Podcasts about humanitarian innovation

Send me a messageIn this episode of Climate Confident, I speak with Alice Chun, inventor of the world's first inflatable, origami-inspired solar light and founder of Solight Design. Alice shares how a career in material technology and a deeply personal experience with her son's asthma led her to tackle energy poverty, disaster relief, and carbon emissions with a single, deceptively simple product: the SolarPuff™.We discuss the staggering health and environmental toll of kerosene lighting, especially in off-grid and disaster-affected communities — and how collapsible, durable solar lanterns are not only cleaner and safer, but can also act as tools for education, safety, and psychological recovery.Alice walks us through the practical design choices (like sailcloth and origami folds) that make the lights lightweight, shippable, and long-lasting. She also unpacks her field experiences from Haiti to Ukraine, why she insists on personally delivering lights, and the complex balance of running a mission-driven company that also needs to survive commercially.Key takeaways:Why light access is essential for disaster resilience and safetyHow solar design can scale through beauty, durability, and functionThe unexpected link between solar tech and trauma recovery in childrenWhat business models can sustain social impact in climate techFor more, visit https://solight-design.com or head to climateconfidentpodcast.com.Support the showPodcast supportersI'd like to sincerely thank this podcast's amazing supporters: Lorcan Sheehan Jerry Sweeney Andreas Werner Stephen Carroll Roger Arnold And remember you too can Support the Podcast - it is really easy and hugely important as it will enable me to continue to create more excellent Climate Confident episodes like this one.ContactIf you have any comments/suggestions or questions for the podcast - get in touch via direct message on Twitter/LinkedIn. If you liked this show, please don't forget to rate and/or review it. It makes a big difference to help new people discover the show. CreditsMusic credits - Intro by Joseph McDade, and Outro music for this podcast was composed, played, and produced by my daughter Luna Juniper

Mobile phones are a powerful tool for participation and engagement in humanitarian crises. Responsible public/private partnerships are increasingly unleashing their potential. In this post, part of a new series on Cybersecurity and data protection in humanitarian action, Susanna Acland and Barnaby Willitts-King from the GSMA Mobile for Humanitarian Innovation programme outline the private sector perspective on this important trend.

In this episode, Kirsten Gelsdorf speaks with Chris Houston, the former Director of Humanitarian Innovation for Grand Challenges Canada. Chris goes beyond the buzzword of innovation and shares inspiring examples of local and global responses to crises. He also talks about the power of combining global solidarity with local action and why we need to consider expanding the resources given to humanitarian response.

Links I Liked; Women, Voice and Power; How to design research to make sure that Humanitarian Innovation gets scaled up?; Four glimmers of hope for tackling the climate crisis

Chris Houston, Director of Humanitarian Innovation at Humanitarian Grand Challenge Canada, talks about innovations for humanitarian response, investing in local leadership and solutions, and the upcoming Request for Proposals at https://humanitariangrandchallenge.org/

In Episode 7, Jenny Caswell (Acting Research & Insights Director, at GSMA), Peter Batali (Executive Director at CTEN) and John Warnes (Innovation Officer on Connectivity for Refugees at UNHCR) reflect on the past two years of GSMA’s Mobile for Humanitarian Innovation and discuss what’s next for the programme. Find out more at www.gsma.com/m4h This initiative is currently funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID), and supported by the GSMA and its members.

“If you just occupy space but don't do anything, you prevent other things from emerging in that space. We need to expose our failures.” We sat down with Rahul Chandran, world-renowned humanitarian leader and recent Executive Director of the Global Alliance for Humanitarian Innovation. Subscribe to Future of Good's Edge & Main.

