Intercross The Podcast

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Cate Bird, the Missing Persons and Forensic Advisor to the ICRC delegation in DC. Cate focuses on the humanitarian consequences of migration along the U.S.-Mexico border and the forensic responses to missing migrants and unidentified remains. Since receiving her PhD in Anthropology from Michigan State University in 2013, she’s performed forensic anthropological casework in several medical examiner offices in the United States (including Houston, Tucson, and Tampa), as well as internationally (Mexico and the country of Georgia). We talk about missing persons on a global scale and how and why migrants may go missing. Then, we look at how forensics can help resolve missing person cases as well as ICRC’s work in forensics. Finally we touch on Cate’s work with the missing along the border, how forensics can provide resolution to missing person cases, the challenges of her work and her journey to ICRC. Hosted by Niki Clark.

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Sasha Ingber and Alex Ebsary of Music in Exile. Music in Exile is a nonprofit that seeks to document the songs and stories of people who have been displaced, and humanize them through their music. We talk about how travel and family histories led them to a compassion for displaced musicians, why music is often so critical to people who have lost everything and of course, the music and stories they just can’t get out of their heads. For more information on the musicians featured on Music in Exile, go to their website. This project is hosted in part by the Pulitzer Center. Hosted by Niki Clark. *Starting with this episode, Intercross is happy to announce that we will be highlighting a Music in Exile musician on the last Tuesday of every month as part of the podcast. This month, the spotlight is on Selah, a Syrian musician who fled to Irbil. When he finally lost faith and left Aleppo, he said, “it was like when your soul leaves your body.” Photo/Music i

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Monica Mukerjee, a Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Delegate for the ICRC currently based in Juba. She is also the Sexual Violence Focal Point for the delegation. Since March 2018 she has worked in South Sudan developing mental health and psychosocial activities for victims of violence in primary health care facilities as well as for weapon-wounded patients receiving care in ICRC hospital programs. She has previously worked in Uganda, Geneva and Ukraine. How do you promote mental health as a priority in contexts where physical needs are often lacking? What types of support does ICRC provide? How do practitioners address issues around stigma? How do they practice self-care? Join us for a fascinating conversation finding healing after trauma. Hosted by Niki Clark.

With this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we announce the start of a new monthly series with Humanitarian Law & Policy. Humanitarian Law & Policy is the ICRC blog based in Geneva that provides timely analysis and debate on international humanitarian law (IHL) issues and the policies that shape humanitarian action. With this series we hope to have monthly conversations on trends, issues, future challenges and solutions as they pertain to IHL or humanitarian action. We also will be taking advantage of our coworkers’ deep network of authors including academics, practitioners, legal minds and more to further delve into some of the conversations that have been started on their blog and in the International Review. In this first discussion, we speak with Jonathan Horowitz, a senior legal officer for the Open Society Justice Initiative. We talk about the relationship between international humanitarian law and human rights law and some of the debates and tensions around the two bodies of law during armed c

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, discuss frontline humanitarian negotiations. The Center of Competence on Humanitarian Negotiation recently launched a field manual on the subject, taking the collective experience and perspectives of numerous humanitarian practitioners working in some of the most challenging conflict environments and translating it into tangible tools and resources. Claude Bruderlein, director of the Centre and lead researcher for ICRC negotiation practices talks through the development of the manual, the art of negotiation and how his years of operational experience brought him to his current position. Hosted by Niki Clark.

