Michael Barnett’s “Empire of Humanity: A History of Humanitarianism” (2011, Cornell University Press) is a great addition to not only the history of the sector but also its complexities and ethical challenges. This is recommended reading for anyone seeking to understand humanitarianism. One limitation is that the book has a eurocentric focus, neglecting traditions from […]
Lauren Carruth provides a useful introduction to Ethiopia’s Somali region, to the practices of global health, to ‘humanitarianism’, and to anthropology / ethnography with her 2021 publication: Love and Liberation: Humanitarian Work in Ethiopia’s Somali Region (Cornell University Press). The book helpfully deconstructs international / Euro-Western conceptualizations of humanitarianism and re-orients that within the Somali context (linguistic, socio-cultural, […]
Tags: #Anthropology #Ethiopia #Humanitarian #Humanitarianism #Somali
Darfur has received food aid for one of the longest running periods anywhere. Decades has passed and the crisis of insecurity and malnutrition continue. Long-time humanitarian practitioner, turned academic, Susanne Jaspars, authored “Food Aid in Sudan: A History of Power, Politics and Profit” in 2018 to distill the complex story. The book is readable and […]
“It seems very hard to stop this now, but I think we all just have to believe that it is possible.” (Norwegian epidemiologist, p. xvii) Within development studies literature there is a sub-genre of memoires, biographies and dairies. Some are troubling to read. Not all are well written. Some are extremely informative. Most present […]
Tags: #Development #Ebola #Humanitarian #Learning #Public Health
Crises call for action. Bosnia, Somalia, Rwanda, Afghanistan, Libya, Syria, Yemen… The international community has responded to countries experiencing crisis in a range of ways, from heavy-handed military action to neglect. Have the activities achieved their objective? And, if not, what might be do differently in responding to crises in the future? This is the […]
Tags: #Development #Humanitarian #International community #Intervention