#humanitarian-response — Public Fediverse posts

Friday briefing: ​What do the cuts in aid mean for the fight against Ebola in the DRC? https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/29/friday-briefing-what-do-the-cuts-in-aid-mean-for-the-fight-against-ebola-in-the-drc #Ebola #DemocraticRepublicOfTheCongo #Health #Aid #Africa #WorldHealthOrganization #HumanitarianResponse #Society #UsForeignPolicy

Friday briefing: ​What do the cuts in aid mean for the fight against Ebola in the DRC? https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/29/friday-briefing-what-do-the-cuts-in-aid-mean-for-the-fight-against-ebola-in-the-drc #Ebola #DemocraticRepublicOfTheCongo #Health #Aid #Africa #WorldHealthOrganization #HumanitarianResponse #Society #UsForeignPolicy

Infectious diseases such as hantavirus and Ebola becoming more frequent and damaging, say experts https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/may/18/infectious-diseases-hantavirus-ebola-more-frequent-damaging-pandemic-outbreak #GlobalHealth #GlobalDevelopment #Ebola #Mpox #WorldHealthOrganization #Health #InfectiousDiseases #WorldNews #DemocraticRepublicOfTheCongo #Africa #Coronavirus #VaccinesAndImmunisation #HumanitarianResponse #Science #Hantavirus

Infectious diseases such as hantavirus and Ebola becoming more frequent and damaging, say experts https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/may/18/infectious-diseases-hantavirus-ebola-more-frequent-damaging-pandemic-outbreak #GlobalHealth #GlobalDevelopment #Ebola #Mpox #WorldHealthOrganization #Health #InfectiousDiseases #WorldNews #DemocraticRepublicOfTheCongo #Africa #Coronavirus #VaccinesAndImmunisation #HumanitarianResponse #Science #Hantavirus

Internal displacements caused by violence or conflict at record high in 2025 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/12/internal-displacements-violence-conflict-record-high-2025 #InternallyDisplacedPeople #HumanitarianResponse #Sudan #DemocraticRepublicOfTheCongo #Iran #Lebanon #Africa #MiddleEastAndNorthAfrica #WorldNews

Internal displacements caused by violence or conflict at record high in 2025 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/12/internal-displacements-violence-conflict-record-high-2025 #InternallyDisplacedPeople #HumanitarianResponse #Sudan #DemocraticRepublicOfTheCongo #Iran #Lebanon #Africa #MiddleEastAndNorthAfrica #WorldNews

Cuba is running out of time. We need fuel now to save lives | Francisco Pichón https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/apr/30/cuba-energy-crisis-us-blockade-fuel-humanitarian-disaster-healthcare-water #Cuba #Caribbean #Americas #WorldNews #GlobalHealth #AccessToWater #HumanitarianResponse #UnitedNations #HurricaneMelissa #UsForeignPolicy #TrumpAdministration #UsPolitics #Aid #AccessToEnergy

Cuba is running out of time. We need fuel now to save lives | Francisco Pichón https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/apr/30/cuba-energy-crisis-us-blockade-fuel-humanitarian-disaster-healthcare-water #Cuba #Caribbean #Americas #WorldNews #GlobalHealth #AccessToWater #HumanitarianResponse #UnitedNations #HurricaneMelissa #UsForeignPolicy #TrumpAdministration #UsPolitics #Aid #AccessToEnergy

Calls for humanitarian corridor through strait of Hormuz as Iran war hits vital aid https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/apr/29/humanitarian-corridor-strait-of-hormuz-iran-war-hits-vital-aid #GlobalDevelopment #Aid #FoodSecurity #GlobalHealth #HumanitarianResponse #StraitOfHormuz #UsisraelWarOnIran #MiddleEastAndNorthAfrica #Iran #India #Dubai #Yemen #Somalia #Afghanistan #Sudan #Bangladesh #Africa #SouthAndCentralAsia #WorldNews

Calls for humanitarian corridor through strait of Hormuz as Iran war hits vital aid https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/apr/29/humanitarian-corridor-strait-of-hormuz-iran-war-hits-vital-aid #GlobalDevelopment #Aid #FoodSecurity #GlobalHealth #HumanitarianResponse #StraitOfHormuz #UsisraelWarOnIran #MiddleEastAndNorthAfrica #Iran #India #Dubai #Yemen #Somalia #Afghanistan #Sudan #Bangladesh #Africa #SouthAndCentralAsia #WorldNews

US spending on ‘reckless’ Iran war could have saved 87m lives, says UN https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/20/us-spending-on-reckless-iran-war-could-have-saved-87m-lives-says-un #UnitedNations #WorldNews #DonaldTrump #Aid #UsisraelWarOnIran #UkNews #HumanitarianResponse #UsNews

US spending on ‘reckless’ Iran war could have saved 87m lives, says UN https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/20/us-spending-on-reckless-iran-war-could-have-saved-87m-lives-says-un #UnitedNations #WorldNews #DonaldTrump #Aid #UsisraelWarOnIran #UkNews #HumanitarianResponse #UsNews