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we come to you from Juba, South Sudan. Following a two week wheelchair basketball training program, we sit down with two athletes from radically different worlds. Malat Wei was a young child when his family was forced to flee South Sudan, shortly after he contracted polio and lost the use of his legs. Though he grew up in an Ethiopian refugee camp, he fell in love with sports, spending his long days at the camp playing soccer with his able-bodied friends. Malat would use only his hands to navigate the dusty pitch. At age 12, his family was resettled as refugees in Texas where a few years later he was introduced to wheelchair basketball by a member of his church. He was immediately hooked. Now 24, he plays university-level wheelchair basketball in Arizona, after a successful stint playing professionally in France from 2015-2016. Jess Markt is from Denver, Colorado. At age 19, he was in a car accident that left him paralyzed from the chest down. Previously a college tr

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we discuss the protection of cultural property in the time of armed conflict. It’s no secret that people around the world have a deep connection with places and objects of artistic, historic and religious importance. Archaeological sites connect us to the past. Monuments beckon from afar to be visited and marveled at. Our customs, traditions and values bind us to each other and the places we call “home.”  Cultural property and heritage are vital to the identity of individuals, communities and entire nations. Much more than stone, paper or canvas, ancient statues, manuscripts and works of art provide us with a sense of cultural cohesion and pride. Yet, too often, cultural property comes under attack during situations of armed conflict and violence. Such attacks constitute an affront to our history, dignity and humanity. Importantly, destroying or damaging cultural property in wartime is strictly prohibited under International Humanitarian Law. In this episode, we sit

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we discuss the protection of civilians in partnered operations. National security and defense strategies, as well as trends in US military operations around the globe, reflect a preference for working by, with and through partners to achieve common security objectives. These partnerships in the context of armed conflict can aggravate or reduce the risk of harm to civilians depending on the form and significance of the partnership.  CSIS, Interaction and CIVIC recently launched a report—The Protection of Civilians in U.S. Partnered Operations—that further delves into some of the issues around these operations, including lessons learned by practitioners in the field, policy recommendations and protection concerns. To speak more broadly on the topic we have with us Jenny McAvoy, the Director of Protection at Interaction and Dan Mahanaty, Director of the Center for Civilians in Conflict U.S. Program. Hosted by Sarah Holewinski.

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Jenelle Eli, Director of International Communications, Amanda Nieman, Bangladesh Program Officer and Brad Zerivitz, a Photographer and Director of Video Services, all at the American Red Cross. They recently spent two weeks in Bangladesh, capturing stories of the crisis in Cox’s Bazaar. Since August 2017, more than a million people have fled Rakhine state, Myanmar to Bangladesh because of violence. We spoke last week with ICRC’s outgoing head of delegation in Myanmar about the situation there and in this conversation, we talk about the other side of the border. How do you visually capture a crisis of such magnitude? How is the Red Cross movement responding? How does disaster preparedness and volunteers play a role? And in such desperate circumstances, what stories of hope rise to the top? Hosted by Niki Clark and Sara Owens.

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast we chat with Fabrizio Carboni, who has spent the last year as ICRC's Head of Delegation in Myanmar. More than a million people have fled Myanmar to Bangladesh due to violence since the end of August 2017. Peter Maurer, ICRC’s President, recently visited both sides of the border there and called it a "lose-lose situation for people." We did a Q&A on Intercross the blog with Fabrizio back in December on the crisis and in this conversation we discuss updates on operations, the critical challenges of monsoon season, the work that ICRC is doing on the ground and the key messages Fabrizio is bringing to stakeholders and decision makers in Washington. Hosted by Niki Clark.

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down Patricia Danzi, ICRC's Regional Director for Africa. More than 40% of ICRC operations are on the continent, including the geographical focuses of the Lake Chad region, South Sudan, Somalia, Central Africa Republic, Mali and Libya. We chat operations and challenges, displacement and migration and environmental impact on both, emotional wounds of war, innovation and more. Hosted by Niki Clark and Sara Owens.

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Christophe Hambye, head of ICRC’s logistics division. Running logistics is a complicated endeavor even when it’s in the best of situations but Christophe and his team are working in some of the world’s most challenging contexts. We chat about what are some of the humanitarian logistical challenges, how to stay ahead and prepared in a world of uncertainty and what the future of logistics looks like for ICRC. Hosted by Sara Owens.

