Community-driven disaster intervention : Experiences of the Homeless People's Federation Philippines, Incorporated (HPFPI)

The main purpose of this paper is to add to a deeper appreciation of the context, milestones, processes, learning and emerging directions of the HPFPI in its thrust to mobilize communities in finding and driving their solutions to disasters. With support from the Asian Coalition of Housing Rights (ACHR) and the International Institute on Environment and Development (IIED), this paper likewise aims to contribute to the skills and knowledge base of the HPFPI and its communities on disaster intervention by providing case studies and stories of how communities transcended the disasters that affected them.

The paper begins with an institutional scan of the HPFPI and its partners, followed by a discussion of the prevailing context of disasters in the Philippines. A presentation of the development of HPFPI’s disaster intervention work through the discussion of case studies follows, with the final portion providing a discussion of the lessons learned and directions envisioned.