Cuba says it will do everything to find aid boats missing on way from Mexico https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/27/cuba-aid-boats-missing-en-route-mexico-our-america-convoy #Cuba #Americas #Caribbean #WorldNews #HumanitarianResponse #UsForeignPolicy #UsNews #Mexico

Cuba says it will do everything to find aid boats missing on way from Mexico https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/27/cuba-aid-boats-missing-en-route-mexico-our-america-convoy #Cuba #Americas #Caribbean #WorldNews #HumanitarianResponse #UsForeignPolicy #UsNews #Mexico

UK to cut climate aid to developing countries by 14% to £2bn a year in ‘refocus’ https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/mar/19/uk-cut-climate-aid-budget-developing-countries-refocus #ClimateAid #Aid #YvetteCooper #EconomicPolicy #Environment #Politics #UkNews #ClimateCrisis #Conservation #HumanitarianResponse

UK to cut climate aid to developing countries by 14% to £2bn a year in ‘refocus’ https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/mar/19/uk-cut-climate-aid-budget-developing-countries-refocus #ClimateAid #Aid #YvetteCooper #EconomicPolicy #Environment #Politics #UkNews #ClimateCrisis #Conservation #HumanitarianResponse

What we are learning about diversity in gender and emergencies work

On 18 September 2025, we first announced our new Certificate peer learning programme for gender in emergencies. The first course, a primer on the topic, then launched on 6 October.

As of 21 January 2026, the gender community of The Geneva Learning Foundation (TGLF) now reaches 6,592 practitioners. This amazing growth is the result of the first primer “going viral”, and a testament to the Foundation’s learning communities that responded to the call to action, joined the course, and spread the call for enrollment far and wide.

On 14 October 2025, The Geneva Learning Foundation issued the first call for domain experts to support and guide the programme’s future development.

In humanitarian work, hiring processes are frequently opaque. Specialized topics like gender in emergencies have relied primarily on closed networks led by Global North gatekeepers with impressive credentials and “field” experience. Our thinking was that this excludes or marginalizes practitioners who live every day in the “field” where global humanitarians deploy during emergencies.

Here is what we learned when we opened our roster to both INGO networks that remain concentrated in the Global North and to our own networks that connect over 80,000 health and humanitarian workers, primarily based in local communities of the Global South.

Seeking a guide on the side

The call for applications issued in October 2025 sought a specific type of professional: the “Guide on the side”. This is a facilitator tasked with holding safe and brave spaces for humanitarian practitioners to find solidarity and deepen their analysis.

The Geneva Learning Foundation prioritized several core requirements for this role:

• Deep domain expertise in gender in emergencies, for example in areas like Rapid Gender Analysis or risk mitigation for gender based violence.
• A practice grounded in intersectional, feminist, and decolonial analysis.
• A practice in line with our conviction that practitioners who are there every day hold the essential knowledge required to solve complex problems.
• Full professional fluency in English, French, and other languages to facilitate complex and nuanced discussions across linguistic divides.

Who answered the call: a demographic profile

We received 61 applications from 26 countries, 49% of them from women. The largest concentrations of applicants are found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Nigeria, which together account for 41% of the total. However, for the Democratic Republic of the Congo, men represent 67% of the applicants, while Nigeria shows a more balanced split with 55% men and 45% women. Four countries (Spain, Jordan, Morocco, and South Africa) had only female applicants, whereas applicants from three countries (Ethiopia, India, and Senegal) were all men.

Women from the Global North, primarily residing in countries like Spain, Greece, and Switzerland, consistently presented the most extensive institutional pedigrees, citing decades of experience authoring global strategies and leading interagency coordination for major international organizations. In contrast, applications from women in the Global South, although fewer in number, were characterized by grassroots activism and authority derived from personal lived experiences of conflict and displacement. Men from the Global South represented a significant portion of the pool, particularly from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Nigeria, and their profiles frequently combined technical public health roles with a deep commitment to adapting global guidelines to complex local realities. Notably, no applications were received from men residing in the Global North for this specific call.

Beyond credentials: vague claims versus tangible artefacts

A critical part of our analysis involved distinguishing between vague, unverifiable claims and tangible examples of achievements. Many applicants stated they were “passionate about gender” or “committed to equity” without providing evidence of how this commitment manifested through what they have actually done in their work or life. Passion may be necessary, but it is unlikely to be sufficient without analysis.

Some candidates provided concrete examples. Here are four examples:

• Localized technical tools: One applicant developed culturally relevant glossaries and training materials in Arabic to decolonize the language of gender and protection. Another led the design of a Menstrual Health and Dignity Project that promoted youth leadership and gender justice in partnership with local networks.
• Documented field leadership: Candidates shared evidence of leading national level Rapid Gender Analyses in displacement sites, where they trained local teams and validated results directly with communities.
• Integration of gender into technical sectors: Several health professionals shared how they successfully integrated gender sensitive strategies into outbreak preparedness and large scale immunization campaigns.
• Strategic policy influence: One candidate led the development of a global gender justice strategy that centers decolonial feminist approaches and prioritizes collaboration with women led organizations.

The intersection of professional background and lived experience

A significant dimension shared in many motivation letters was the “why” that informs their practice. For these individuals, expertise is not just a credential. It is a lived reality that is both personal and political.

