Happy international women’s day ! When women connect across generations and experiences, heart to heart, incredible things happen. In this special episode, Maeva Fages joins Rigmor Tholstrup for a heartfelt conversation about humanitarianism, yoga and resilience. Maeva, a humanitarian health specialist, yoga teacher, and Senior Country Manager for Afghanistan and Syria, shares experiences on leading with softness and finding strength in vulnerability. They discuss the pressures to “toughen up” in professional settings, the unspoken impacts of such expectations, and how our bodies often hold tr ..read more

The ethos of 'move fast and break things' doesn't work for humanitarians. If we break things, we break people. But technology is changing the nature of conflict. International Humanitarian Law cannot evolve to meet these challenges without input from the private tech actors shaping the battlefield. This week's guest, Philippe Stoll, Senior Techplomacy Delegate at the ICRC, works to connect humanitarians to tech entrepreneurs and other relevant minds over the dilemmas presented by new technologies in conflict. From biometric systems to the ethical risks of data misuse, Philippe shares how the I ..read more

In this episode, Tamam Aloudat and Richard Blewett join Lars Peter Nissen to ask the hard questions: What’s worth saving? What needs to go? Who gets to decide? ...And are we the right guys to discuss this? Tammam argues that tinkering with the system isn’t enough - we need a “non-reformist reform,” a radical reimagining of what humanitarianism even is. Richard reflects on decades of pushing for change from the inside and whether this crisis is finally the moment to force real localisation and dismantle the middlemen. As the sector scrambles, priorities are being set. The decisions being made r ..read more

Humanitarian tech initiatives fail when they start with a "shiny object" rather than a defined problem. Solutions are imposed rather than developed based on actual needs. A ‘graveyard of bad tech’ is expanding. Should humanitarians just admit they’re bad with technology? During the International Red Cross Movement Conference in Geneva in October 2024, Host Lars Peter Nissen found a quiet corner to discuss pitfalls and opportunities in humanitarian tech with Heather Leson (Digital Innovation Lead at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies) and Omar Abou Samra (Direc ..read more

Over the past week, the 90-day freeze of US foreign assistance has sent a shockwave through the humanitarian and development communities. If you ask this weeks guests on Trumanitarian the crisis will not be over in three months - Harpinder Collacott, Michael Barnett, and Meg Sattler come to the conclusion that the consequences of the aid freeze will last for years. The real question is: as the old system fractures, what new models of humanitarian action will emerge? Meanwhile, communities are not idly waiting for external interventions. Can aid evolve to truly support them in building stronger ..read more

Dr. Rola Hallam - a doctor, humanitarian, and Syrian advocate - joins host Lars Peter Nissen for a personal conversation on the resilience of humanity amidst chaos. Against the backdrop of Syria’s profound suffering and the fall of the Assad regime, Rola shares her journey of healing, hope, and service. With raw honesty, Dr. Rola dismantles the idea of the untouchable hero humanitarian, laying bare the fragility and vulnerability of frontline workers. She recounts her burnout and her path to rebuilding through healing, spirituality, and psychedelics - moving from clever to wise. Dr. Rola envis ..read more

What happens when you mix cyber warfare, climate collapse, and humanitarian action with a dash of whiskey? You get Emerson Tan - a man who started as a hacker, turned humanitarian, and now designs fintech for the apocalypse. Dive into chaos: how disasters, misinformation, and the climate crisis are forcing us to rethink everything from technology to social systems. Emerson explains why the difference between a war zone and a flood is six feet of water and how mutual aid and grassroots are bubbling up as antidotes to our crumbling centralised structures. Along the way, we explore the dark and o ..read more

Clionadh Raleigh is not only an accomplished academic, she is also founder of ACLED - delivering the most comprehensive and timely datasets on armed conflict, registering over 300,000 events annually. Tune in and hear why Clionadh couldn’t care much about AI and why it triggers Lars Peter - who spent the past five weeks in Bob-the-AI-Builder mode (check episodes 84 and 87). You will also hear why Clionadh is considering sending her husband to an ISIS controlled area to study climate adaptation! On a more serious note, the conversation debunks the humanitarian business myths on climate change a ..read more

..read more

In an early episode this year, Dr. Hugo Slim warned that he would challenge the most fundamental humanitarian principle: humanity. This week, he does just that. As a Senior Research Fellow at Oxford and a policy advisor specializing in the ethics of war and humanitarian aid, Hugo brings a unique philosophical lens to the conversation, drawing on his doctorate in theology. In this conversation, host Lars Peter challenges Hugo to assess the practicality and effectiveness of his landscape-based approach. Could it disrupt the established Western liberal framework of human rights—and might that dis ..read more