Why Resilient Schools Matter: Protecting Education and Communities in a Changing Climate
July 4, 2025
DID YOU KNOW?
In 2024 alone, 242 million children across 85 countries were severely impacted by extreme climate events1 – forced to flee their homes, rely on humanitarian aid and miss out on education. As climate change accelerates, these storms are becoming more frequent, more intense and more destructive. For children and their families, this means constant uncertainty. Too often, education is interrupted or abandoned entirely after disasters strike.
All Hands and Hearts (AHAH) builds disaster-resilient schools because we believe every child deserves a safe place to learn. A classroom should be more than four walls, it should be a shelter from the storm, a foundation for the future and a source of strength for the entire community.
Resilient Infrastructure Case Study: Santo Nino High School, Philippines – Completed March 2025
This urgency for safe schools is especially clear in the Philippines, where up to 20 typhoons strike each year2. In December 2021, Super Typhoon Rai damaged or destroyed 528 schools across Southern Leyte, severely disrupting education for thousands of students. In the municipality of Hinunangan, an area already facing limited opportunities due to repeated destructive typhoons, AHAH created space for growth and resilience by constructing a four-classroom school building using Cement Bamboo Frame Technology.
At the heart of this innovative design is disaster resilience. The structure combines the strength of cement with the natural flexibility and durability of bamboo, known for its strength comparable to steel, to create a sustainable, long-lasting building. This approach ensures safety during future typhoons and earthquakes, while delivering key environmental and socio-economic benefits.
Bamboo’s strong root systems help stabilize soil and water tables, making communities more resistant to erosion and climate-related disasters. Its cultivation also supports local livelihoods, providing income for farmers and encouraging sustainable forestry.
Beyond constructing a safe and sustainable school, this project had a transformative impact: with the addition of these new classrooms, Sto. Niño School became officially certified to offer senior high school education, unlocking new opportunities for students and paving the way for brighter futures in a community long hindered by disaster.
More Than Classrooms: A Holistic Model for Resilience
A disaster-resilient school is more than just a safe structure; it’s a space where children can play, learn and build meaningful connections, supporting their social and emotional development. At AHAH, our work goes beyond building classrooms. We integrate improved Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) facilities that not only enhance health but also reduce absenteeism and support continued learning.
For example, in areas without adequate menstrual hygiene facilities, girls may miss up to 20% of the school year2. This disruption in their educational journey significantly affects their academic performance and limits future employment opportunities. Our WASH projects are designed to address these challenges, specifically targeting gender inequities in education by ensuring access to safe, private and dignified sanitation facilities for all students.
WASH Case Study: Bandevi School, Nepal – Completed May 2025
AHAH upgraded the existing bathroom facilities at Bandevi School to enhance hygiene, improve accessibility and better meet the needs of the entire school community. A new, accessible bathroom equipped with an incinerator was constructed to provide access for all and ensure that girls feel confident and supported in attending school during their menstrual cycle. To promote good hygiene practices, a dedicated handwashing station was added, empowering both students and staff. Additionally, a new septic tank was installed to ensure the safe disposal of waste and to maintain a clean, healthy school environment.
To guarantee year-round access to safe drinking water, a comprehensive filtration system was installed. This reliable system plays a vital role in protecting student health, reducing the risk of waterborne illnesses that often cause children to miss valuable days of school. By removing this barrier, we are helping ensure that students can focus on learning, not on recovering from preventable illnesses. Access to safe drinking water is not just a health issue – it’s essential to uninterrupted education and a brighter future.
These physical improvements were reinforced with targeted education initiatives. Menstrual hygiene management sessions addressed the risks of poor menstrual hygiene and helped reduce stigma around menstruation, while WASH training equipped students with essential knowledge and practices to maintain personal hygiene and prevent the spread of disease. Together, these efforts contribute to a healthier, more inclusive and empowering learning environment for all students.
Empowering Communities through Capacity Building
At AHAH, we don’t just build resilient schools; we help create resilient communities. Strengthening local capacity in disaster-impacted areas is essential for improving preparedness, enhancing response and accelerating recovery from future hazardous events. This community-led approach builds long-term resilience and reduces vulnerability over time.
We work closely with local communities and partners to deeply understand their unique needs and challenges. As a result, each of our programs includes tailored training sessions designed to equip individuals with the knowledge and skills most relevant to their context, ensuring that recovery efforts are not only effective but also sustainable and community-driven.
Community Trainings Case Study: San Bartolo School, Mexico – Completed January 2025
First Aid Trainings conducted over three-hour sessions provided 45 parents, 5 teachers and 8 masons with essential first aid skills, furthering their knowledge to care for their community and assist in disaster risk reduction.
Wellness Workshops were carried out for 28 parents and teachers, covering stress management and emotional hygiene practices. Participants reported incorporating the new learnings into their daily lives, including: identifying and managing emotions, adequate rest and sleep and the importance of healthy eating. Rainwater Harvesting Training hosted by our local partner provided comprehensive information regarding the proper usage of the new rainwater harvesters for 22 community members.
Through these trainings and partnerships, AHAH reinforces the idea that disaster recovery is not just about rebuilding structures, it’s about empowering people. Our work at San Bartolo School highlights how tailored, community-led training can foster knowledge-sharing, build confidence, and equip individuals with the tools they need to lead safer, healthier lives. By investing in capacity-building alongside infrastructure, we ensure that the impact of our programs extends far beyond the classroom, supporting communities to thrive, adapt and face the future with strength and resilience.
Our support to the wider communities we serve does not stop there. In 2017, AHAH launched the Female Mason Training program, in Nepal, to equip women with earthquake-resilient construction skills, empowering them with practical expertise and access to employment opportunities that improve their economic well-being. The program’s success in Nepal led to its expansion across our programs in the Philippines and Mexico, further advancing our commitment to gender equity and sustainable, locally led recovery.
Female Mason Training – Case Study: Mahayag School, The Philippines – Completed October 2024
After engaging with the community of St. Bernard and confirming strong local interest, AHAH successfully trained four women through 3,760 hours of comprehensive theoretical and hands-on instruction at Mahayag School. Demonstrating both skill and dedication, three of these newly qualified female masons went on to join our construction team as professional workers in the reconstruction of Santo Niño High School, showcasing the program’s success in building both individual capacity and local workforce resilience.
“Thank you to AHAH for this kind of program. The FMT is effective and helpful to us. We learned a lot from the program, and at the same time we were given opportunity to work and earn for our family.” – Female Mason Trainee from St. Bernard.
Resilient Schools: Resilient Futures
From constructing safe, sustainable schools to implementing life-changing WASH programs, capacity-building trainings and empowering female leadership through the Female Mason Training Program, our approach goes far beyond the physical. We are nurturing systems of support, resilience and opportunity that ripple through generations.
Whether it’s a classroom that stands strong through a typhoon, a girl returning to school with dignity or a parent confidently applying first aid in an emergency – these are the outcomes that define real recovery. They are only possible through the collective strength of the communities we serve, our dedicated volunteers and partners, and the unwavering support of our donors who continue to champion this work.
As the climate crisis continues to challenge the futures of millions of children, we remain committed to doing more than rebuilding, we’re reimagining what schools and communities can become when resilience is at their core.
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