• Survivors and activists: Several candidates identified as survivors of conflict and displacement. They stated that their commitment to gender equity was not learned from books but was “painfully and personally lived”.
• Identity as expertise: Applicants from the Global South shared how their own multicultural and multilingual identities allow them to navigate power dynamics that Western centric frameworks might miss.
• Commitment to unlearning: Many senior experts explicitly addressed the need for “continued unlearning” to recognize their own privilege and create truly inclusive spaces.

Divergent paths to expertise: local activism versus institutional pedigree

The call for applications revealed a profound bifurcation in the nature of expertise within the humanitarian sector. On one hand, a significant number of applications originated from practitioners rooted in local communities across Africa, Asia, and the Arab World. These candidates presented profiles characterized by grassroots activism and direct advocacy. What was distinct about their applications was the source of their authority: it was not solely academic but was often described as being painfully and personally lived. Some are founders of grassroots initiatives that work on dismantling systems of forced labor and modern slavery. Others are community health supervisors who coordinate responses in health zones facing extreme poverty and armed conflict. Their applications emphasized the importance of psychological liberation and rebuilding agency from within the community rather than through external intervention.

In contrast, applications from women based in the Global North, particularly from Spain, Switzerland, and Greece, held the most impressive institutional pedigrees. These profiles were marked by decades of experience shaping global policies and leading interagency coordination for major international organizations. They are the authors of global gender justice strategies, senior GenCap advisors who provide technical assistance to United Nations Humanitarian Coordinators, and architects of standardized guidelines for gender-based violence response. Their achievements are measured by the scale of their institutional reach and the creation of universal frameworks intended for deployment across diverse emergency contexts.

From a decolonial feminist lens, these differences illustrate what Ogochukwu Udenigwe and her colleagues describe as “hierarchical knowledge praxis”. In plain language, Global North candidates often function as dispensers of human rights and experts who generate knowledge for others to consume. This reflects the coloniality of power where the West remains the center of production while the rest of the world is positioned as a recipient. 

Conversely, the local activist profiles represent a form of epistemic disobedience. They refuse to be reduced to passive beneficiaries or informants, and assert themselves as knowledge-holders whose firsthand experience is the most critical resource for solving complex challenges. Their applications challenge the saviourism narratives that often characterize international interventions by prioritizing relational accountability and indigenous histories of solidarity.

Solidarity as an act of unlearning and reclaiming

By opening our roster, we are not dismissing institutional expertise but rather creating a site where global strategic knowledge and ‘authentically intelligent’ local experience can meet as equals to solve problems that neither can address alone, to the benefit of both.

In this framework, solidarity does not mean “helping” the Global South from a position of superiority. Instead, it requires a two-way transformation:

• Global North allies can engage in a deliberate process of unlearning positional privilege and recognizing that their “expert” knowledge often excludes the lived realities of those they aim to protect.
• Global South practitioners can reclaim their status as knowledge-holders and experts who are capable of autonomous thought and innovation.
• Both groups benefit from working together to “delink” from Western narratives that pathologize cultures of the Global South and instead value indigenous histories of solidarity, such as the African tradition of “safe spaces”.
• This process fosters “relational accountability,” where the primary responsibility of a consultant is to the community served rather than to a distant donor or state bureaucracy.
• Legitimacy is best defined not only by institutional pedigree but by ‘relational accountability’ to the communities being served and the ability to turn shared insights into concrete action.

By opening the call to everyone with decolonial criteria clearly in mind, we hope to build a bridge across the chasm between “global” and “local” knowledge. True leadership in gender in emergencies requires the humility to listen and the courage to act upon what is heard. As this programme moves forward, our goal is to build an ecosystem where every practitioner, regardless of their geography, identity, or pedigree, can both contribute and benefit.

References

Bian, J., 2022. The racialization of expertise and professional non-equivalence in the humanitarian workplace. Int J Humanitarian Action 7, 3. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41018-021-00112-9

Sadki, R., 2026. Reimagining Rapid Gender Analysis as decolonial practice. https://doi.org/10.59350/rr0d3-3pk55

Sadki, R., 2025. Gender in emergencies: a new peer learning programme from The Geneva Learning Foundation. https://doi.org/10.59350/j3twk-d9x53

Udenigwe, O., Aubel, J., Abimbola, S., 2026. A decolonial feminist perspective on gender equality programming in the Global South. PLOS Glob Public Health 6, e0005556. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgph.0005556

Wenham, C., Davies, S.E., 2022. WHO runs the world – (not) girls: gender neglect during global health emergencies. International Feminist Journal of Politics 24, 415–438. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616742.2021.1921601

Israel bulldozes Unrwa headquarters in East Jerusalem https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/20/israel-bulldozes-unrwa-headquarters-in-east-jerusalem #Israel #Palestine #WestBank #UnitedNations #Aid #HumanitarianResponse #MiddleEastAndNorthAfrica #WorldNews

Israel bulldozes Unrwa headquarters in East Jerusalem https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/20/israel-bulldozes-unrwa-headquarters-in-east-jerusalem #Israel #Palestine #WestBank #UnitedNations #Aid #HumanitarianResponse #MiddleEastAndNorthAfrica #WorldNews

