Approximately 2 billion rural people live in small farm households. Each year, emergencies compromise many of their livelihoods. Practitioners, policymakers, and communities have a wealth of experience about which approaches for agricultural assistance are effective (or not) in emergencies. To date, this evidence has not been systematically reviewed.
The SEADS Project will review this evidence and experience to develop standards through a two-year, inclusive, and consultative process. Check out our Get Involved page to learn about opportunities to be part of the process.
The SEADS Standards will enable those responding to humanitarian crises to design, implement, and evaluate agricultural interventions to maintain and strengthen the livelihoods of farming communities, support preparedness and post-emergency recovery, and increase their resiliency.
People who provide preparedness, emergency, recovery, and resilience assistance, such as aid organizations, bi- and multilateral agencies, and governments.
Policy and decision-makers in donor and government agencies whose funding and decisions frame emergency responses.
SEADS is designed to benefit people who rely on agriculture for their livelihoods and are subject to emergencies that threaten their livelihoods. As such, SEADS is committed to understanding and including local perspectives while recognizing the wealth of experience in the international humanitarian community.
SEADS relies on the best available evidence, not organizational preferences, for the standards. SEADS expects that these objective standards will help push organizations out of “business as usual” to make it easier to use sound evidence in the design and implementation of agricultural responses in emergencies.
SEADs takes a livelihoods-approach to ensure that responses to emergencies are implemented in a way that facilitates long-term recovery and growth. SEADS will promote ways to provide support to systems and services during emergencies that are needed to enable post-disaster recovery.
The SEADS Project is led by a Steering Group that coordinates and oversees the production and uptake of the SEADS Standards.
The SEADS Field Team provides critical, practical knowledge and experience to ensure that the perspectives of the communities affected by emergencies and their governments are included in the development of the standards. Learn about joining the team here.
The SEADS Steering Group and Field Team are supported by:
The SEADS Project is using a process similar to that of The Sphere Handbook: Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Response (2018) and the Livestock Emergency Guidelines and Standards (LEGS). It will complement the Humanitarian Standards Partnership (HSP) to ensure crucial links between protecting and rebuilding agricultural assets and other areas of humanitarian response. The Humanitarian Standards Partnership is a collaboration between the world’s leading standards setting initiatives which aims to improve the quality and accountability of humanitarian action through the increased application of humanitarian standards. SEADS will seek membership in the HSP when the standards are completed.
