There is a quote, attributed sometimes to Michelle Obama, Brene Brown and even James Comey, that says, “It’s hard to hate up close.” In this episode, we are joined by Andrea C. Hummel, director and founder of Improv for Peace, an organization that focuses on making this idea a reality, operating under the belief that if people are able to better understand each other and communicate in a safe environment, conflicts based on cultural differences will subside. Hosted by Niki Clark.
Jun 25, 2019•35 min•Season 2019Ep. 83
In this episode of the Podcast, we come to you from Women Deliver, the world’s largest conference on gender equality and the health, rights, and wellbeing of girls and women. We are joined by Dr. Hozan Sindi, a general health practitioner in Iraq. Dr. Hozan served as a medical intern at the West Erbil Emergency Hospital during the fall of Mosul in 2017. She was also featured in the ICRC/National Geographic collaboration, A Women’s War. She discusses what it is like to grow up surrounded by war, ...
Jun 19, 2019•33 min•Season 2019Ep. 82
In this episode of the Podcast, we come to you from Women Deliver, the world’s largest conference on gender equality and the health, rights, and wellbeing of girls and women. We are joined by Dr. Mina Mojtahedi, the disability inclusion advisor for both ICRC and the International Federation. A former Paralympian, a PHd of Nutrition and an international expert in human rights of persons with disabilities, Mina works to create a more inclusive environment not only for those trying to access humani...
Jun 13, 2019•41 min•Season 2019Ep. 81
The risks of functionally delegating complex tasks—and associated decisions—to sensors and algorithms is one of the central issues of our time. Nowhere are these issues more acute than in relation to decisions to kill, injure and destroy. In this episode, we are joined by Neil Davison, ICRC’s Scientific and Policy Adviser in the Legal Division Arms Unit and Will Pons, our guest host and legal advisor at the Washington Delegation. We discuss emerging technologies in warfare. Can artificial intell...
May 28, 2019•33 min•Season 2019Ep. 80
The evidence is irrefutable: Humor helps. Helps situations involving communications, relationships, problem solving, and productivity among others. So much so, in fact, that the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre has been exploring it as an unconventional approach to engagement in difficult conversations. In this episode of the Podcast, we are joined by guest host Anna Nelson, ICRC’s head of communications in Washington as well as Pablo Suarez, Director for Research and Innovation at the Clim...
May 14, 2019•38 min•Season 2019Ep. 79
Rule 55 of Customary Law states that ‘The parties to the conflict must allow and facilitate rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief for civilians in need, which is impartial in character and conducted without any adverse distinction, subject to their right of control.’ And while the rules seems clear, in complex conflict settings there are often challenges to implantation. In this episode, we speak to Jacob Kurtzer, a research fellow with the Center for Strategic & International S...
May 07, 2019•41 min•Season 2019Ep. 78
Armed conflict and other situations of violence deprive those in the midst of it of the essentials – food, clean water, health care, shelter – and the chance to experience life and grow at their own pace. Despite the protection afforded them by international law, both children and adults are vulnerable to all sorts of risks. One of the most critical is the impact violence has on education. The interruption of education has severe consequences for both the future of individuals and a country’s ca...
May 07, 2019•40 min•Season 2019Ep. 77
It has been six weeks since Cyclone Idai made landfall in southern Africa, unleashing unprecedented devastation and destruction on communities in Mozambique, Malawi, and Zimbabwe. Many communities were stranded for weeks and cut-off from outside assistance. Tens of thousands of people were left homeless. Crops were washed away. The ICRC has been working with IFRC and national Red Cross societies to provide assistance to people who lost everything to the storm, an effort that has been made even m...
Apr 30, 2019•35 min•Season 2019Ep. 76
In late March, the small village of Ogossagou in Central Mali experienced a horrific massacre. The scene, from those who were there, looked apocalyptic. Huts and farm buildings burnt and riddled with bullet holes, charred remains of cars and donkeys. The wells became unusable because of the contamination of corpses. Families are struggling to come to terms with what happened– the latest in a recent series of very violent clashes between herders and settled farmers in the region. In this episode ...
Apr 25, 2019•26 min•Season 2019Ep. 75
Responding to today's most complex humanitarian challenges, particularly those in protracted conflicts, requires innovative approaches and mobilizing a range of actors. Many have pointed to the potential of innovative financial models as a way to bring together humanitarian, development, government, and private sector actors to respond and maximize sustainable impact in meeting affected persons' needs. In September 2017, the ICRC launched an innovative finance mechanism, the world's first Humani...
