Reflections On Humanitarian Action

Reflections On Humanitarian Action PDF

Author: Humanitarian Studies Unit

Publisher: Pluto Press

Published: 2001-04-20

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780745317267

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Humanitarian action has become a subject for serious debate in light of recent conflicts across the globe. The debacle in Somalia, the policy of intervention in Bosnia, and domestic conflicts in the West over intervention in Kosovo have given rise to many complex questions surrounding humanitarian action. The contributors to this volume provide a systematic overview of the issues involved from a wide range of viewpoints.The book examines the central problems of humanitarian action: the judicial question and the right to humanitarian assistance; the ethical framework of humanitarian action; the challenge of coordination of all the actors involved in humanitarian action; the recipients in the aid chain; the link between aid, development and emergency action; the role of the media; and a practical evaluation of Operation Lifeline Sudan.

The Humanitarian Machine

The Humanitarian Machine PDF

Author: Diego Fernandez Otegui

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2021

Total Pages: 214

ISBN-13: 9780367689797

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As the world reels from the impact of a global pandemic and increasing intensity of climate-caused hazards, the humanitarian sector has never been more relevant. But providing aid to those affected by disasters and crises is more complex than ever. In The Humanitarian Machine aid workers reflect on their own experiences of working in crisis. As they write about their work and the ways in which they each approach the challenges of helping people, they comment on some of the most vexing issues facing the humanitarian sector. Each speaks from their own perspective, asking tough questions, sharing thoughtful reflections about their ongoing work, and unpacking what it really means to be a humanitarian worker. The stories they tell, whether recounting a specific experience or reflecting on years of practice, reveal the dilemmas they face and demystify the overly romanticized aura that sometimes surrounds humanitarian practice. Complementing the candid accounts that humanitarian leaders contribute in this book, the editors examine how their stories, perceptions, and understandings align with similar conversations that take place in other settings. Viewed together in this way, the insights and reflections provided in this book will be invaluable for humanitarian practitioners, students, and researchers alike.

The Humanitarian Machine

The Humanitarian Machine PDF

Author: Diego Fernandez Otegui

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2021-07-06

Total Pages: 339

ISBN-13: 1000402096

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As the world reels from the impact of a global pandemic and increasing intensity of climate-caused hazards, the humanitarian sector has never been more relevant. But providing aid to those affected by disasters and crises is more complex than ever. In The Humanitarian Machine aid workers reflect on their own experiences of working in crisis. As they write about their work and the ways in which they each approach the challenges of helping people, they comment on some of the most vexing issues facing the humanitarian sector. Each speaks from their own perspective, asking tough questions, sharing thoughtful reflections about their ongoing work, and unpacking what it really means to be a humanitarian worker. The stories they tell, whether recounting a specific experience or reflecting on years of practice, reveal the dilemmas they face and demystify the overly romanticized aura that sometimes surrounds humanitarian practice. Complementing the candid accounts that humanitarian leaders contribute in this book, the editors examine how their stories, perceptions, and understandings align with similar conversations that take place in other settings. Viewed together in this way, the insights and reflections provided in this book will be invaluable for humanitarian practitioners, students, and researchers alike.

Evaluating International Humanitarian Action

Evaluating International Humanitarian Action PDF

Author: Adrian Wood

Publisher: Zed Books

Published: 2001-08-31

Total Pages: 268

ISBN-13:

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Humanitarian intervention has become a much more frequent form of development assistance, and there has been a corresponding need to evaluate the effectiveness of such interventions. This is the first compilation of the experiences of practitioners engaged in humanitarian programme evaluations, and the lessons they have learned. The case studies cover the different kinds of humanitarian emergency characteristic of the past decade. The contributors address the context in which evaluations of humanitarian assistance take place; the actual process of doing evaluations; and the lessons for improving how such evaluations might be better undertaken in future. This pioneering volume should be of practical value to agencies and individuals engaged in both the delivery of humanitarian assistance in complex emergencies and its evaluation.