Guterres warns of ‘powerful forces’ undermining ‘global cooperation’ https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/17/antonio-guterres-warns-forces-undermining-global-cooperation-un-80th-anniversary-secretary-general-multilateralism-international-law #UnitedNations #AntnioGuterres #TrumpAdministration #ClimateCrisis #WorldNews #HumanitarianResponse #Environment #GlobalDevelopment #UsNews #UsForeignPolicy #Aid

Guterres warns of ‘powerful forces’ undermining ‘global cooperation’ https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/17/antonio-guterres-warns-forces-undermining-global-cooperation-un-80th-anniversary-secretary-general-multilateralism-international-law #UnitedNations #AntnioGuterres #TrumpAdministration #ClimateCrisis #WorldNews #HumanitarianResponse #Environment #GlobalDevelopment #UsNews #UsForeignPolicy #Aid

Guterres warns of ‘powerful forces’ undermining ‘global cooperation’ https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/17/antonio-guterres-warns-forces-undermining-global-cooperation-un-80th-anniversary-secretary-general-multilateralism-international-law #UnitedNations #AntnioGuterres #TrumpAdministration #ClimateCrisis #WorldNews #HumanitarianResponse #Environment #GlobalDevelopment #UsNews #UsForeignPolicy #Aid

US ‘adapt, shrink or die’ terms for $2bn aid pot will mean UN bowing down to Washington, say experts https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/jan/01/us-aid-cuts-conditions-un-humanitarian-pledge-ocha #Aid #GlobalDevelopment #UsNews #TrumpAdministration #UsForeignPolicy #UnitedNations #Usaid #UsPolitics #WorldNews #HumanitarianResponse #Society #MarcoRubio #Haiti #DemocraticRepublicOfTheCongo #Africa #Americas #Sudan #Afghanistan #Yemen

US ‘adapt, shrink or die’ terms for $2bn aid pot will mean UN bowing down to Washington, say experts https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/jan/01/us-aid-cuts-conditions-un-humanitarian-pledge-ocha #Aid #GlobalDevelopment #UsNews #TrumpAdministration #UsForeignPolicy #UnitedNations #Usaid #UsPolitics #WorldNews #HumanitarianResponse #Society #MarcoRubio #Haiti #DemocraticRepublicOfTheCongo #Africa #Americas #Sudan #Afghanistan #Yemen

Whistleblower accuses Foreign Office of ‘censoring’ warning of Sudan genocide https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/dec/03/whistleblower-accuses-foreign-office-of-censoring-warning-of-sudan-genocide #DemocraticRepublicoftheCongo #MiddleEastandnorthAfrica #Humanitarianresponse #UnitedArabEmirates #Globaldevelopment #Conflictandarms #Foreignpolicy #UnitedNations #Humanrights #Humanrights #Warcrimes #Worldnews #Politics #Africa #Rwanda #UKnews #Darfur #Sudan #Law

Whistleblower accuses Foreign Office of ‘censoring’ warning of Sudan genocide https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/dec/03/whistleblower-accuses-foreign-office-of-censoring-warning-of-sudan-genocide #DemocraticRepublicoftheCongo #MiddleEastandnorthAfrica #Humanitarianresponse #UnitedArabEmirates #Globaldevelopment #Conflictandarms #Foreignpolicy #UnitedNations #Humanrights #Humanrights #Warcrimes #Worldnews #Politics #Africa #Rwanda #UKnews #Darfur #Sudan #Law

UK MPs push for extra aid and visas as Jamaica reels from Hurricane Melissa https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/nov/29/uk-mps-extra-aid-humanitarian-visas-jamaica-hurricane-melissa-dawn-butler #CommonwealthofNations #Humanitarianresponse #Immigrationandasylum #Globaldevelopment #HurricaneMelissa #Climatefinance #Climatecrisis #Environment #Colonialism #DianeAbbott #DawnButler #Greenparty #Hurricanes #Worldnews #Caribbean #Americas #Monarchy #Politics #Jamaica #Society #UKnews #London #Aid

UK MPs push for extra aid and visas as Jamaica reels from Hurricane Melissa https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/nov/29/uk-mps-extra-aid-humanitarian-visas-jamaica-hurricane-melissa-dawn-butler #CommonwealthofNations #Humanitarianresponse #Immigrationandasylum #Globaldevelopment #HurricaneMelissa #Climatefinance #Climatecrisis #Environment #Colonialism #DianeAbbott #DawnButler #Greenparty #Hurricanes #Worldnews #Caribbean #Americas #Monarchy #Politics #Jamaica #Society #UKnews #London #Aid

UK MPs push for extra aid and visas as Jamaica reels from Hurricane Melissa https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/nov/29/uk-mps-extra-aid-humanitarian-visas-jamaica-hurricane-melissa-dawn-butler #CommonwealthofNations #Humanitarianresponse #Immigrationandasylum #Globaldevelopment #HurricaneMelissa #Climatefinance #Climatecrisis #Environment #Colonialism #DianeAbbott #DawnButler #Greenparty #Hurricanes #Worldnews #Caribbean #Americas #Monarchy #Politics #Jamaica #Society #UKnews #London #Aid

