At All Hands and Hearts (AHAH), we understand that recovering from the devastating effects of a disaster is more than bricks and mortar. As such, we listen to the needs of disaster-affected communities to provide locally-led, resilient solutions. This holistic, community-inspired disaster relief can be seen throughout our work but most keenly in our tenth and most recent program in Nepal, in the rural community of Dudhauli, Sindhuli.

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed and compounded pre-existing societal and gender inequalities worldwide. In Nepal, the pandemic also heightened the strain on rural healthcare facilities and shone an even brighter light on the significant disparities in access to maternal healthcare.

It was with this local context that our Kathmandu-based team set in motion AHAH’s most recent program in Nepal. This program focused on expanding the capacity of the Dudhauli health post, increasing the maternal healthcare services and providing additional resources for up to 40,000 individuals.

Working with international healthcare specialists, we provided customized training to strengthen the skills and processes of the health post staff. With these capabilities in place, capacity will expand across the health post infrastructure and its professionals, meeting the demand of the local communities, driving progress in decreasing preventable maternal deaths and ensuring the right to health for the women and girls of Dudhauli.

Indira, a Dudhauli-local, learned earthquake-resilient construction skills through AHAH’s female mason training program, breaking into the male-dominated industry and helping dismantle gender stereotypes. Here she captures the extensive impact of the program, “[This work] will benefit my children, my grandchildren and the entire community in the future.”

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In 2017, Mexico was struck by two devastating earthquakes and is still recovering from the aftermath. All Hands and Hearts (AHAH) is now in its sixth phase of work there, supporting the affected communities. Through our work over the last five years, it’s become evident that the connections and relationships we make are just as important as the infrastructure we rebuild.

AHAH worked alongside the Santa Maria Albarradas community to rebuild the Guillermo Prieto primary school. Listening to the needs of families, the team learned that bringing people together adds meaning to their lives. As such, they embraced the Oaxacan practice of “tequios” – a tradition of volunteering that celebrates the unique role each individual plays, and a series of new connections were formed.

In celebration of AHAH’s 21st rebuild in Mexico, educators, parents, students and volunteers came together to mark the school’s completion. Singing and dancing through the streets, the parade ended at Guillermo Prieto, where 188 students explored their new school – a safe place to learn and play.

Through AHAH’s Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) training, we taught local educators effective steps to prepare for and mitigate the risks of future disasters. As a result, the community formed a school committee with the knowledge and resources to maintain a safe environment for generations.

Together we built more than a school, we created a foundation of disaster preparedness, a space to learn about each other’s cultures and languages, and above all, a community that is rooted in shared humanity and care for one another.

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Climate change is driving the increase in frequency and intensity of wildfires worldwide. As the threat rises, brought forth by human activity, it is essential to be forward-thinking and protect those most vulnerable. While we can’t eliminate the risk, we can manage and reduce its impacts on communities. All Hands and Hearts’ (AHAH) California Wildfire Relief program goes beyond “traditional” disaster relief activities and does just this.

Piloted in 2021, we developed our sawyer training program for AHAH volunteers. This helps facilitate the crucial fire risk reduction work in Butte County, California, and increase capacity of saw operations in the future. In the second year of the program, graduate sawyers like Jaden returned as staff members and trained the new cohort of volunteers. One trainee remarked, “I have learned so much. I hope to have the opportunity to be a site supervisor one day and teach others, like Jaden has.”

And so the cycle continues, building greater resilience against the rising threat of wildfires.

The sawyer training program augmented AHAH’s capacity for locally-led mitigation projects in the fire-affected and fire-at-risk rural communities of Butte County. Through the implementation of strategies to slow or stop the spread of wildfire, we hoped to instill a sense of security for these communities. Our work supported homeowners through the creation of defensible space, the buffer around a home to slow or stop the spread of wildfire, and home hardening, tailor-made measures that can be applied directly to homes making them less susceptible to fire. As shared by one homeowner, this work “took a big weight off our shoulders [and] gave us hope”.

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In December 2021, when a powerful tropical cyclone wreaked havoc across the archipelago of the Philippines, All Hands and Hearts (AHAH) responded with an extraordinary program celebrating the human need for community and the role of women in society.

AHAH is known for its volunteer-powered relief efforts, but Filipinos have their own word for the volunteer efforts that fueled this uniquely local project – “bayanihan”. The bayanihan spirit brought this community together, in unity and cooperation, to repair and rebuild the boats of storm-affected fisherfolk – restoring livelihoods in time for the next fishing season. This low-cost, high-impact response was kept small and scalable by embracing localization. It is our first program to date to use 100% local staff and volunteers – a success story we’re excited to replicate in the future.

A hallmark of our programs is the crucial role women play in uplifting their communities in the wake of disaster. The Araceli-based program was led, managed and steered by a strong group of Filipina females who guided the reconstruction and completion of 73 fishing boats. Not only did they lead the local volunteer group, they maintained daily site support, directed vital decisions, harnessed their individual attributes and leaned on each other to drive the success of the program.

Through this work, they advocate for themselves and inspire other women in the community to learn new skills and carve a prosperous path for their futures.

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This year, All Hands and Hearts (AHAH) worked across six school districts in Chisec, Guatemala, strengthening water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) infrastructure, and providing locally-tailored, community-driven training. With access to safe water resources and continued access to a high level of hygiene, we helped lay the foundation for strong, healthy futures.

At AHAH, we believe in uplifting the tenets of the community to fortify resilience. The deepest impact is when the perspectives, challenges and traditions that shape people’s lives are woven into a solution. In Chisec, we asked residents about their long-term needs and what inspires confidence for their futures. The response was resounding: consistent, safe access to WASH.

The lack of WASH necessitated a multi-faceted approach, which included toilets, hand washing and water storage facilities in designs similar to those used by the community. Community members and local staff engaged in each step throughout the design and process, ensuring new structures reflect local norms and values.

In addition to community-inspired infrastructural solutions, our incredible grassroots partners developed locally-centered training to promote healthy habits and active use of these structures.

Over 500 hours of training means that over 1,000 people living in one of the most vulnerable regions of Guatemala are equipped with information and practice in water, sanitation and menstrual hygiene. Beyond this, each school has available a related manual as well as trained designees to support ongoing infrastructural maintenance. Locally-driven answers to safe access to water strengthened by healthy practices and resources around hygiene mean that the Chisec communities are empowered with the infrastructure, tools and knowledge to thrive in a lasting way.

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