Humanitarian Action and Ethics

Humanitarian Action and Ethics PDF

Author: Ayesha Ahmad

Publisher: Zed Books Ltd.

Published: 2018-06-15

Total Pages: 296

ISBN-13: 1786992701

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From natural disaster areas to conflict zones, humanitarian workers today find themselves operating in diverse and difficult environments. While humanitarian work has always presented unique ethical challenges, such efforts are now further complicated by the impact of globalization, the escalating refugee crisis, and mounting criticisms of established humanitarian practice. Featuring contributions from humanitarian practitioners, health professionals, and social and political scientists, this book explores the question of ethics in modern humanitarian work, drawing on the lived experience of humanitarian workers themselves. Its essential case studies cover humanitarian work in countries ranging from Haiti and South Sudan to Syria and Iraq, and address issues such as gender based violence, migration, and the growing phenomenon of ‘volunteer tourism’. Together, these contributions offer new perspectives on humanitarian ethics, as well as insight into how such ethical considerations might inform more effective approaches to humanitarian work.

Traditions, Values, and Humanitarian Action

Traditions, Values, and Humanitarian Action PDF

Author: Kevin M. Cahill

Publisher: Fordham University Press

Published: 2003

Total Pages: 466

ISBN-13: 9780823222889

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This third volume in the pioneering series, International Humanitarian Affairs, goes beyond the practical to address fundamental questions at the heart of humanitarian actions. How do different religious, cultural, and social systems--and the values they support--shape humanitarian action? What are the bases of caring societies? Are there universal values for human well-being? International experts come face to face with the assumptions about human dignity and social justice that guide efforts to rescue and repair communities in crisis. The original essays explore mandates for humanitarian action in religious traditions, and codes of conduct for the media, military, medicine, and the academy in relief efforts. They explore threats to human welfare from terrorism and gender exploitation and assess international law, the media, and the politics of civil society in a world of war, conflict, and strife. The contributors: Kofi Annan, Avery Cardinal Dulles, S.J., Rabbi Harlan J. Wechsler, H.R.H. Prince El Hassan Bin Talal, Francis Mading Deng, Maj. Gen. Timothy Cross, Joseph O' Hare, S.J., Tom Brokaw, Eoin O'Brien, M.D., Jan Eliasson, Timothy Harding, M.D., Paul Wilkinson, Larry Hollingworth, Nancy Ely-Raphel, John Feerick, Michael Veuthey, Edward Mortimer, Kathleen Newland, Peter Tarnoff, Richard Falk, and the editor.

Humanitarian Negotiations Revealed

Humanitarian Negotiations Revealed PDF

Author: Claire Magone

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2012-02-28

Total Pages:

ISBN-13: 1849045259

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From international NGOs to UN agencies, from donors to observers of humanitarianism, opinion is unanimous: in a context of the alleged "clash of civilizations", our "humanitarian space" is shrinking. Put another way, the freedom of action and of speech of humanitarians is being eroded due to the radicalisation of conflicts and the reaffirmation of state sovereignty over aid actors and policies. The purpose of this book is to challenge this assumption through an analysis of the events that have marked MSF's history since 2003 (when MSF published its first general work on humanitarian action and its relationships with governments). It addresses the evolution of humanitarian goals, the resistance to these goals and the political arrangements that overcame this resistance (or that failed to do so). The contributors seek to analyse the political transactions and balances of power and interests that allow aid activities to move forward, but that are usually masked by the lofty rhetoric of "humanitarian principles". They focus on one key question: what is an acceptable compromise for MSF? This book seeks to puncture a number of the myths that have grown up over the forty years since MSF was founded and describes in detail how the ideals of humanitarian principles and "humanitarian space" operating in conflict zones are in reality illusory. How, in fact, it is the grubby negotiations with varying parties, each of whom have their own vested interests, that may allow organisations such as MSF to operate in a given crisis situation - or not.