Gaza’s children needed a ceasefire – now they desperately need the aid that will keep them alive | Alison Griffin https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/oct/18/gazas-children-needed-a-ceasefire-now-they-desperately-need-the-aid-that-will-keep-them-alive #MiddleEastandnorthAfrica #Humanitarianresponse #Palestine #Worldnews #Children #Gaza

Gaza’s children needed a ceasefire – now they desperately need the aid that will keep them alive | Alison Griffin https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/oct/18/gazas-children-needed-a-ceasefire-now-they-desperately-need-the-aid-that-will-keep-them-alive #MiddleEastandnorthAfrica #Humanitarianresponse #Palestine #Worldnews #Children #Gaza

Proposed UK cuts to global aid fund could lead to 300,000 preventable deaths, say charities https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/oct/16/proposed-uk-cuts-global-aid-fund-preventable-deaths-charities #Foreign,CommonwealthandDevelopmentOffice #Humanitarianresponse #Trumpadministration #Infectiousdiseases #Globaldevelopment #Medicalresearch #Foreignpolicy #Tuberculosis #Microbiology #USpolitics #Worldnews #Politics #Malaria #Society #Science #Biology #UKnews #Health #USnews #Aid #G20

Proposed UK cuts to global aid fund could lead to 300,000 preventable deaths, say charities https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/oct/16/proposed-uk-cuts-global-aid-fund-preventable-deaths-charities #Foreign,CommonwealthandDevelopmentOffice #Humanitarianresponse #Trumpadministration #Infectiousdiseases #Globaldevelopment #Medicalresearch #Foreignpolicy #Tuberculosis #Microbiology #USpolitics #Worldnews #Politics #Malaria #Society #Science #Biology #UKnews #Health #USnews #Aid #G20

Proposed UK cuts to global aid fund could lead to 300,000 preventable deaths, say charities https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/oct/16/proposed-uk-cuts-global-aid-fund-preventable-deaths-charities #Foreign,CommonwealthandDevelopmentOffice #Humanitarianresponse #Trumpadministration #Infectiousdiseases #Globaldevelopment #Medicalresearch #Foreignpolicy #Tuberculosis #Microbiology #USpolitics #Worldnews #Politics #Malaria #Society #Science #Biology #UKnews #Health #USnews #Aid #G20

Proposed UK cuts to global aid fund could lead to 300,000 preventable deaths, say charities https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/oct/16/proposed-uk-cuts-global-aid-fund-preventable-deaths-charities #Foreign,CommonwealthandDevelopmentOffice #Humanitarianresponse #Trumpadministration #Infectiousdiseases #Globaldevelopment #Medicalresearch #Foreignpolicy #Tuberculosis #Microbiology #USpolitics #Worldnews #Politics #Malaria #Society #Science #Biology #UKnews #Health #USnews #Aid #G20

UN needs to cut $500m from 2026 budget and lose 20% of staff after US funding reductions https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/sep/18/united-nations-un-2026-budget-job-losses-us-funding-cuts #WorldHealthOrganization #Humanitarianresponse #Trumpadministration #USforeignpolicy #AntónioGuterres #UnitedNations #Humanrights #USpolitics #Worldnews #Refugees #Unesco #USnews #Aid

UN needs to cut $500m from 2026 budget and lose 20% of staff after US funding reductions https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/sep/18/united-nations-un-2026-budget-job-losses-us-funding-cuts #WorldHealthOrganization #Humanitarianresponse #Trumpadministration #USforeignpolicy #AntónioGuterres #UnitedNations #Humanrights #USpolitics #Worldnews #Refugees #Unesco #USnews #Aid

Gender in emergencies: a new peer learning programme from The Geneva Learning Foundation

This is a critical moment for work on gender in emergencies.

Across the humanitarian sector, we are witnessing a coordinated backlash.

Decades of progress are threatened by targeted funding cuts, the erasure of essential research and tools, and a political climate that seeks to silence our work.

Many dedicated practitioners feel isolated and that their work is being devalued.

This is not a time for silence.

It is a time for solidarity and for finding resilient ways to sustain our practice.

In this spirit, The Geneva Learning Foundation is pleased to announce the new Certificate peer learning programme for gender in emergencies.

We offer this programme to build upon the decades of vital work by countless practitioners and activists, seeing our role as one of contribution to the collective effort of all who continue to champion gender equality in emergencies.

Learn more and request your invitation to the programme and its first course here.

Our approach: A programme built from the ground up

This programme was built from scratch with a distinct philosophy.

We did not start with a pre-packaged curriculum.

Instead, we turned to two foundational sources of knowledge.

• First, we listened to the most valuable resource we have: the firsthand experiences of thousands of practitioners in our global network. Their stories of what truly happens on the front lines—what works, what fails, and why—form the living heart of this programme.
• Second, we grounded our approach in the deep insights of intersectional, decolonial, and feminist scholarship. These perspectives challenge us to move beyond technical fixes and to analyze the systems of power that create gender inequality in the first place.

This unique origin means our programme is a dynamic space co-created with and for practitioners who are serious about transformative change.