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Charlotte Lindsey, ICRC’s current Director of Communication and Information Management. In July, Charlotte will begin a new position as ICRC’s first ever Director of Data & Digital Transformation. We chat about what digital transformation means, how innovation plays a role in humanitarian aid, the evolving challenges facing women in war and personal reflections on her more than 25 years with ICRC. Hosted by Niki Clark.

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Alexandre Faite, the outgoing head of delegation in Yemen and guest policy host Trevor Keck. Yemen is the 4th largest ICRC operation in the world, with a budget of nearly $120 million CHF. We discuss the deteriorating situation on the ground, including food insecurity, the fuel crisis and the disrepair of the national health system. We also talk about the ICRC’s role in responding to the humanitarian situation, our global policy asks and Alexandre’s personal reflections following two years in Yemen. Hosted by Trevor Keck.

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Christoph Harnisch, head of delegation in Bogata, Colombia. He’s been with the ICRC for more than 33 years, including time spent in Africa, Middle East, Central America, and currently Colombia where he has been since August 2014. We previously had Christoph on our podcast in May of last year, about six months after the peace agreement was first signed. In our conversation, we discuss what has changed, the challenges of implementing the peace agreement, insecurity in some of the most remote areas of the country, the plight of missing people and the prison crisis in the country. Hosted by Niki Clark and Sara Owens.

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down Jo Burton, ICRC’s Global Cash Focal Point. Ten percent of the world’s humanitarian assistance is now in cash, marking a 40% increase from 2015 to 2016. What exactly do we mean by cash transfer programming? What are the advantages and risks? What are some of the ways that ICRC is utilizing cash for assistance and protection programs? And how, as part of the larger Red Cross movement, are we harnessing the power of cash to ensure accountability and that people remain at the center of their own recovery? Hosted by Niki Clark and Austin Shangraw.

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, OUR 50TH, we sit down Vincent Bernard, the editor in chief of the International Review of the Red Cross, a leading academic journal on humanitarian law, policy and action published by the ICRC and Cambridge University Press. The International Review was first established nearly 150 years ago. We discuss how issues and concerns surrounding warfare and international humanitarian law have evolved in that time (Spoiler: people have always feared technology; except in 1869 it was the impact of the telegraph!) and how the Geneva Conventions continue to remain relevant. We talk about the current issue of the Review, which delves into the human cost of detention, and the process of researching and commissioning for the Review. We also chat about memory, both individual and collective, and the unlikely—though not insignificant—role it has in warfare and those who are impacted by it. Hosted by Niki Clark and Sara Owens.

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Red Cross communicators Jana Sweeny and Jenelle Eli. We speak about our experiences in the humanitarian world, the power of female stories and storytellers and what drives us to do the work that we do. We also talk about the unique work of the Red Cross movement work and share the stories--and the people--that forever touched us. Hosted by Anna Nelson, Niki Clark and Sara Owens.

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Dr. Helen Durham, ICRC's Director of International Law and Policy. We discuss why the subject of gender and IHL is much more complex than just "women and war," and the role gender plays in terms of influencing behaviors. We also chat about masculinity in the culture and context of war, how law and policy work together, the 'discourse of despair' and women inspirations. Hosted by Niki Clark and Austin Shangraw.

In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Austin Shangraw and Jyl Strong of the ICRC in Washington's Policy team. Last week, the World Bank held its biannual Fragility Forum. The Forum brings together policy makers and practitioners from humanitarian, development, peace and security communities to share practical solutions and explore innovative ways to improve development approaches to foster peace and stability. ICRC's Director General Yves Daccord attended and participated in several high-level panels. Why is ICRC involved in these discussions? How are we partnering with the World Bank? What does it mean when we discuss the humanitarian development nexus? Austin and Jyl analyze the conversations that came out of the Forum and give us the big takeaways for moving forward. Hosted by Niki Clark and Sara Owens.