The protection of populations affected or threatened by conflict and natural disasters is a critical component of humanitarian action. Challenges of ensuring protection are notably complex, touching on myriad intersecting issues including international legal norms, frontline humanitarian negotiation, gender, and the migration patterns of vulnerable populations.In this episode of the Humanitarian Assistance Podcast, Yves Daccord, the Director General of the International Committee of the Red Cross gives the opening keynote address for the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative’s 2018 Humanitarian Action Summit. In his talk, Mr. Daccord discusses four current challenges in addressing protection: the protection of aid workers—including the increasing use of remote management to transfer risk to local partners, impunity for attacks on healthcare, the use of detention as state policy to dissuade migration, and the digital insecurity of vulnerable populations fleeing violence.  

Harvard Humanitarian Podcast

The Future of Humanitarian Protection: Keynote Address by Yves Daccord

On August 1, 2018 the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Ministry of Health announced the 10th Ebola virus outbreak since 1976 had been confirmed in the country’s North Kivu Province. Senior Director of Emergency Health at the International Rescue Committee, Michelle Gayer, noted this outbreak has, “the potential to be the worst ever seen in East Africa—and risks being an encore of history we simply cannot afford.” Health workers face a number of challenges delivering medical and preventative care in this context, exacerbated by high numbers of operational armed groups and rumors that the outbreak is politically fabricated to decrease voter turnout in the country’s upcoming elections. New options for treatment and lessons learned from the 2014 West Africa Ebola crisis can provide insight for aid workers on the frontlines of this latest outbreak. In this episode, Ambassador Sinead Walsh and Dr. Oliver Johnson discuss their new book, "Getting to Zero: A Doctor and a Diplomat on the Ebola Frontline," which explores the shortcomings of the 2014 response, as well as suggestions for improvement in future outbreaks. They are joined by Patrick Vinck, the Director of Research at the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, who is currently conducting research on the outbreak in the DRC.

Responding to the 2018 Ebola Outbreak: Challenges and Opportunities

In this episode, we speak with Wendy Betts, Director of the EyeWitness to Atrocities project of the International Bar Association. With growing concerns about impunity for atrocities and other violations of international law in conflict and emergency settings around the world, EyeWitness helping to bring perpetrators of atrocities to justice. The mobile camera app tool can be used to capture verifiable photos or videos related to international atrocity crimes. The tool also captures the metadata needed to ensure that images can be used in investigations or trials, and securely stores the information, while the eyeWitness team works with users to reviews the evidence and connect to investigative or judicial mechanisms. So today on the podcast, we’ll speak with Wendy Betts about how tools like EyeWitness may be used to enhance accountability for international crimes, and promote the protection of civilians and aid workers. We’ll also discuss some of the particular sensitivities around engagement by humanitarian actions in the pursuit of accountability, and ways to mitigate the risk while promoting international humanitarian norms.

Practitioner Profile | Wendy Betts

In light of recent international negotiations over nuclear disarmament and efforts to respond to the use of chemical and poisonous weapons, we sit down with Dr. Erickson to discuss the health and environmental impacts of conflict and emergencies. Dr. Timothy B. Erickson is an emergency medicine physician at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston where he serves as the Chief of Medical Toxicology in the Department of Emergency Medicine, and a faculty member at the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative. He is an expert in environmental toxicology and crisis in climate change, and has active humanitarian health projects in conflict regions of Ukraine and Syria, as well as ongoing health projects in Nepal and India. Dr. Erickson earned his M.D. degree from The Chicago Medical School in 1986, and is a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians, the American College of Medical Toxicology, the American Academy of Clinical Toxicology, and the National Geographic Explorers Club.

Practitioner Profile | Timothy B. Erickson

From the campaign to ban landmines to cluster munitions to the prohibition of nuclear weapons, advocates of humanitarian disarmament have sought to ban or restrict the use of certain indiscriminate and inhumane weapons to reduce civilian harm and suffering in conflict. In this episode, we’ll speak with leading experts and practitioners in the humanitarian disarmament movement. We’ll discuss the humanitarian approach to disarmament, and lessons from particular campaigns, including the Nobel Peace Prize-winning coalitions behind the 2017 Nuclear Weapon Ban Treaty and the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty, as well ongoing movements to address the use of explosive weapons in populated areas, lethal autonomous weapons systems (“killer robots”), toxic remnants of war, and other remaining challenges for civilian protection in armed conflict.

Humanitarian Disarmament

Yemen has become, according to the United Nations and World Health Organization, the largest humanitarian crisis in the world. Nearly 12 million people are in need of assistance and in 2017, the worst cholera outbreak in recent history affected an estimated 1 million people. The outbreak, though now controlled, and other infectious diseases combine with famine, malnutrition, and the collapse of the country’s water and sanitation sector to threaten millions, while aid access is blocked and aid workers, hospitals, and civilian areas are attacked. As the armed conflict continues and political fissures in Yemen deepen, humanitarian access and protection issues continue to pose enormous challenges. This panel was recorded during a live event at the Middle East Initiative at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. Panelists discussed the complexities of addressing the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Yemen, paying particular focus to the cholera outbreak, as well as the broader issues of sustaining humanitarian access and protection, advocating for respect for human rights, and achieving a political solution to the crisis.

