Harvard Humanitarian Podcast

In this episode of the podcast, we look to explore how the risk, and reality, of famine has come about in Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia, and Northeastern Nigeria. This podcast will also assess what is needed in the immediate term, as well as the areas of policy development and implementation needed to address global food insecurity. Speakers: Suresh Babu, Head of Capacity Strengthening, International Food Policy Research Institute; Conor Phillips, Country Director, International Rescue Committee, Kenya; Nahuel Arenas, Director, Humanitarian Programs and Policy, Oxfam America; Douglas Mercado, Deputy Country Director, World Food Programme, Nigeria; Peter Lundberg, Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria, United Nations; Hassan Noor, Country Director, Save the Children, Somalia

In this episode of the podcast, we speak with experts and practitioners about the duty of care for humanitarian organizations, and the challenges of implementing it in practice. Speakers: Luigi Bocci, Field Security Officer, World Food Programme, Afghanistan; Phoebe Donnelly, Assistant Researcher, Feinstein International Center, and Doctoral Candidate, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy; Dyan Mazurana, Associate Research Professor, Feinstein International Center and Friedman School, Tufts University; Megan Nobert, Director, Report the Abuse; Lisa Reilly, Executive Director, European Interagency Security Forum (EISF); Erwan Rumen, Field Security Officer, World Food Programme, Iraq; Orly Stern, Independent Researcher and Consultant, Senior Fellow, Harvard Humanitarian Initiative; Christine Williamson, Director, Duty of Care International

In this episode of the podcast, we speak with experts and practitioners about the risks and rewards of speaking out against targeted attacks, versus not doing so, and how to better equip organizations and professionals to make such difficult decisions. Speakers: Pauline Chetcuti, Head of Humanitarian Advocacy and Policy, Action Contre La Faim (ACF) - France; Diederik Lohman, Acting Director, Health and Human Rights Division, Human Rights Watch (HRW); Gareth Price-Jones, Senior Humanitarian Policy and Advocacy Coordinator, CARE International

In this Practitioner Profile, ATHA sat down with Sinead to discuss her work in Sierra Leone and Liberia and her research on key lessons learned in the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa. Dr. Sinead Walsh is a Senior Fellow at the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative (HHI) and a Visiting Scientist at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

In this Practitioner Profile, we discuss gender-based violence and programming for male caregivers and adolescent brothers of displaced Syrian refugee girls. We also touch on sexual violence as it applies to both female humanitarians in the field and migrants and refugees receiving aid. Sarah Martin is a gender-based violence specialist with nearly 20 years of experience in research, advocacy, training and project management with international organizations around the world.

In this Practitioner Profile, we discuss challenges facing women in the Arab world, as well as responses to gender-based violence, support for survivors of violence, and other aspects of gender-sensitive programming in humanitarian emergencies. Dr. Lina Abirafeh is the Director of the Institute for Women's Studies in the Arab World (IWSAW).

In this Practitioner Profile, we discuss the use of private military and security companies (PMSCs) in the humanitarian sector. With growing threats against humanitarian actors and operations, and growing pressures for humanitarian programming in highly insecure settings, we speak about the role of PMSCs in the market for humanitarian security, and the implications for principled humanitarian action in the field. Dr. Birthe Anders is a Senior Fellow at the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative (HHI) and a Visiting Scientist at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

After over five years of war in Syria, civilians have not only been frequently caught in the crossfire, but have been intentionally targeted. In the view of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria, amongst others, many of these acts amount to genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. Considering these ongoing atrocities, this episode of the podcast will examine the prospects for accountability for war crimes and other serious violations of international law in Syria, including the particular case of the Yazidis. Speakers: Sareta Ashraph, Chief Legal Analyst, UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria; Murad Ismael, Executive Director, Yazda Organization; Yousuf Syed Khan, Legal Analyst, UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria; Naomi Kikoler, Deputy Director, Center for the Prevention of Genocide, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; Ambassador Stephen Rapp, U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes, 2009-2015.

Since the peak in refugee and migrant arrivals on the Greek islands last year, subsequent border closures and the EU-Turkey deal have led many migrants to become stranded in Greece. In this Practitioner Profile, we examine how the humanitarian response there has evolved as a consequence, and what challenges remain in the transition to more protracted displacement. Pooya Rezai has been working on refugee assistance, and search and rescue operations with the Emergency Response Centre International (ERCI) in Lesvos, Greece.

In this Practitioner Profile, we discuss the use of international humanitarian law as a framework for humanitarian negotiation, the pressures that current anti-terrorism laws place on humanitarians, and best practices for maintaining credibility in complex negotiations. Since 2011, Michiel Hofman has worked as a senior humanitarian specialist for MSF in Belfast, concentrating on research, training and operational support as well as publications in the humanitarian field.