Gender in emergencies: Gender through an intersectional lens

Our focus is squarely on gender in emergencies.

We start with gender analysis because it is a fundamental tool for effective humanitarian action.

However, we use an intersectional lens.

We recognize that a person’s experience is shaped not by gender alone, but by how their gender compounds with their age, disability, ethnicity, and other aspects of their identity.

This lens does not replace gender analysis.

It makes it stronger.

It allows us to see how power works differently for different women, men, girls, and boys, and helps us to design solutions that do not inadvertently leave behind the people marginalized by something other than their gender.

Gender in emergencies requires learning at the speed of crisis

Humanitarian response must be rapid, and so must our learning.

A slow, top-down training model cannot keep pace with the reality of a crisis.

The Geneva Learning Foundation’s Impact Accelerator is a peer learning-to-action model built for the speed and complexity of humanitarian settings.

It is a ‘learn-by-doing’ experience where your frontline experience is the textbook.

The model is designed to quickly turn your individual insights into collective knowledge and practical action.

You analyze a real challenge from your work, share it with a small group of global peers, and use their feedback to build a concrete plan.

This process accelerates the development of context-specific solutions that are grounded in reality, not just theory.

Your first step: The foundational primer for gender in emergencies

We are starting this new programme with a free, open-access foundational course.

Enrollment is now open.

The course is a quick primer that introduces core concepts of gender, intersectionality, and bias through the real-world stories of practitioners.

It provides the shared language and practical tools to begin your journey of reflection, peer collaboration, and action.

Building a resilient community

This is more than a training programme.

It is an invitation to join a global community of practice.

In a time of backlash and division, creating spaces where we can learn from each other, share our struggles, and find solidarity is a critical act of resistance.

If you are ready to deepen your practice and connect with colleagues who share your commitment, we invite you to join us.

Image: The Geneva Learning Foundation © 2025

I saw many atrocities as a senior aid official in Gaza. Now Israeli authorities are trying to silence us https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/aug/03/gaza-aid-israel-authorities-hospitals #Internationalcourtofjustice #MiddleEastandnorthAfrica #Palestinianterritories #Humanitarianresponse #Israel #Gaza

I saw many atrocities as a senior aid official in Gaza. Now Israeli authorities are trying to silence us https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/aug/03/gaza-aid-israel-authorities-hospitals #Internationalcourtofjustice #MiddleEastandnorthAfrica #Palestinianterritories #Humanitarianresponse #Israel #Gaza

I saw many atrocities as a senior aid official in Gaza. Now Israeli authorities are trying to silence us https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/aug/03/gaza-aid-israel-authorities-hospitals #Internationalcourtofjustice #MiddleEastandnorthAfrica #Palestinianterritories #Humanitarianresponse #Israel #Gaza

I saw many atrocities as a senior aid official in Gaza. Now Israeli authorities are trying to silence us https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/aug/03/gaza-aid-israel-authorities-hospitals #Internationalcourtofjustice #MiddleEastandnorthAfrica #Palestinianterritories #Humanitarianresponse #Israel #Gaza

PFA Accelerator: across Europe, practitioners learn from each other to strengthen support to children affected by the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine

In the PFA Accelerator, practitioners supporting children are teaching each other what works.

Every Friday, more than 240 education, social work, and health professionals across Ukraine and Europe file reports on the same question: What happened when you tried to help a child this week?

Their answers – grounded in their daily work – are creating new insights into how Psychological First Aid (“PFA”) works in active conflict zones, displacement centers, and communities hosting Ukrainian families. These practitioners implement practical actions with children each week, then share what they learn with colleagues from all over Europe who face similar challenges.

The tracking reveals stark patterns. More than half work with children showing anxiety, fear, and stress responses triggered by air raids, family separation, or displacement. Another 42% focus on children struggling to connect with others in unfamiliar places—Ukrainian teenagers isolated in Polish schools, families in Croatian refugee centers, children moved from eastern Ukraine to western regions.

“We have a very unique experience that you cannot get through lectures,” said PFA practitioner and Ukrainian-language facilitator Hanna Nyzkodobova during Monday’s session, speaking to over 200 of her peers. “The Ukrainian context is not comparable to any other country.”

Locally-led organizations leading implementation

The programme’s most striking feature is its reach into organizations operating closest to active hostilities—precisely where support needs are most acute and convention training programs may not operate. For example, the charitable foundation “Everything will be fine Ukraine” implements approaches within 20 kilometers of active fighting, supporting 6,000 children across Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kharkiv regions. Weekly reports from their participants document how psychological first aid help when air raid sirens interrupt sessions or when families face repeated displacement.

Posmishka UA, Ukraine’s largest participating organization with over 400 staff members, demonstrates how peer learning can support local actors directly at scale. During Monday’s learning session, Posmishka participants shared experiences from work in local communities that would be difficult to capture through conventional research or training approaches.

South Ukrainian National Pedagogical University has integrated the program across 339 faculty and 3,783 students, bringing PFA into the work of its Mental Health Center. Youth Platform is now offering PFA to 600 young people aged 14-35 across five Ukrainian regions, while the All-Ukrainian Public Center “Volunteer” scales implementations to over 10,000 children nationwide.