Keeya-Lee Ayre is the Senior Marketing Manager responsible for leading global communications for the GSMA Mobile for Humanitarian Innovation programme, a 15.5 million GBP (28.2 million AUD) partnership with the UK Department for International Development, working to accelerate the delivery and impact of digital humanitarian assistance. She is responsible for directing digital campaigns, blogs, video content, infographics and other multimedia content, as well as editing and managing the design of publications. Keeya has interned in strategic communications at the United Nations OCHA in New York, worked on projects in London, Rwanda, Malawi, Tanzania, and co-founded award-winning Australian non-profit organisation Perth SOUP. Keeya also qualified to practice Australian migration law in 2014 and has provided pro bono assistance to refugees for the past five years. Keeya is also a Huffington Post contributor, a World Economic Forum Global Shaper and TEDx speaker. Her work has been showcased at the United Nations General Assembly, the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, and Mobile World Congress Barcelona, among other high-level global events.

Jochan Bader and Reihaneh Mozaffari, More than Shelters give a talk for the Design in Humanitarian Innovation panel. This presentation demonstrates how product design, social design and eco-system design for humanitarian innovation can be linked and facilitated as co-creation processes in the field, based on experiences with the Syrian crisis response in Jordan. Design in Humanitarian Innovation panel This panel considers the role and function of design in humanitarian innovation.

Neysan Zölzer (Mensch) gives a talk for the Design in Humanitarian Innovation panel. This presentation proposes and examines a methodological shift in refugee camp design from the prescriptive and formulaic approaches of the UNHCR Handbook towards a principle-driven design approach that draws on empathy.

Anne-Meike Fechter (University of Sussex) gives a talk for the Co-Creation and Participatory Approaches to Humanitarian Innovation session. This presentation investigates the phenomenon of ‘Do-it-yourself-aid’ organisations in Cambodia, describing the ways in which their small-scale and transnational nature enables them to implement innovative approaches to local problems, and suggesting this trend as an example of innovation that might occur in the space created by transnational collaborations between foreign and local small-scale actors. Co-Creation and Participatory Approaches to Humanitarian Innovation This panel explores theories and approaches to engaging in participatory work and co-creation with affected populations and vulnerable groups, focusing on interactions between ‘transnational’ organisations and local actors.

Ian Gray (independent consultant) gives a talk for the Co-Creation and Participatory Approaches to Humanitarian Innovation panel. This presentation outlines some fundamentals of participatory approaches to ideation, then will seek to unpack the utility and ethics of applying these approaches to ideation with vulnerable groups. Co-Creation and Participatory Approaches to Humanitarian Innovation This panel explores theories and approaches to engaging in participatory work and co-creation with affected populations and vulnerable groups, focusing on interactions between ‘transnational’ organisations and local actors.

Robin Mays (University of Washington) gives a talk for the Co-Creation and Participatory Approaches to Humanitarian Innovation panel. This presentation shares new evidence highlighting the critical link between allowing innovation at the community level to achieving long-term success in humanitarian work. Co-Creation and Participatory Approaches to Humanitarian Innovation This panel explores theories and approaches to engaging in participatory work and co-creation with affected populations and vulnerable groups, focusing on interactions between ‘transnational’ organisations and local actors.

Mollie Gerver (London School of Economics) gives a talk for the Considering Ethics in Humanitarian Innovation panel. This panel engages with several topics related to ethics and principles for humanitarian innovation. This presentation will consider not only whether monetary incentive payments themselves are unjust, but whether the UN and NGOs act unjustly when they facilitate such schemes, attempting to resolve two ethical dilemmas concerning such payments: the “Motivation Dilemma” and the “Freedom of Movement Dilemma.”

Alexander Betts (Refugee Studies Centre, University of Oxford) gives a talk for the Considering Ethics in Humanitarian Innovation panel. This presentation explores the range of ethical questions and dilemmas related to humanitarian innovation (HI) and will offer a set of principles for ethical HI to review, based on discussions at workshop held in Oxford in April 2015.

Anjali Bhatnagar (Design without Borders), gives a talk for the Design in Humanitarian Innovation panel. This presentation seeks to demonstrate the importance of design for the humanitarian sector, drawing upon two Design without Borders’ projects to explore both solutions and key elements of the design process and to highlight how design tools are crucial to foster innovation.

