By Jennifer Rubenstein Why has the international response to the flooding in Pakistan been so stingy and slow?  Commentators have offered various explanations: donors’ concerns about aid benefiting the Taliban; “donor fatigue” after the recent earthquake in Haiti; the relatively low number of immediate deaths (about 2,000), compared to the number of people affected (about [...]

By Ellen Knickmeyer Vastly more people needing help, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, and particularly in the slums of the world’s poorest cities. More climate crises, both slow-moving and abrupt. More military involvement in humanitarian work. More political crises of conscience for humanitarian organizations. More of everything, really – except donors, as population growth stagnates in [...]

Mike Van Rooyen, director of Harvard’s Humanitarian Initiative and an emergency room physician with experience in international disasters, recently outlined 12 Myths and Misconceptions in Humanitarian Response. He criticizes the humanitarian aid “industry” for making incorrect assumptions about the vulnerabilities of disaster victims and for propagating incorrect public perceptions about international emergencies. The list neatly [...]