HUMANITARIAN NEWSLETTER
June 23 - July 7, 2014 
Training Humanitarians Around The World
FORDHAM PANEL EXAMINES MASSIVE INFLUX OF CHILD MIGRANTS TO U.S.
 
By the end of this year, approximately 100,000 children will have made the perilous journey from Central America through Mexico to cross the United States' southern border. As recent events illustrate, this unprecedented surge in child migration creates significant challenges and protection issues for both the unaccompanied children and communities coping with the new arrivals, and exposes the clash of political perspectives in dealing with immigration policies.

These issues were recently highlighted in the panel discussion, "Child Migration and Central America: A Humanitarian Crisis," organized by the Institute of International Humanitarian Affairs (IIHA) and the Feerick Center for Social Justice at Fordham Law School on June 18th.
 
The event included a welcome and introduction by Brendan Cahill (IDHA 9), Executive Director of the IIHA, and Dora Galacatos, Executive Director of the Feerick Center for Social Justice. Argentina Szabados (IDHA 2) then opened the panel discussion by putting the situation into a global context - her remarks enriched by her experience and current role as Chief of Mission of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Berlin and Special Representative to the Director General of IOM. The esteemed panelists included Armando Borja, National Director, Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS)/ USA; Peggy A. Healy, Senior Vice President for Latin America, Covenant House International; and Christa M. Stewart, Coordinator, NYS Human Trafficking and Unaccompanied Children Programs, Bureau of Refugee and Immigrant Assistance/Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA). The conversation was moderated by Olga Byrne, Director of the New York Unaccompanied Immigrant Children Project at the Feerick Center for Social Justice, who accepted questions from the audience and suggested opportunities for audience members to become engaged with the issue. IIHA Humanitarian Programs Director, Larry Hollingworth, offered closing remarks, summarizing the presentations of the distinguished panelists and connecting the panel discussion to the ongoing work of the participants of the 43rd International Diploma in Humanitarian Assistance who were in attendance.

A video of the panel discussion is now available on the IIHA YouTube channel. 

For more information about this ongoing situation, read the IIHA Humanitarian News Brief. 
 
LORD DAVID OWEN SPEAKS TO IDHA 43 AT FORDHAM UNIVERSITY
On Thursday, June 19th, 2014, former UK Foreign Secretary, Lord David Owen, , spoke to the students and faculty of the 43rd International Diploma in Humanitarian Assistance (IDHA) about the ongoing crisis in Syria and its regional implications. Following his comprehensive and thought-provoking speech, Lord Owen graciously accepted questions from the audience and engaged in a discussion about the politics of the region, the influence of external actors, and the future of a nation embroiled in civil war.

Audience members included: Kevin M. Cahill, M.D., University Professor and President of the Center for International Humanitarian Cooperation (CIHC); Larry Hollingworth, IIHA Humanitarian Programs Director; Brendan Cahill, IIHA Executive Director; Peter Hansen, IIHA Diplomat-in-Residence; Dirk Salomons, Director of the Humanitarian Affairs Program & International Organizations Specialization at the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) at Columbia University; IDHA Alumni Glen Diehl (IDHA 37), Stephen Duvall (IDHA 34), Diego Guerrero Oris (IDHA  9), Angela Jackson (IDHA 27), Tony Land (IDHA Honoris Causa), Kasia Laskowski (IDHA 40), Al Panico (IDHA 30), and Gonzalo S�nchez-Ter�n (IDHA 16); and IDHA Alumni Council Members Lejla Hrasnica (Chair; IDHA 2), Peter Ophoff (Secretary; IDHA 24), Argentina Szabados (Chairperson Emeritus; IDHA 2), Mark Little (IDHA 27), Andrea Tamburini (IDHA 12), and Florian Razesberger (IDHA 20).
HUMANITARIANISM & ACADEMIA
Call for Papers
ALUMNI UPDATES
A warm congratulations to Argentina Szabados (IDHA Alumni Council Chairperson Emeritus, IDHA 2), who was recently elected to the Board of Directors of the Center for International Humanitarian Cooperation (CIHC) as the IDHA Alumni Representative!
In his recent blog post, "Breaking on the Border," Joe Lowry (IDHA 12), a Senior Media and Communications Officer for the International Organization for Migration (IOM), reflects on his experience on the Cambodian-Thai border.
Andy McElroy (IDHA 16) has recently published an article,
"UNISDR Chief: 'recapture spirit of 2005,'" outlining the key points discussed at the 6th Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction. 
Antenanie Goshu (IDHA 36) is now working with GlobalMedic in the Philippines. GlobalMedic is currently running emergency WASH programming in Bosnia, Haiti, the Philippines, Syria, and the Central African Republic (CAR) as well as a shelter program in the Philippines. Antenanie is working on Monitoring and Evaluation for GlobalMedic's WASH project. 
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World Humanitarian Summit 2016