Anaïs Rességuier (Sciences Po Paris), gives a talk for the Ethics as a driver for humanitarian innovations panel. This panel engages with several topics related to ethics and principles for humanitarian innovation. ‘Ethics as a driver for humanitarian innovations’ This presentation considers the ethical aspirations of humanitarian endeavours as ‘the primary desire to help’, arguing that under this model ethics becomes a fundamental source for humanitarian innovation rather than only a way to regulate it.

Having an idea to change the way we help others is one thing - getting it off the ground and into reality is an entirely different matter. While there are any number of amazing stories about Aidpreneurs who have bootstrapped their way to success, even those who started with no funding eventually find themselves in a place where filling the coffers is necessary to scale, pivot or just grow. My guest for the 123rd episode of the Terms of Reference Podcast knows a thing or two about funding innovation. Kim Scriven is the Manager of the Humanitarian Innovation Fund. Kim is responsible for the development and management of the Fund, and oversees both its grant making processes and innovation management work. Kim has been a longstanding advocate for increased investment in innovation by the humanitarian system, previously working within the Secretariat of the Active Learning Network for Accountability and Performance in Humanitarian Action (ALNAP), where his work focused on supporting innovation in humanitarian organisations, and promoting learning around innovation.

Parallel session: Humanitarian Innovation: How to balance short-term results with long-term vision? 17 July 2015, 14:00-15:30. Panellists Kim Scriven, Humanitarian Innovation Fund, Pascal Daudin, ICRC, Johan Karlsson, Better Shelter. Chair: Marpe Tanaka, MSF Sweden Innovation Unit. For emergency-oriented organisations in the humanitarian sector, responding quickly to rapidly emerging crisis situations is absolutely crucial. However, a major challenge facing humanitarian organizations is how to maintain a balance between addressing short-term needs and building an innovation capability to meet long-term challenges. The emergency-oriented mind-set often leads to prioritization of short-term problem solving and neglects the exploration of long-term challenges and opportunities for innovation. This panel brings together representatives from MSF Sweden Innovation Unit, the Humanitarian Innovation Fund, the ICRC and Better Shelter to discuss how to successfully achieve a balance between the short-term and the long-term, and to explore the role of patience and trust in creating a sustained innovation capability in humanitarian organizations.

Parallel session: Ethics for Technology and Big Data in Humanitarian Innovation 17 July 2015, 14:00-15:30, 1st Panel Room. Nathaniel Raymond, Harvard Humanitarian Initiative's Signal Program: ‘Applying Humanitarian Principles to the Collection and Use of Digital Data in order to Identify and Mitigate Potential Risks to Vulnerable Populations', Stefan Voigt, DLR Center for Satellite Based Crisis Information, and Josh Lyons, Human Rights Watch: ‘Between transparency and sensitivity: considerations on the use of very high resolution satellite mapping technologies for humanitarian operations and human rights investigations' Chair: Anaïs Rességuier, Sciences Po Paris. This panel will discuss ethical issues and risks specific to the application of new and existing technologies and the collection of ‘big data' for humanitarian purposes. The first presentation will identify potential risk vectors and models of prospective harm that may stem from current data collection practices through digital platforms, which is increasingly for humanitarian practice, and will provide examples of scenarios where this harm may occur and applying commonly accepted sources of humanitarian principles. The second presentation will give an insight in the current and up‐coming state‐of‐the‐art of satellite technology and will stimulate a discussion on how the geospatial community can navigate future policy debates in a balanced and informed way.

