Annette Grindsted

Brigitte Piquard

Dennis Day

David Zammit

Humanitarian crises caused by conflict or natural disasters have become a growing focus of multi-disciplinary studies. Research on response mechanisms to humanitarian crises have likewise undergone rapid developments. This volume addresses in particular urban crises. It is based on conclusions and case studies discussed by scholars and practitioners who gathered together for HumanitarianNet’s Annual Forum 2008 in Odense, Denmark.

Cities and Crises

Pat Gibbons

The intensification and multiplicity of protracted conflicts, the blurring of traditional distinctions between war zones and safe areas, together with increased difficulties in distinguishing botween belligerents and civilian population have all served to worsen the fate of innocent victims and to complicate the work of those who try to assist them. Actors who claim space under the humanitarian banner are guided by varying principles of humanitarianism or employ diflerent interpretations of a small number of acknowledged humanitarian principles. This book addresses some of the main challenges and dilemmas of contemporary humanitarian work. It presents a selection of papers from a high level forum that the Network on Humanitarian Assistance (NOHA) convened in 2003 as an introductory course to its Joint European Master's in International Humanitarian Action. The event gathered over two hundred participants including researchers, policy makers, practitioners, and postgraduate students from around the world. The first section of the book explores the meaning of the «humanitarian» concept. The second analyses the evolving mandates of humanitarian actors under a number of broad groupings and, finally, the third examines the scope of the humanitarian business and the relationship between humanitarian action and conflict transformation - hence the title working in conflict/working on conflict.

Brigitte Piquard

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