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In the news: Psychological Support and Wellbeing for Aid Workers

It is not breaking news that aid workers are frequently subjected to high levels of stress and pressure. Whether we acknowledge it or not, working in conflict zones, assisting during natural or manmade disasters and in-person or vicarious exposure to the effects of extreme poverty all make their mark. Whilst human resource teams are commonly charged with the management of employee health and wellbeing programmes, discussions during the GISF Forum in Berlin last September emphasised the link between staff wellbeing and good risk management practice. Security managers continuously strive to help staff deliver programmes in physical safety; how can we better mitigate the psychological impact of the work that we do?

28 Jan 2016 Blog

Risk Management Toolkit in Relation to Counterterrorism Measures

This toolkit (2015) is intended to contribute to an increased understanding of the connection between counterterrorism measures and humanitarian action and highlight steps that humanitarian organisations can take and are taking to address some of the main challenges and risks…

7 Jan 2016 Resource

Time for a Humanitarian Black Box?

At least sixteen hospitals were bombed in Syria, Afghanistan and Yemen over the past few weeks. Powerful nations carried out the aerial bombing campaigns that damaged infrastructure and killed humanitarian staff and civilians. However, the circumstances are usually disputed. Perhaps it is time the humanitarian community installed black boxes to record such events? This article presents a device that records forensic evidence of what happened where, when and who did it. It is a call to the humanitarian community to take part in generating the evidence that will force states to take their responsibilities in protecting humanitarian work seriously.

23 Nov 2015 Blog

In the News: Sexual violence against aid workers

Humanitarian response evaluations habitually find gender-based harassment to be a problem, with measures to prevent and respond to incidents proving inadequate. Subsequent rhetoric often fails to translate into reality and harassment continues on a day-to-day basis, both for civilians and aid workers. This article is largely centred on sexual violence against humanitarian workers, exploring the pervasive issue and potential responses.

29 Oct 2015 Blog

Working in High Risk Areas: Duties and Regulatory Expectations

This report summarises a one-day workshop, hosted by the Charity Commission in 2015, centred on duties and regulatory expectations when working in high-risk environments. The workshop, convened in partnership with the Muslim Charities Forum, produced an open and wide-ranging discussion…

20 Oct 2015 Resource

Managing Risk – Why, when, how?

An ever-changing world means challenges to traveller safety that range from extreme weather conditions to civil unrest and terrorism. This document is intended to be a call to action – a risk policy is a must for any organisation that…

12 Oct 2015 Resource

The role of international aid agencies in protecting national humanitarian staff

GISF Researcher Raquel Vazquez Llorente writes for the Harvard University Advanced Training Program on Humanitarian Action (ATHA). In her post, Raquel explores the increased reliance on local partners to deliver aid in high risk emergencies and the role that international NGOs play in protecting national humanitarian staff.

14 Aug 2015 Blog