Aid practitioners and civil society groups in Syria and Turkiye will have access to crisis leadership training resources in Levantine Arabic through the Centre for Humanitarian Leadership (CHL).
CHL has received an AUD $380,000 grant from the Center for Disaster Philanthropy (CDP) to tailor, translate and deliver its flagship Crisis Leadership Program (CLP).
The program is a short course designed to enhance the disaster response and recovery capabilities of local leaders to enable more inclusive, equitable, and appropriate responses to humanitarian crises.
The grant marks the second time in 12 months that CHL and CDP have worked together.
The Centre is currently delivering CLP Seed, Grow and Extend programs for emerging and established aid practitioners in Ukraine and Poland that have already trained 265 participants since the beginning of 2023, thanks to a previous grant from CDP.
Deakin University Arts and Education Faculty Executive Dean Professor Simon Tormey said the new program would provide people working in earthquake recovery in the region with the skills to guide their communities through the ongoing crisis and better advocate for their needs within the global humanitarian system.
'Making Centre for Humanitarian Leadership's flagship short course available to people in Syria and Turkiye will help people working for local civil society organisations to enable better outcomes for those still trying to recover from this massive tragedy,' Professor Simon Tormey said.
CHL Director Associate Professor Mary Ana McGlasson said tailoring the Crisis Leadership Program to the local context would enable program participants to elevate, empower and strengthen local civil society leadership across the quake-struck region, and support local leaders to negotiate better outcomes for their own communities.
Feedback from course participants who have already taken part in CLP courses in Poland and Ukraine has been overwhelmingly positive.
'We are excited to be partnering with CDP again to take the Crisis Leadership Program to the next level, and continue to conduct important research alongside it,' Associate Professor McGlasson said.
'Participants have highlighted how they are now more confident in navigating the international humanitarian system, as well as being able to advocate for the changes they want to see in how humanitarian assistance is provided in their country.'
Alex Gray, Director of International Funds at CDP, said the organisation is excited to continue its partnership with the Centre for Humanitarian Leadership in expanding the delivery of this important program.
'CDP has long recognised the critical importance of local humanitarian leadership in ensuring adequate preparedness, appropriate response, and equitable long-term recovery for at-risk communities affected by crises like the 2023 earthquake.'
'Today, more than ever, the international aid system stands at a pivotal juncture, necessitating a shift in historical power dynamics to empower local communities affected by crises. This entails shifting greater power and resources to these communities. The first and most important step is to invest in local humanitarian leadership, a goal that the Crisis Leadership Program actively pursues and is proven to accomplish.'
The grant will fund the following key activities between 2024-25:
- The tailoring and refinement of the Crisis Leadership Program (CLP) Seed and Grow streams to the Syrian/Turkish earthquakes context, and the translation of CLP Seed to Levantine Arabic and the delivery of four components of the CLP Seed and Grow short courses in Turkiye and Syria, through a combination of online learning, synchronous live sessions and in-person workshops.
- The delivery of a training the trainers program, targeting Syrian and Arabic-speaking nationals with significant humanitarian and leadership experience, ensuring Seed can be delivered by local leaders themselves in their language. The mentoring component will enable peer-to-peer support from established leaders with emerging leaders in the region.
- A rigorous research program, aiming to build evidence for supporting local leaders, and exploring the impact of crisis leadership development on the ability of local leaders to engage more effectively with and challenge the internationally coordinated humanitarian system.
