🌍 Part of our Humanitarian & NGO Industry Training Series — browse all related courses →
About This Course
Humanitarian operations — spanning emergency relief, refugee settlement, food security, WASH, shelter, and livelihood recovery — consume significant natural resources and can leave lasting ecological footprints if not carefully managed. Deforestation linked to firewood collection in refugee camps, soil degradation caused by poorly sited latrines, water-table depletion from emergency boreholes, and waste mismanagement in displacement settings are among the documented environmental harms that humanitarian actors increasingly face scrutiny over. At the same time, degraded environments amplify vulnerability, creating cycles of crisis that undermine the very communities organisations are trying to assist.
The Environmental Sustainability in Humanitarian Projects Training is designed to break that cycle. Over five intensive days, participants develop a comprehensive understanding of how environmental considerations intersect with humanitarian programming — from initial needs assessments and project design through to implementation, monitoring, and exit. The course introduces internationally recognised frameworks such as the UNHCR Environmental Guidelines, the IASC Reference Module on environment, the Sphere Standards' environmental footnotes, and ISO 14001 principles as adapted for field operations.
Beyond frameworks, the training is fundamentally practical. Participants work through real project scenarios, conduct mock Environmental Impact Assessments, develop green procurement checklists, and co-design sustainability annexes for live project documents. By the end of the week, each participant leaves with a concrete Environmental Sustainability Action Plan tailored to their own organisational context — a deliverable that provides immediate value upon return to the field or headquarters.
Who Should Attend
- Humanitarian project managers and coordinators working for INGOs, NGOs, or UN agencies
- Environment and natural resource management officers embedded in humanitarian organisations
- Donor-funded programme officers responsible for compliance and quality assurance
- Shelter, WASH, food security, and livelihood technical specialists seeking to green their sector
- Government officials in disaster risk reduction, environment, and humanitarian affairs ministries
- Consultants conducting environmental assessments or audits for humanitarian projects
- Monitoring and evaluation professionals tasked with tracking environmental indicators
Learning Objectives
- Explain the relationship between environmental degradation, vulnerability, and humanitarian need
- Apply key international frameworks — including UNHCR Environmental Guidelines, Sphere, and IASC tools — to real project contexts
- Conduct a field-level Environmental Impact Screening and basic Environmental Impact Assessment for a humanitarian intervention
- Identify sector-specific environmental risks across WASH, shelter, food security, camp management, and livelihoods programming
- Integrate environmental sustainability requirements into project proposals, logical frameworks, and budgets
- Design environmentally sensitive procurement and supply chain practices appropriate for humanitarian settings
- Develop monitoring and evaluation indicators that capture environmental outcomes alongside humanitarian outcomes
- Apply community-based natural resource management principles to strengthen local ownership and resilience
- Formulate a practical Environmental Sustainability Action Plan for their own organisation or project
- Communicate environmental sustainability requirements persuasively to donors, partners, and field teams
Course Modules
Module 1: The Environment–Humanitarian Nexus
- How environmental degradation drives humanitarian crises and perpetuates vulnerability
- Key concepts: ecosystem services, carrying capacity, and ecological footprint in crisis contexts
- Overview of international commitments — Paris Agreement, Sendai Framework, and SDGs — relevant to humanitarian actors
- Case study: deforestation and firewood collection dynamics in East African refugee settlements
- The feedback loop between humanitarian response activities and further environmental degradation in host areas
- Gender dimensions of environmental stress: how resource scarcity disproportionately affects women and girls in displacement
Module 2: International Frameworks and Standards for Environmental Sustainability in Humanitarian Action
- UNHCR Environmental Guidelines and their application across sectors
- The IASC Reference Module on environment in humanitarian action
- Sphere Standards environmental footnotes and the Humanitarian Charter
- ISO 14001 Environmental Management System principles adapted for field operations
- The OECD DAC environment and development aid markers and their implications for humanitarian project reporting
- How national environmental legislation interacts with international humanitarian standards in host country contexts
Module 3: Environmental Impact Screening and Assessment
- Distinguishing Environmental Impact Screening from full Environmental Impact Assessment
- Step-by-step application of a rapid EIS tool in humanitarian project contexts
- Identifying valued ecosystem components and sensitive receptors in field settings
- Documenting findings and triggering appropriate mitigation responses
- Applying the mitigation hierarchy — avoid, minimise, restore, offset — to findings from a humanitarian EIS
