World Conference on Humanitarian Studies

Announcements

Join the IHSA

The 2011 World Conference on Humanitarian Studies is over, but you can still join the International Humanitarian Studies Association to connect with your colleagues and learn about future events.

Join by visiting http://www.ihsa.info and filling out the Membership Form.

Side Events

In addition to the scheduled panels, several side events will be held throughout the conference.

Screening Room

A selection of films on humanitarian issues will be shown in Sophia Gordon Hall while panel sessions are taking place. Please see the Film Schedule for details.

Photography Exhibit: Through Veterans' Lenses

Enlarged photographs from Through Veteran Eyes: The Iraq and Afghanistan Experience will be on display in Alumnae Lounge. Each of the photographs was taken by a veteran who served in Iraq or Afghanistan. In the book veterans describe the circumstances of each photo and its personal meaning.

The display is located in the Alumnae Lounge of Alumnae Hall at 150 South Campus Road on the Tufts campus in Medford, MA. The exhibition is open to the public on Thursday (5:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.), Friday and Saturday (9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.), and Sunday (9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.). Copies of the book will be available for purchase in the lobby on Friday morning and at other times in the Tufts University Bookstore across the street.

Introduction to Sphere Handbook 2011 & Discussion of Coherence of Q&A Initiatives

Erik Johnson
Friday and Saturday 12:30-1:30pm, Pearson 104

Whilst there's a strong consensus amongst humanitarians that systems and standards are important tools for achieving quality and accountability in humanitarian response, this has led to another problem: the proliferation of quality and accountability initiatives, the Sphere Project, ALNAP, People in Aid, and the Humanitarian Accountability Partnership (HAP), just to name a few. The proliferation of Q&A initiatives poses a number of challenges, both to policy makers and field workers.

Now an emerging dialogue among key policy makers and humanitarian leaders is seeking for ways to achieve greater harmony and convergence amongst the major Q&A initiatives. Erik Johnson, newly-selected chair of the Sphere Project board, will lead an informal discussion addressing the issue, and solicit participants’ experiences and views as to how these initiatives can complement - rather than compete - with each other. The presentation will start with a short summary of the highlights of what's new in the 2011 edition of the Sphere handbook.

Book Launch for Aid Peacebuilding and the Resurgence of War: Buying Time in Sri Lanka

Sarah Holt
Friday 12:45pm- 1:30pm, Pearson 106

Sarah Holt will introduce the new title from the Palgrave Macmillan series Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies edited by Oliver Richmond. Aid Peacebuilding and the Resurgence of War is a comprehensive analysis of the Sri Lankan conflict and the role of international donors in the peace process. It covers the war up until its conclusion in 2009 and is based on nine years of research and extensive fieldwork. It provides an evidence-based account of the challenges that face the peacebuilding project, a critique of the liberal peace thesis, and highlights the tensions between the approaches of the traditional western-donors and new donors from emerging economies. It contributes to the policy/practitioner debate over best practice during conflict and to better understanding of the Sri Lankan civil war and its conclusion.