In humanitarian assistance, an increasingly popular response is cash and voucher assistance (CVA). CVA refers to “the provision of cash transfers or vouchers given to individuals, household or community recipients”. Just from 2015 to 2020, the use of CVA as a humanitarian response more than doubled, making it an important element of the humanitarian response programs. CVA’s positive impact in social and economic sustainability is well established; it allows freedom in decision-making and dignity for recipients since they control how they spend the cash or vouchers, boosts local consumption and business, as well as promotes social cohesion. However, there has not been as much focus on the environmental impact of CVA, as the programming of CVA programs often makes it difficult to assess and control their environmental impact.
In this episode of Sustainability Unwrapped, Amin Maghsoudi, researcher at the HUMLOG institute at Hanken, discusses with José Jodar and Valérie Léon, about CVA´s relationship to the environment and how environmental impact can be considered in the CVA programs without forgetting the social benefits and burdening the recipients of assistance.