Parallel session: Understanding Humanitarian Innovation in Resettlement Contexts, 18 July 2015, 11:0--12:30, 2nd Panel Room. Gavin Ackerly, Asylum Seeker Resource Centre Innovation Hub: ‘Innovative ways of creating resource rich networks to support successful refugee resettlement', Faith Nibbs, Southern Methodist University: ‘Innovative Strategies: How refugees have career-laddered in the US', Eleanor Ott, Oxfam GB: ‘‘Forced' innovation: A case study of US refugee resettlement', Carrie Perkins, Southern Methodist University: ‘The Road to Resettlement: Transitions from the Thai-Burma border to Dallas, Texas'. Chair: Naohiko Omata, Humanitarian Innovation Project This panel will consider how the concept of humanitarian innovation can apply to refugees who have been resettled to third countries. The first presentation will introduce a purpose-built e-mentoring and networking project which connects refugees to industry professionals, small business mentors and peer groups in order to give refugees the opportunity to connect deep within mainstream networks, reducing reliance on service agencies and increasing opportunities for prosperity. The second presentation will address how refugees career-ladder when their skills don't easily transfer to the country of resettlement, presenting some of the innovative strategies refugees have used over the past 30 years in the US gathered through ethnographic interviews of the refugee communities of Dallas, TX area. The third presentation will explore how resettled refugees use and build their own networks to relocate, acquire employment, and find economic and social support, presenting qualitative and quantitative data on resettled refugee livelihood adaptation from findings of research with resettled refugees, practitioners, and policymakers. The fourth presentation will use qualitative interviews from refugees both preparing for resettlement and those who have already made the transition to life in the U.S to explore the many challenges, struggles and successes encountered along the way.

Parallel session: Humanitarian Innovation and the Military 18 July 2015, 11:00-12:30, 1st Panel Room. Nathaniel Raymond, Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, James Ryan, University of London. Chair: Josiah Kaplan, Humanitarian Innovation Project. Military and humanitarian actors increasingly interact across a range of contexts, from natural disaster response to complex emergencies. To date, however, sensitive but important questions surrounding knowledge creation, diffusion, and exchange between both communities remain under-explored, both in debates on humanitarian innovation and humanitarian civil-military coordination. This panel seeks to prompt critical discussion around a sensitive topic by examining how innovative forms of knowledge are created, diffused, and exchanged between military and humanitarian space. How do aid workers learn, adapt, and 'rebrand' military innovations for civilian use? To what degree are military actors adapting humanitarian concepts and practices for their own use? What sensitivities and dilemmas do such interactions pose for both humanitarian practice and principles? This discussion will be grounded in concrete case studies drawn from medical humanitarianism and emerging approaches to networked technologies such as remote sensing and mapping.

On 8 July 2015, PHAP hosted a combined online learning session on Humanitarian Innovation and a live online consultation event on the draft Principles for Ethical Humanitarian Innovation, organized in support of the World Humanitarian Summit.The consultation event featured: - A brief presentation of the draft Principles for Ethical Humanitarian Innovation by Alexander Betts, Director of the Refugee Studies Centre, and Leopold Muller, Associate Professor in Refugee and Forced Migration Studies, University of Oxford. - A panel discussion focusing in turn on each of the seven draft principles. - An opportunity for participants to provide their input and perspectives on the draft principles. - The possibility for registrants to submit input on the draft principles in writing prior to the event.Read more at https://phap.org/WHS-8Jul2015

On 8 July 2015, PHAP hosted a combined online learning session on Humanitarian Innovation and a live online consultation event on the draft Principles for Ethical Humanitarian Innovation, organized in support of the World Humanitarian Summit.The consultation event featured: - A brief presentation of the draft Principles for Ethical Humanitarian Innovation by Alexander Betts, Director of the Refugee Studies Centre, and Leopold Muller, Associate Professor in Refugee and Forced Migration Studies, University of Oxford. - A panel discussion focusing in turn on each of the seven draft principles. - An opportunity for participants to provide their input and perspectives on the draft principles. - The possibility for registrants to submit input on the draft principles in writing prior to the event.Read more at https://phap.org/WHS-8Jul2015

In the context of growing humanitarian needs and increasingly limited resources, finding innovative solutions to reducing human suffering is critical. However, the humanitarian sector lacks organizational frameworks, resources, and tools dedicated to managing innovation, and innovation strategies are rarely systematically adapted and applied to humanitarianism.The past few years have seen an influx of initiatives looking at fostering innovation in humanitarian action, including the ICRC-led Global Partnership for Humanitarian Impact and Innovation (GPHI2); the Humanitarian Innovation Fund (HIF); the Humanitarian Innovation Project (HIP) at the Refugee Studies Centre, University of Oxford; dedicated innovation units at UNICEF and UNHCR; and private sector initiatives such as the Deloitte Humanitarian Innovation Program. Given the current interest in innovation, it is important that we understand what we mean when we refer to humanitarian innovation, what the current trends are, as well as the challenges to achieving results in fostering innovation in humanitarian action.In this learning session, Alexander Betts,Director of the Refugee Studies Centre and Leopold Muller Associate Professor in Refugee and Forced Migration Studies at the University of Oxford, provides us with an overview of what sets humanitarian innovation apart from other kinds of innovation.Read more and access the assessments and related resources at https://phap.org/OLS-TCHA-2