Apr 23, 2019•44 min•Season 2019Ep. 74
In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we speak with ICRC’s Director General Yves Daccord who was in town for last week’s World Bank Spring Meetings. We chat about some of the things that came out of those meetings as well as the growing nexus between humanitarian and development actors, particularly in protracted conflicts. We discuss the transformative change he’s seen in nearly 30 years of service with the ICRC, including the evolving approach to humanitarian action, as well as the inclus...
Apr 16, 2019•22 min•Season 2019Ep. 73
The conflict in the Donbas is entering its fifth year, and heavy weaponry remains in regular use—with far-reaching humanitarian consequences for this predominantly industrial and urban region of eastern Ukraine. Civilians on either side of the contact line rely on the same infrastructural network – water systems, electricity grids and gas lines – for vital services. Several of these key infrastructural installations are on or near the contact line, and in the immediate vicinity of the ongoing ho...
Apr 09, 2019•25 min•Season 2019Ep. 72
It’s been eight years since fighting began in Syria. Out of 18 million people living in the country, 13.1 million of them require humanitarian aid. One in 2 Syrians have been displaced by the conflict, either abroad or within the country. 1.3 million were newly displaced in last year alone. Years of fierce fighting have left some of the country’s vital services extremely fragile. 50% of health facilities are out of service or partially functioning. 2 million children are unable to go to school, ...
Apr 03, 2019•26 min•Season 2019Ep. 71
The sound of gunfire approaches. You don’t know if your family should run or hide. Making the right choice can mean life or death. A new immersive virtual reality movie called The Right Choice puts users next to a Syrian family trapped in urban warfare. The film, a collaboration between ICRC, Google’s Daydream Impact Project and the creative agency Don’t Panic London, uses a simulated experience to help people understand urban warfare and its impact on real lives. In this episode of Intercross t...
Mar 26, 2019•24 min•Season 2019Ep. 70
In this episode of Intercross the podcast, we sit down with Trevor Keck, the deputy director of policy at the ICRC Washington Delegation, who recently returned from Nigeria. Intensifying attacks in NE Nigeria have caused around 30,000 people to flee across the border and within the country over the last weeks. The crisis, now nearly in its 10th year, has resulted in widespread displacement, violations of international humanitarian and human rights law, protection risks and a deepening humanitari...
Mar 06, 2019•23 min•Season 2019Ep. 69
This episode of Intercross the Podcast is the second in our new joint series with Humanitarian Law & Policy. Humanitarian Law & Policy is the ICRC blog based in Geneva that provides timely analysis and debate on international humanitarian law (IHL) issues and the policies that shape humanitarian action. With this series we hope to have monthly conversations on trends, issues, future challenges and solutions as they pertain to IHL or humanitarian action. In this discussion, we speak with ...
Mar 06, 2019•33 min•Season 2019Ep. 68
In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Dr. Catherine-Lune Grayson, ICRC Policy Advisor. Globally, around 40 million people have fled their homes from conflict or persecution as internally displaced persons. About 60%–80% of those live in urban areas. The “urban story” of forced displacement is often compounded by its hidden nature. It is more difficult to track the living conditions of those displaced in urban areas, obtain precise numbers, and provide humanitarian assistanc...
Feb 20, 2019•43 min•Season 2019Ep. 67
In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Cate Bird, the Missing Persons and Forensic Advisor to the ICRC delegation in DC. Cate focuses on the humanitarian consequences of migration along the U.S.-Mexico border and the forensic responses to missing migrants and unidentified remains. Since receiving her PhD in Anthropology from Michigan State University in 2013, she’s performed forensic anthropological casework in several medical examiner offices in the United States (including...
Feb 05, 2019•34 min•Season 2019Ep. 66
In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Sasha Ingber and Alex Ebsary of Music in Exile. Music in Exile is a nonprofit that seeks to document the songs and stories of people who have been displaced, and humanize them through their music. We talk about how travel and family histories led them to a compassion for displaced musicians, why music is often so critical to people who have lost everything and of course, the music and stories they just can’t get out of their heads. For ...
Jan 29, 2019•39 min•Season 2019Ep. 65
In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Monica Mukerjee, a Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Delegate for the ICRC currently based in Juba. She is also the Sexual Violence Focal Point for the delegation. Since March 2018 she has worked in South Sudan developing mental health and psychosocial activities for victims of violence in primary health care facilities as well as for weapon-wounded patients receiving care in ICRC hospital programs. She has previously worked in Uga...