The UN Secretary-General will convene the first-ever global humanitarian summit in Istanbul in 2016. The goal of the World Humanitarian Summit is to find new ways to tackle humanitarian needs in our fast-changing world. This three-year initiative is being managed by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and Dr. Jemilah Mahmood, International Diploma in Humanitarian Assistance (IDHA) Honoris Causa recipient, will head the   WHS Secretariat at the United Nations headquarters in New York. The summit will set a new agenda for global humanitarian action. It will focus on humanitarian effectiveness, reducing vulnerability and managing risk, transformation through innovation, and serving the needs of people in conflict. 
NEW YORK EVENTS
Tuesday, June 24, 2014 | 6:15 PM - 7:30 PM 
 
The world faces a once-in-a-generation opportunity to address the risks of humanitarian crises at the global policy level. The ongoing deliberations for a post-2015 development agenda, as well as momentum towards a post-2015 framework on disaster risk reduction and the World Humanitarian Summit, present an incredible opportunity to harmonize global progress towards sustainable development. 

OCHA, Oxfam and UNDP will host a discussion on the importance of linking the SDG processes with those of the disaster and humanitarian communities. In particular, the partners and invited speakers will seek to make suggestions the help further align the post-2015 humanitarian and development agendas. 

Please RSVP to: Sue.Rooks@oxfaminternational.org 

 

For more information: Please click here or email Anton Santanen at santanen@un.org 

To view the event flyer: Please click here.
Tuesday, June 24, 2014 | 7:30 PM - 9:00 PM 
 
This is a moving story about a bold, five-day mission to deliver eye care in a remote part of South Sudan -- the world's newest country. It chronicles the miraculous work of Dr. Geoff Tabin and Dr. Alan Crandall; two eye surgeons committed to eradicating preventable blindness in Africa, and John Dau, one of the original Lost Boys of Sudan and a visionary for peace in South Sudan. 

 

For more information: Please email Yasin Samatar at samatar@un.org or Kharasrota Grenier at greener@un.org.

Location: Dag Hammarskjold Auditorium, United Nations Headquarters, New York
ECOSOC 2014 Humanitarian Affairs Segment Side Event - "Trends in UN Peace and Security Operations and
Humanitarian Action"
Wednesday, June 25, 2014 | 8:15 AM - 9:30 AM 
 
The event, organized by OCHA, will be chaired by Ms. Kyung-Wha Kang, Assistant-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator.


Panelists will include: Mr. Alexander Aleinikoff, UNHCR , Deputy High Commissioner for refugees | Mr. Taye-Zerihoun, UN Assistant-Secretary-General for Political Affairs | Ms. Izumi Nakamitsu, Director for Asia and Middle East at UN / DPKO.

Panellists in this  side-event will discuss the latest developments and trends in UN peace and security operations. They will share views on how these may impact the    relationship between UN peacekeeping and special political missions and humanitarian organisations, including risks, challenges and opportunities. They will explore the ways UN missions and humanitarian organisations can serve more efficiently the needs of people in complex emergencies, while preserving the integrity of UN missions and humanitarian actors' mandates. 