- Quality assurance and peer review of screening outputs in multi-agency coordination settings
Module 4: Sector-Specific Environmental Risks — WASH and Shelter
- Groundwater depletion, contamination risks, and faecal sludge management in emergency WASH
- Site selection criteria for latrines, boreholes, and solid waste disposal to minimise soil and water impact
- Sustainable materials selection and deconstruction planning in emergency shelter and transitional housing
- Energy-efficient design principles for humanitarian shelter in hot, arid, and humid contexts
- Life-cycle costing of shelter materials: balancing upfront expense against long-term environmental and maintenance impacts
- Managing construction waste streams and hazardous materials — paints, solvents, asbestos — on humanitarian build sites
Module 5: Sector-Specific Environmental Risks — Food Security, Livelihoods, and Camp Management
- Soil fertility management and pesticide risks in emergency food production and distribution
- Overgrazing, land tenure, and natural resource competition in livelihood recovery programmes
- Waste management systems and vector control in planned and spontaneous settlements
- Environmental mainstreaming in camp management coordination mechanisms
- Integrating agroecological approaches — composting, intercropping, water harvesting — into emergency food security programming
- Assessing and mitigating the environmental footprint of large-scale food commodity storage, including rodenticide use and packaging disposal
Module 6: Integrating Environmental Sustainability into Project Design
- Incorporating environmental objectives into needs assessments, problem analyses, and theory of change
- Writing environmental sustainability outputs, indicators, and assumptions into logical frameworks
- Budgeting for environmental mitigation measures without compromising humanitarian deliverables
- Environmental sustainability annexes: structure, content, and donor expectations
- Conducting environmental sensitivity analysis during project design to anticipate risk hotspots before implementation begins
- Ensuring meaningful participation of affected communities in defining environmental priorities during programme design
Module 7: Green Procurement and Environmentally Responsible Supply Chains
- Applying sustainable procurement principles in humanitarian supply chains under time pressure
- Developing supplier environmental assessment criteria and green procurement checklists
- Managing packaging waste, transport emissions, and end-of-life disposal for humanitarian goods
- Case study: responsible sourcing of timber, fuel, and construction materials in complex emergencies
- Calculating and reducing Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions associated with humanitarian procurement and logistics operations
- Building environmental clauses into framework agreements and contracts with suppliers, transporters, and service providers
Module 8: Community-Based Natural Resource Management in Humanitarian Contexts
- Principles of community-based NRM and their relevance to displacement and recovery settings
- Mapping local resource use patterns and customary governance structures before programme launch
- Designing community-led reforestation, soil conservation, and watershed management activities
- Navigating tensions between host communities and displaced populations over shared natural resources
- Linking community-based NRM outcomes to livelihood incentives to sustain participation beyond the initial project cycle
- Documenting and integrating indigenous ecological knowledge into natural resource management programme design
Module 9: Monitoring, Evaluation, and Accountability for Environmental Outcomes
- Developing SMART environmental indicators linked to programme log frames and theories of change
- Adapting participatory environmental monitoring methods for resource-constrained field settings
- Environmental data collection tools: scorecards, transect walks, and remote sensing basics
- Reporting environmental outcomes to donors, clusters, and affected communities transparently
- Establishing baseline environmental conditions at project inception to enable credible measurement of change over time
- Using real-time monitoring data to trigger adaptive management decisions and document course corrections in project records
Module 10: Building an Environmental Sustainability Action Plan
- Assessing the current state of environmental integration within your organisation or project portfolio
- Prioritising environmental risks and interventions using a risk-impact matrix
- Drafting an actionable Environmental Sustainability Action Plan with owners, timelines, and resources
- Presenting and peer-reviewing action plans: feedback, refinement, and commitment to implementation
- Identifying internal champions, governance structures, and policy hooks needed to institutionalise environmental sustainability beyond individual projects
- Designing a learning and accountability cycle — regular review milestones, lessons-learned documentation, and staff capacity development — to keep the action plan alive after training
Requirements & Prerequisites
Participants should have at least two years of experience working in humanitarian, development, or environmental programming. A basic understanding of the project cycle — from design through monitoring and closure — is expected. No formal environmental science qualification is required, as the course is designed for programme practitioners rather than technical specialists.