These partnerships reveal something crucial: when crisis response is most urgent, peer learning between local actors may prove more effective and sustainable than waiting for external expertise and costly training to develop solutions.

Learning what works through implementation

The Geneva Learning Foundation (TGLF) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), within the project Provision of quality and timely psychological first aid to people affected by Ukraine crisis in impacted countries, supported by the European Union, created what they call the PFA Accelerator—a component of a broader certificate program reaching over 330 organizations supporting more than 1 million children affected by the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. This “Accelerator” methodology emerged from recognizing that new approaches are necessary in unprecedented crises. When children face trauma from active conflict, family separation, and repeated displacement simultaneously, guidelines can help but cannot tell you how to adapt to your specific situation.

The breakthrough lies in turning scale from an obstacle into an advantage. Rather than trying to train individuals who then work in isolation, the programme creates learning networks where practitioners immediately share what works, what doesn’t, and why.

Analysis of the first 60 action plans shows PFA Accelerator participants setting specific, measurable goals: 88% of those working with anxious children plan concrete emotional regulation activities rather than vague “support” approaches.

Iryna from Kryvyi Rih reported that schools actively sought partnerships after her initial outreach succeeded: “They wanted us to come to them,” she said, describing how her mobile facilitation team exceeded the goal she set for herself in the Accelerator – because she managed to help school administrators recognize the value of Psychological First Aid (PFA) for children.

Practical innovations emerge from necessity

The weekly implementation requirement forces creative problem-solving with limited resources. Mariya from Zaporizhzhia described combining parent and child sessions: “We conducted joint sessions with psychosocial support, where together we learned calming techniques and did exercises oriented toward team building.” This approach addressed both parent stress and child needs while optimizing scarce time and space resources.

In the PFA Accelerator, other participants can then share their feedback – or realize that Mariya’s local solution can help them, too. “The exchange of experience that happens on this platform is very important because someone is more experienced, someone less experienced,” noted participant Liubov during the Ukrainian session.

Such practical adaptations become documented knowledge shared across the network. However, in the first week, although 82% identify colleague support as their primary resource, only 49% initially planned collaborative approaches involving other adults. The peer feedback process helps participants recognize such patterns and adjust their methods accordingly.

Defying distance to solve problems together

What emerges is not only better implementation of existing approaches—it’s new knowledge about how psychological support works under difficult conditions. The weekly reports create rapid feedback loops showing which approaches help children cope with ongoing uncertainty, how to maintain therapeutic relationships during displacement, and which interventions remain effective when basic safety cannot be guaranteed.

The programme operates across Ukraine and 27 European countries, supported by over 80 European focal points and more than 20 organizational partners. This enables pattern recognition impossible without scale. Practitioners can better discern which approaches work across different contexts, how cultural differences affect intervention effectiveness, and which methods prove most adaptable to rapidly changing circumstances.

The larger significance extends beyond Ukraine. By demonstrating how local actors can rapidly develop and refine effective practices when given proper structure for peer learning, the programme offers a model for responding to other crises where traditional expert-led approaches prove too slow or disconnected from local realities. Sometimes the most valuable expertise exists not in training manuals but in the accumulated experience of practitioners working directly with affected populations.

Learn more and enroll in the PFA Accelerator: https://www.learning.foundation/ukraine-accelerator

This project is funded by the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of TGLF and IFRC, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.

#CertificatePeerLearningProgrammeOnPsychologicalFirstAidPFAInSupportOfChildrenAffectedByTheHumanitarianCrisisInUkraine #childProtection #humanitarianResponse #InternationalFederationOfRedCrossAndRedCrescentSocietiesIFRC_ #peerLearning #PFAAccelerator #RedCross #TheGenevaLearningFoundation #Ukraine

Sudan’s children face growing threat of deadly infectious diseases as vaccination rates halve https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/jul/17/infectious-diseases-sudan-children-vaccination-rates-immunisation-routine-jabs-measles #MiddleEastandnorthAfrica #Vaccinesandimmunisation #WorldHealthOrganization #Humanitarianresponse #Infectiousdiseases #Globaldevelopment #Globalhealth #Worldnews #Children #Society #Science #Africa #Health #Sudan #MMR

Sudan’s children face growing threat of deadly infectious diseases as vaccination rates halve https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/jul/17/infectious-diseases-sudan-children-vaccination-rates-immunisation-routine-jabs-measles #MiddleEastandnorthAfrica #Vaccinesandimmunisation #WorldHealthOrganization #Humanitarianresponse #Infectiousdiseases #Globaldevelopment #Globalhealth #Worldnews #Children #Society #Science #Africa #Health #Sudan #MMR

Gizmodo: The Rise of AI Is Making Life Even Harder for Real People in Gaza. “Saeed Ismail is a real person. But no matter how much proof he posts online, people keep calling him fake. The 22-year-old has endured almost two years of war in Gaza, as Israel continues an assault that has killed at least 57,000 people and left the territory of 2 million on the brink of starvation. Saeed has been […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2025/07/06/gizmodo-the-rise-of-ai-is-making-life-even-harder-for-real-people-in-gaza/