In the context of growing humanitarian needs and increasingly limited resources, finding innovative solutions to reducing human suffering is critical. However, the humanitarian sector lacks organizational frameworks, resources, and tools dedicated to managing innovation, and innovation strategies are rarely systematically adapted and applied to humanitarianism.The past few years have seen an influx of initiatives looking at fostering innovation in humanitarian action, including the ICRC-led Global Partnership for Humanitarian Impact and Innovation (GPHI2); the Humanitarian Innovation Fund (HIF); the Humanitarian Innovation Project (HIP) at the Refugee Studies Centre, University of Oxford; dedicated innovation units at UNICEF and UNHCR; and private sector initiatives such as the Deloitte Humanitarian Innovation Program. Given the current interest in innovation, it is important that we understand what we mean when we refer to humanitarian innovation, what the current trends are, as well as the challenges to achieving results in fostering innovation in humanitarian action.In this learning session, Alexander Betts,Director of the Refugee Studies Centre and Leopold Muller Associate Professor in Refugee and Forced Migration Studies at the University of Oxford, provides us with an overview of what sets humanitarian innovation apart from other kinds of innovation.Read more and access the assessments and related resources at https://phap.org/OLS-TCHA-2

It is difficult to speak convincingly of ‘new’ or innovative practices towards refugees, especially in refugee livelihoods assistance, while there remains a significant gap in historical knowledge and institutional memory.

Humanitarian actors will have to adapt to a changing world but it will not be easy or straightforward. Operations are changing as a result of innovations which bring many improvements but also throw up challenges.

Innovative approaches in Lebanon aim to address, in two very different ways, the particular needs of the most vulnerable among the refugee and host populations.

The continued evolution of the humanitarian innovation concept needs a critical engagement with how this agenda interacts with previous and contemporary attempts to improve humanitarian action.

In order to make a living, refugees have to be innovative, and refugees in Uganda have contributed tremendously to entrepreneurship and innovation in the country.

Conversations with multiple stakeholders in the US help to highlight barriers to economic self-sufficiency for resettled refugees and opportunities for innovative approaches.

‘UNHCR Ideas’ aims to enable collaborative problem solving and idea generation among an online community.

Since 2007 a partnership between UNHCR, the Government of Uganda and ‘MakaPads’ inventor Moses Musaazi has helped provide affordable sanitary pads for thousands of refugee girls and women.

Doing innovation well presents challenges for how we can work better together as organisations and with displaced people, and how we can break down traditional barriers between actors – all while upholding ethical principles and protection standards.

A collaboration between UNHCR, Ennead Architects and Stanford University uses settlement design to promote innovation and further development in the refugee protection model but collaborators initially face a steep learning curve.

The purpose of innovation is to make humanitarian work more effective and more reflective. We do innovation to improve human lives by doing things better. Innovation, for UNHCR, is a humanitarian imperative to be carried out with partners.

From the editors

Special seminar by Dr Alexander Betts, Louise Bloom and Dr Naohiko Omata (University College Dublin) recorded on 15 November 2012 at the Oxford Department of International Development, University of Oxford. HIP is a new project based at the Refugee Studies Centre, researching the role of technology, markets and the private sector to identify new and sustainable humanitarian solutions. The launch event consisted of a panel discussion on the following topics: Humanitarian innovation and refugee protection, Dr Alexander Betts;Building a humanitarian innovation database, Louise Bloom; Refugee livelihoods and private sector engagement in Uganda, Naohiko Omata.