Training Methodology
- Environmental Impact Screening exercises using real project vignettes from WASH and shelter programmes
- Facilitated case study analysis of documented environmental harms and successes in humanitarian responses across East Africa, the Sahel, and the Middle East
- Small-group scenario workshops in which teams design sustainability measures for a simulated refugee settlement
- Hands-on development of green procurement checklists and supplier assessment criteria tailored to field conditions
- Peer review sessions where participants critique and improve each other's draft logical framework environmental indicators
- Guided construction of an individual Environmental Sustainability Action Plan using a structured template
- Expert panel discussion featuring a field environmental officer, a donor compliance advisor, and a community liaison specialist
- Reflective journalling prompts at the close of each day to consolidate learning and identify application opportunities
Organisational Benefits
- Reduced environmental liability and reputational risk for the organisation in sensitive ecosystems
- Improved donor compliance with environmental safeguard requirements increasingly demanded by ECHO, USAID, and other institutional funders
- Lower long-term operational costs through resource-efficient programme design (energy, water, materials)
- Stronger project quality and sustainability outcomes, contributing to greater impact per dollar spent
- Enhanced staff capacity to conduct environmental screenings without relying on costly external consultants
- Better integration of Do No Harm principles into standard operating procedures across sectors
- Improved community trust and social licence to operate in ecologically sensitive areas
- Competitive advantage in funding bids that require explicit environmental sustainability plans
Where Is Environmental Sustainability in Humanitarian Projects Training Offered?
This course runs in-person across: Mombasa, Abuja, Kampala, Nakuru, Addis Ababa, Nairobi, Pretoria, Kisumu, Dar es Salaam, Arusha, Dubai, Zanzibar, Cape Town, Naivasha, Lagos, Riyadh, Kigali, Johannesburg, Accra, plus Live Virtual (online) cohorts. Browse live dates for your city below.
Upcoming Schedules
| Location | Format | Dates | Price |
|---|
| Mombasa, Kenya |
In-Person |
5 Oct 2026 – 9 Oct 2026 |
KES 115,000 |
| Abuja, Nigeria |
In-Person |
5 Oct 2026 – 9 Oct 2026 |
USD 2,800 |
| Kampala, Uganda |
In-Person |
12 Oct 2026 – 16 Oct 2026 |
USD 1,900 |
| Nakuru, Kenya |
In-Person |
12 Oct 2026 – 16 Oct 2026 |
KES 115,000 |
| Live Virtual |
Online |
17 Oct 2026 – 8 Nov 2026 |
KES 80,000 |
| Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |
In-Person |
19 Oct 2026 – 23 Oct 2026 |
USD 2,400 |
| Nairobi, Kenya |
In-Person |
19 Oct 2026 – 23 Oct 2026 |
KES 115,000 |
| Pretoria, South Africa |
In-Person |
19 Oct 2026 – 23 Oct 2026 |
USD 3,300 |
| Kisumu, Kenya |
In-Person |
19 Oct 2026 – 23 Oct 2026 |
KES 120,000 |
| Dar es Salaam, Tanzania |
In-Person |
19 Oct 2026 – 23 Oct 2026 |
USD 2,300 |
| Arusha, Tanzania |
In-Person |
19 Oct 2026 – 23 Oct 2026 |
USD 2,100 |
| Dubai, United Arab Emirates |
In-Person |
19 Oct 2026 – 23 Oct 2026 |
USD 4,100 |
| Zanzibar, Tanzania |
In-Person |
19 Oct 2026 – 23 Oct 2026 |
USD 2,500 |
| Live Virtual |
Online |
19 Oct 2026 – 23 Oct 2026 |
KES 80,000 |
| Cape Town, South Africa |
In-Person |
26 Oct 2026 – 30 Oct 2026 |
USD 3,800 |
+237 more dates — view live schedule →
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a background in environmental science to attend this course?
No formal environmental science qualification is required. The course is designed for humanitarian programme practitioners — project managers, technical specialists, and M&E officers — who want to integrate sustainability thinking into their existing roles. The facilitators translate technical concepts into practical, field-applicable tools.
Will I receive a certificate upon completion?
Yes. Participants who attend all five days and complete the Environmental Sustainability Action Plan assignment receive a Certificate of Completion from TrainingComplex. The certificate can be shared with employers and included in professional portfolios.
Is this course relevant for both emergency response and longer-term recovery programming?
Absolutely. The course covers environmental sustainability across the full humanitarian project cycle, including rapid-onset emergency response, protracted displacement, and early recovery. Examples and tools are drawn from both acute crisis and longer-term programming contexts.
Can my organisation send a team and have them work on a shared Action Plan?
Yes, and this is strongly encouraged. Teams of two to four colleagues from the same organisation can collaborate on a joint Environmental Sustainability Action Plan during the course, making the output directly usable for their specific programme portfolio upon return.
What materials and tools will participants take away?
Participants receive a comprehensive digital resource pack including the Environmental Impact Screening template, green procurement checklist, M&E indicator bank, Environmental Sustainability Action Plan template, and curated references to key frameworks and guidelines used during the course.