Jan 22, 2019•30 min•Season 2019Ep. 64
With this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we announce the start of a new monthly series with Humanitarian Law & Policy. Humanitarian Law & Policy is the ICRC blog based in Geneva that provides timely analysis and debate on international humanitarian law (IHL) issues and the policies that shape humanitarian action. With this series we hope to have monthly conversations on trends, issues, future challenges and solutions as they pertain to IHL or humanitarian action. We also will be taki...
Jan 16, 2019•1 hr 3 min•Season 2019Ep. 63
In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, discuss frontline humanitarian negotiations. The Center of Competence on Humanitarian Negotiation recently launched a field manual on the subject, taking the collective experience and perspectives of numerous humanitarian practitioners working in some of the most challenging conflict environments and translating it into tangible tools and resources. Claude Bruderlein, director of the Centre and lead researcher for ICRC negotiation practices talks throug...
Jan 08, 2019•33 min•Season 2019Ep. 62
In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we come to you from Juba, South Sudan. Following a two week wheelchair basketball training program, we sit down with two athletes from radically different worlds. Malat Wei was a young child when his family was forced to flee South Sudan, shortly after he contracted polio and lost the use of his legs. Though he grew up in an Ethiopian refugee camp, he fell in love with sports, spending his long days at the camp playing soccer with his able-bodied friend...
Dec 18, 2018•27 min•Season 2018Ep. 61
In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we discuss the protection of cultural property in the time of armed conflict. It’s no secret that people around the world have a deep connection with places and objects of artistic, historic and religious importance. Archaeological sites connect us to the past. Monuments beckon from afar to be visited and marveled at. Our customs, traditions and values bind us to each other and the places we call “home.” Cultural property and heritage are vital to the i...
Dec 11, 2018•28 min•Season 2018Ep. 60
In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we discuss the protection of civilians in partnered operations. National security and defense strategies, as well as trends in US military operations around the globe, reflect a preference for working by, with and through partners to achieve common security objectives. These partnerships in the context of armed conflict can aggravate or reduce the risk of harm to civilians depending on the form and significance of the partnership. CSIS, Interaction and ...
Dec 04, 2018•47 min•Season 2018Ep. 59
In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Jenelle Eli, Director of International Communications, Amanda Nieman, Bangladesh Program Officer and Brad Zerivitz, a Photographer and Director of Video Services, all at the American Red Cross. They recently spent two weeks in Bangladesh, capturing stories of the crisis in Cox’s Bazaar. Since August 2017, more than a million people have fled Rakhine state, Myanmar to Bangladesh because of violence. We spoke last week with ICRC’s outgoin...
Jul 30, 2018•39 min•Season 2018Ep. 58
In this episode of Intercross the Podcast we chat with Fabrizio Carboni, who has spent the last year as ICRC's Head of Delegation in Myanmar. More than a million people have fled Myanmar to Bangladesh due to violence since the end of August 2017. Peter Maurer, ICRC’s President, recently visited both sides of the border there and called it a "lose-lose situation for people." We did a Q&A on Intercross the blog with Fabrizio back in December on the crisis and in this conversation we discuss up...
Jul 24, 2018•31 min•Season 2018Ep. 57
In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down Patricia Danzi, ICRC's Regional Director for Africa. More than 40% of ICRC operations are on the continent, including the geographical focuses of the Lake Chad region, South Sudan, Somalia, Central Africa Republic, Mali and Libya. We chat operations and challenges, displacement and migration and environmental impact on both, emotional wounds of war, innovation and more. Hosted by Niki Clark and Sara Owens.
Jul 17, 2018•19 min•Season 2018Ep. 56
In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Christophe Hambye, head of ICRC’s logistics division. Running logistics is a complicated endeavor even when it’s in the best of situations but Christophe and his team are working in some of the world’s most challenging contexts. We chat about what are some of the humanitarian logistical challenges, how to stay ahead and prepared in a world of uncertainty and what the future of logistics looks like for ICRC. Hosted by Sara Owens.
Jun 05, 2018•29 min•Season 2018Ep. 55
In this episode of Intercross the Podcast, we sit down with Charlotte Lindsey, ICRC’s current Director of Communication and Information Management. In July, Charlotte will begin a new position as ICRC’s first ever Director of Data & Digital Transformation. We chat about what digital transformation means, how innovation plays a role in humanitarian aid, the evolving challenges facing women in war and personal reflections on her more than 25 years with ICRC. Hosted by Niki Clark.
May 22, 2018•24 min•Season 2018Ep. 54