 

For more information: please click here. 
Saturday, June 28, 2014 | 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM 
 
The day-long gathering will feature speakers representing diverse sections of the population, as well as activists, advocates, academics, elected officials, and concerned community members of all ages. The conference will tackle serious issues plaguing our society including gun violence, hate crimes, bullying, and violence against women and girls. Not only will the conference identify problems but guest and speakers will explore possible solutions and what actions steps our communities cam take going forward as a city-wide movement for nonviolence and peace. 
 

For more information: Please visit Peace is a Lifestyle Conference.

To register: Please click here and follow the prompt.

Location: Fordham University | Lincoln Center Campus | 113 West 60th Street (at the corner of 60th St. & Columbus Ave.) | Pope Auditorium

65th ANNUAL UN DPI/NGO CONFERENCE
2015 and Beyond: Our Action Agenda
Wednesday, August 27 - Friday, August 29, 2014  
 
The 65th Annual UN DPI/ NGO Conference will take place at a critical time in the post-2015 process. As the international community strives to achieve the Millennium Development Goals while formulating the post-2015 development agenda including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), 2015 is recognized to be a once-in-a-generation opportunity for transformational change. The purpose of this Conference is to harness the strategies, expertise and resources across the broadest spectrum of civil society to move poverty eradication, sustainability, human rights and climate justice into the mainstream discourse, and spark sustained public demand for lasting political action in support of an ambitious outcome from the post-2015 sustainable development process.
 
For more information: Please click here.

Location: United Nations Headquarters, New York, USA
Monday, September 22 -
Tuesday, September 23, 2014
 
The high-level plenary meeting of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, to be known as the World Conference on Indigenous Peoples (WCIP), to be held in 2014 in order to share perspectives and best practices on the realization of the rights of Indigenous peoples, including to pursue the objectives of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and invites the President of the General Assembly to conduct open-ended consultations with member states and with indigenous peoples' representatives in the framework of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, as well as, the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Special Rapporteur in order to determine the modalities of this meeting, including indigenous peoples' participation at the Conference (A/RES/65/198).

For more information: Please visit UN WCIP 

 

Location: United Nations Headquarters, New York, USA
NATIONAL EVENTS
Wednesday, November 19 -
Thursday, November 20, 2014

The Aid & International Development Forum's 6th annual Disaster Relief Summit is the world-leading gathering for international humanitarian experts at relief agencies, NGOs and charity associations, UN and government agencies, development banks and donors and innovative technology and service providers. AIDF summits are designed to create a mutual platform to facilitate and encourage exchange of thoughts, share expertise and present the lessons learned through first-hand experiences. The summit strives to enable quicker and better response during crisis and catastrophes in a more effective, sustainable and cost-efficient way.

 

To register: Please register online here.

Location: Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington DC, 20004, USA
INTERNATIONAL EVENTS
Wednesday, June 25 - Tuesday, July 8, 2014

On the occasion of World Refugee Day (June 20) the Center for Migration and Refugee Studies and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees announce the opening of a photo exhibition, Refugee Voices in Egypt 2014: Exile, Refuge and Resilience.

For more information: Please visit the event website.

Location: Legacy Gallery, American University in Cairo (AUC) Tahrir Square, Cairo, Egypt 
Thursday, June 26, 2014 | 5:00 - 9:00 PM (GMT+01 (BST))

Community security can therefore potentially fill an important gap. Saferworld will present on how community security contributes to both immediate and long-term solutions to security deficits - crucially, in a way that seriously engages with the long term objectives of achieving legitimacy, public confidence and improved state-society relations. 

 

For more information: Please visit the ODI website.

To register: Please contact Claire Bracegirdle at c.bracegirdle@odi.org.uk.
Friday, June 27, 2014 | 11:30 AM - 1:30 PM (GMT+01 (BST))

Community security can therefore potentially fill an important gap. Saferworld will present on how community security contributes to both immediate and long-term solutions to security deficits - crucially, in a way that seriously engages with the long term objectives of achieving legitimacy, public confidence and improved state-society relations. 

 

For more information: Please visit the ODI website.

