
For additional technical guidance on this topic, visit Technical Guidance Monitoring, Evaluating, and Learning from Climate-SRHR Action.