Applying adaptive management to livelihoods in emergency settings

Adaptive management is a way of working that starts with an assumption of uncertainty around how to address a particular challenge.

This brief provides an overview of how adaptive management can be applied to livelihoods and other market-related work in emergency settings. It provides an overview of and link to specific tools as well as detail on the situations in which they are most useful. 

The foundation of this brief is a literature review of over 85 documents and resources on adaptive management in humanitarian settings, which was completed under the USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA)-funded IDEAL Activity in 2020. Also available in French. 

A second brief, Resources to strengthen adaptive management for livelihoods programming in emergency settings, focuses on how existing tools can be used for
livelihoods and markets work in emergencies and complements the first brief.

• Watch the webinar: Applying Adaptive Management to Livelihoods in Emergencies

Useful for:

This document is an excellent port of call for those looking to apply adaptive approaches in Fragile & Conflicted-Affected Settings, as well as those looking for tools on adaptive management in general.