Alexandra Biem
Julia Broska
Miguel Leroy
Marie-Rose Romain Murphy
Koenraad Van Brabant
Giulio Coppi
Sigrid Kühlke
Mariana Merelo Lobo
The following article is a personal story from our fellow Mariana Merelo: In the winter of 2019, after two decades as a humanitarian and development practitioner, Mariana found questioning her role in driving systemic change within the humanitarian ecosystem. Despite being surrounded by passionate change-makers, including foresight experts, partnership advocates, and local champions, she felt stuck in the wrong vehicle for change. Mariana had worked for a prominent INGO, which espoused a commitment to empower local actors and crisis-affected communities in decision-making and emergency responses. However, a glaring gap existed between the organization's rhetoric and tangible actions. It was not until she found collaborative foresight, as a co-created and co-evolving approach to explore alternative futures that she found a response to the previous challenge.
Francois Bourse
Matt Twilley
Are you unsure about how technology may be able to help you to achieve your humanitarian sector objectives? Do you want to understand where emerging and existing technologies can assist people that are in need?
Matt Twilley would like to share with you some of his experiences and open up some ideas on how potentially the use of technology in the right way can give you more opportunity to really help those in need.
Michel Maietta
"Unleashing Local Potential: Advancing Aid Localization in Ukraine" delves into the critical importance of bringing power and resources closer to the communities in need. The article highlights the crisis in Ukraine as a turning point for advancing the localization agenda in humanitarian aid. By recognizing the capabilities of local actors and addressing the challenges they face, the article advocates for a transformative approach that empowers Ukrainian civil society and fosters effective localization of aid.
Innovation in the humanitarian sector is a challenging journey, often hindered by cultural resistance. However, with a transformation strategy, leadership support, and a culture open to change, these obstacles can be overcome. Strategic foresight, which anticipates future trends and proactively develops solutions, can greatly enhance this process. External pressures, like the COVID-19 pandemic, can also catalyze cultural transformation, prompting organizations to rethink traditional ways and embrace innovation.
The humanitarian ecosystem is failing to adapt to global transformations and new types of crises. This failure is rooted in the opportunistic nature of ODA flow governance and the entrenched value chain of formal humanitarian actors. To break free from this short-termism trap, the humanitarian ecosystem must shift its approach and values, prioritizing the needs and voices of those affected by humanitarian crises. Only then can it fulfill its potential to provide effective and lasting assistance.
Acabar con los encierros es, como lo define Paul Watzlawick, “una ultra-solución”: un intento de arreglar un problema deshaciéndose de todo lo que tenga que ver con el mismo. Al caer en esta trampa, los gobiernos están utilizando la ultra-solución, arriesgándose a destruir tanto la economía, como la vida de las personas al final del túnel.
Lockdowns are what Paul Watzlawick defines as “an ultra-solution”: an attempt to fix a problem by getting rid of it and everything that goes with it. Falling into this trap, governments are at risk of destroying both the economy and peoples lives.
L’homophobie est entendue comme les discriminations de tous ordres à l’encontre des personnes LGBT (lesbiennes, gays, bisexuelles et transgenres). Si «l’homophobie politique» est déjà connue en tant qu’outil de duplicité en politique intérieure, Michel Maietta explore davantage son pouvoir de manipulation, jusqu’à sa dimension géopolitique. L’auteur nous rappelle à quel point la protection des droits des personnes LGBT revêt une importance stratégique dans la défense plus large des droits de l’homme.
Is it possible to use foresight analysis to tackle the geopolitics of homophobia? Michel Maietta discusses the progress made so far and how the futures technique could be beneficial to decriminalizing homosexuality everywhere
For many across the world, May 17th takes a pertinent and personal meaning since becoming accustomed, and widely accepted, as the International Day against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia, or more commonly known, and such referred to in this blog, as IDAHOBIT.
We give a retrospective analysis of the level of global LGBTI social exclusion following the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in April.
Many have said it before: localisation needs to stop being a talking point and start being a reality. But we have been saying this since the advent of capacity building. So do we really mean it? If so, how can we bring about localised change effectively, and swiftly?
Why localisation is no longer an 'if', but firmly, a 'when'.
Afghanistan is one of the countries that received the highest amount of ODI over the past 20 years, yet poverty has lately been on the rise. Aid is heavily politicized and the fight against corruption has shown limited success. Consequently, the aid sector is affected by a fundamental lack of trust: high ranking officials of the Afghan government have repeatedly expressed their distrust of aid actors