Gizmodo: The Rise of AI Is Making Life Even Harder for Real People in Gaza. “Saeed Ismail is a real person. But no matter how much proof he posts online, people keep calling him fake. The 22-year-old has endured almost two years of war in Gaza, as Israel continues an assault that has killed at least 57,000 people and left the territory of 2 million on the brink of starvation. Saeed has been […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2025/07/06/gizmodo-the-rise-of-ai-is-making-life-even-harder-for-real-people-in-gaza/

How did Spain come to be the only nation holding firm on its aid spending? | Ana Carbajosa https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/jun/24/spain-aid-global-south-social-solidarity-outlier-new-world-disorder #Humanitarianresponse #Ethicalforeignpolicy #Trumpadministration #Globaldevelopment #EuropeanUnion #UnitedNations #Foreignpolicy #Worldnews #Refugees #Society #Europe #Spain #USAID #Aid

How did Spain come to be the only nation holding firm on its aid spending? | Ana Carbajosa https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/jun/24/spain-aid-global-south-social-solidarity-outlier-new-world-disorder #Humanitarianresponse #Ethicalforeignpolicy #Trumpadministration #Globaldevelopment #EuropeanUnion #UnitedNations #Foreignpolicy #Worldnews #Refugees #Society #Europe #Spain #USAID #Aid

The Guardian view on Gaza’s engineered famine: stop arming the slaughter – or lose the rule of law | Editorial https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/17/the-guardian-view-on-gazas-engineered-famine-stop-arming-the-slaughter-or-lose-the-rule-of-law #MiddleEastandnorthAfrica #Palestinianterritories #Humanitarianresponse #BenjaminNetanyahu #UnitedNations #DonaldTrump #Israel #Gaza #Food

The Guardian view on Gaza’s engineered famine: stop arming the slaughter – or lose the rule of law | Editorial https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/17/the-guardian-view-on-gazas-engineered-famine-stop-arming-the-slaughter-or-lose-the-rule-of-law #MiddleEastandnorthAfrica #Palestinianterritories #Humanitarianresponse #BenjaminNetanyahu #UnitedNations #DonaldTrump #Israel #Gaza #Food

What Trump’s assault on USAid means for the world – podcast https://www.theguardian.com/news/audio/2025/feb/13/what-trump-dismantling-usaid-means-world-podcast #Humanitarianresponse #Trumpadministration #Globaldevelopment #USforeignpolicy #Globalhealth #DonaldTrump #Bangladesh #Worldnews #ElonMusk #Rohingya #USnews #Africa #USAid #Sudan #Aid

What Trump’s assault on USAid means for the world – podcast https://www.theguardian.com/news/audio/2025/feb/13/what-trump-dismantling-usaid-means-world-podcast #Humanitarianresponse #Trumpadministration #Globaldevelopment #USforeignpolicy #Globalhealth #DonaldTrump #Bangladesh #Worldnews #ElonMusk #Rohingya #USnews #Africa #USAid #Sudan #Aid

Deaths predicted amid the chaos of Elon Musk’s shutdown of USAid https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/feb/04/deaths-predicted-amid-the-chaos-of-elon-musks-shutdown-of-usaid #Women'srightsandgenderequality #Contraceptionandfamilyplanning #DemocraticRepublicoftheCongo #MiddleEastandnorthAfrica #Humanitarianresponse #Trumpadministration #Globaldevelopment #USforeignpolicy #Globalhealth #SouthAfrica #USpolitics #AidsandHIV #Worldnews #ElonMusk #Colombia #Americas #Society #USnews #Aid

Deaths predicted amid the chaos of Elon Musk’s shutdown of USAid https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/feb/04/deaths-predicted-amid-the-chaos-of-elon-musks-shutdown-of-usaid #Women'srightsandgenderequality #Contraceptionandfamilyplanning #DemocraticRepublicoftheCongo #MiddleEastandnorthAfrica #Humanitarianresponse #Trumpadministration #Globaldevelopment #USforeignpolicy #Globalhealth #SouthAfrica #USpolitics #AidsandHIV #Worldnews #ElonMusk #Colombia #Americas #Society #USnews #Aid

Malawi sees influx of refugees from post-election violence in Mozambique https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/jan/08/malawi-sees-influx-of-refugees-from-post-election-violence-in-mozambique #Internallydisplacedpeople #Migrationanddevelopment #Humanitarianresponse #Globaldevelopment #Environment #Mozambique #Worldnews #Refugees #Drought #Society #Africa #Malawi #Aid

Malawi sees influx of refugees from post-election violence in Mozambique https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/jan/08/malawi-sees-influx-of-refugees-from-post-election-violence-in-mozambique #Internallydisplacedpeople #Migrationanddevelopment #Humanitarianresponse #Globaldevelopment #Environment #Mozambique #Worldnews #Refugees #Drought #Society #Africa #Malawi #Aid

Cylone Chido: locals shout out their grievances as Macron visits Mayotte https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/dec/19/cylone-chido-locals-shout-out-their-grievances-as-macron-visits-mayotte #Humanitarianresponse #EmmanuelMacron #Extremeweather #Climatecrisis #Environment #Worldnews #Mayotte #France