Yemen's Humanitarian Crisis: Conflict, Cholera, and International Response

In this episode, we interview Maciej Polkowski, Head of the Health Care in Danger Initiative based in Geneva. Health Care in Danger (HCID) is an initiative of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement aimed at addressing the issue of violence against patients, health workers, medical facilities, and vehicles, and ensuring safe access to and delivery of health care in armed conflict and other emergencies.

Practitioner Profile: Maciej Polkowski

In this podcast, we speak with leading experts and practitioners about the strategic use sexual violence was a weapon of war in Syria. We’ll discuss the how sexual violence has been used against women, girls, boys and men in Syria by government forces and armed groups, and what impact it has had on survivors, and their families and communities. We’ll also discuss how humanitarian actors can better assist survivors inside Syria and in situations of displacement, how perpetrators can be held accountable, and the longer term implications for peace. Key questions include:

Sexual Violence as a Weapon of War in Syria

Whether used to instill fear, humiliate, or punish; destroy lives, families and communities; or enforce social order and power dynamics, rape and other forms of sexual violence have been widely documented in the Syrian conflict. In this podcast, we speak with leading experts and practitioners about the strategic use of sexual violence as a weapon of war in Syria. We’ll discuss the how sexual violence has been used against women, girls, boys and men in Syria by government forces and armed groups, and what impact it has had on survivors, and their families and communities. We’ll also discuss how humanitarian actors can better assist survivors inside Syria and in situations of displacement, how perpetrators can be held accountable, and the longer term implications for peace.

In this episode Meredith Blake interviews Brian Heilman, a senior research officer at Promundo, whose work focuses on eliminating harmful masculine norms, preventing all forms of gender-based violence, and achieving broader gender equality and social justice both in the United States and globally. Brian is the co-author of the 2017 State of the World&apos;s Fathers and 2016 State of America&apos;s Fathers reports, the lead author of The Man Box study on harmful effects of rigid mascuoline norms in the U.S., U.K., and Mexico, and a co-author of multiple reports using International Men and Gender Equality Survey (IMAGES) data. Brian has extensive program and research experience in South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Middle East, and is deeply engaged in sexual violence prevention educator in Minnesota. He holds a BA in English from Saint John&apos;s University and an MA in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University.

Practitioner Profile: Promundo's Brian Heilman

If the audio player above does not load, you can listen to the podcast here. In honor of International Women’s Day, we’re speaking to women all over the world who are working to advance equality for women and girls. In this episode, we speak with the founders of the Humanitarian Women’s Network, a 4200-member and growing, global network of professional women working in the aid and development sector. Elisabeth Faure, Rosalia Gitau, Capucine de Fouchier, Anika Kristic, and Sabina Robillard join us to discuss their 2016 survey on female aid workers which assessed the impacts of discrimination and harassment, sexual aggression and assault, reporting mechanisms and adjudication, and the impact of sexual harassment and assault on professional and personal well-being.

International Women's Day Profile: Humanitarian Women's Network

In honor of International Women’s Day, ATHA is speaking to women all over the world who work to advance equality for women and girls. In this episode, we speak with the founders of Ladysmith, a feminist venture for gender equality. Guided by the principle “no research about us, without us,” Ladysmith helps international development organizations produce, analyze and take action on gender data.

Practitioner Profile: Tara Cookson and Lorena Fuentes

In honor of International Women’s Day, ATHA is speaking to women all over the world who work to advance equality for women and girls. In this episode, we speak with Isabelle Arradon, the Director of Research and a Special Advisor on Gender at the International Crisis Group’s headquarters in Brussels.

Practitioner Profile: Isabelle Arradon

Since the passage of UNSC Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) in October 2000, gender mainstreaming in humanitarian programming has highlighted not only the differential impacts of war and crisis on women, but also the important contributions women make to conflict resolution and the long-term sustainability of peace agreements. In a panel conversation with experts and practitioners, this podcast will explore how men can work as allies to advance gender equality in humanitarian settings, what challenges remain for the practical implementation of gender equitable policies and programming, and opportunities to advance a broader coalition of voices in humanitarian leadership and decision-making.

Engaging Men to Advance Gender Equality

Earlier this year, Yemen faced the worst cholera outbreak in recent history, affecting an estimated 1 million people. Although the cholera crisis has been largely contained, new challenges continue to emerge. Over the past months, Yemen has faced a blockade cutting off much-needed commercial and humanitarian access to the country, which has also been hit by increased Saudi-led airstrikes and a recent outbreak of diphtheria. Following up on our previous podcast discussion on the cholera outbreak in Yemen, this podcast explores elements of the ongoing response to this complex humanitarian crisis, as well as reflections on lessons learned over the last several months of fighting.

Yemen’s Cholera Crisis (Part II): Updates on Health and Education

A space for dialogue about current humanitarian dilemmas.