To register: Please click here and follow the prompts. 

Location: 203 Blackfriars Road, London, SE1 8NJ UK
Tuesday, July 8, 2014 | 10:30 AM - 1:00 PM (GMT+01 (BST))

Significant progress in education has been made across the globe over the past decades. Many nations have stepped up efforts to improve their education systems, with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) focusing particular attention on completion of primary schooling and improving gender equity, and Education for All setting a broader ambitious agenda. This public event takes us beyond discussions on global goals to examine political and socio-economic factors that drive education progress at a national level, looking particularly at improvements in quality at primary level and expanding access to post-primary education. 

 

For more information: Please visit the ODI website.  

To register: Please click here and follow the prompt.

Location: 203 Blackfriars Road, London, SE1 8NJ, UK
Tuesday, September 16 - Thursday, September 18, 2014

In 2013, the Humanitarian Partnership Conference brought together universities and NGOs working in the humanitarian sector. The result was multiple collaborations and ongoing conversation. This year, the 3 day conference wants to take this conversation to the next level by expanding stakeholder representation and engagement and addressing topical issues in the world of Humanitarian Assistance.

 

For more information: Please click here or contact Sheila Waruhiu at s.waruhiu@savethechildren.org.uk.

Location: Nairobi, Kenya
Monday, November 3 - Wednesday, November 5, 2014

The 2nd international Conference on Urban Sustainability and Resilience will be held at University College London from November 3rd - 5th, 2014. The inaugural conference took place in 2012 and was a great success, generating a high level of interest and a stimulating agenda-setting debate.
For any additional questions or topic suggestions: Please email usarconference2014@ucl.ac.uk.

For more information: Please visit the website. 

 

To register: Please click here.

 

Location: University College London, Chadwick Building, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, UK
ONLINE EVENTS
 
The webinar will feature a presentation of the evaluation capacities framework from the popular ALNAP Study 'Using evaluation for a change' - and will include a discussion with two members of the Community of Practice - Wartini Pramana (Canadian Red Cross) and Mikkel Nedergaard (Danish Refugee Council) - who have been exploring and working on these issues in their respective organisations and will share their experience and learning on this topic.  

 

For more information: Please visit the website.  

To register: Please click here and follow the prompts.  
Tuesday, July 1, 2014 | 10:00 AM (EST)
 

Join the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) as it presents the updated Global Multidimensional Poverty Index 2014, an international measure of acute poverty covering over 100 developing countries which provides invaluable insights for the post-2015 development agenda. We will present new estimations for 30 countries covering 2.5 billion people, and release new studies that answer the following questions: What percentage of MPI poor people live in rural vs urban areas? Who are the destitute and where do they live? Reducing MPI poverty - LICs and LDC heroes. Inequality and Disparity.

 

For more information: Please visit the Cash Learning Partnership website.
Thursday, July 24, 2014
2:00 - 3:30 PM (BST)

This edition of ALNAP's Urban Webinar series focuses on the use of mapping in urban humanitarian response. It will address broader questions of how humanitarians can harness technology to help them understand complex urban systems, what different types of mapping are available to humanitarians and what needs to change in order to better integrate mapping efforts into humanitarian response. It will then highlight the Rapid City Profiles created by UN Habitat and how these are contributing to the Syria Response. Two presentations will be followed by a Q&A session, during which we invite the audience to submit questions in advance or in real time, as well as to contribute their own experiences of mapping urban response. 

 

For more information: Please visit the ALNAP website.  

To register: Please click here and follow the prompt.
Invitation to the 2014 Climate, Buildings and Behavior Symposium Situations of Armed Conflict
Wednesday, October 8 - Friday, October 10, 2014
  

This event will bring together real estate professionals from for-profit and non-for-profit firms, building industry experts and behavior change researchers from across the country to explore the science and practice behind successful approaches from enhancing sustainable practices, reducing energy consumption, and significantly lowering the cost of operations in multi-family residential and commercial buildings. 

 

For more information: Please visit the Garrison Institute website.  

To register: Please click here and follow the prompt.