Humanitarian Innovations Initiative
The initiative on innovation in humanitarian response is an important element of ALNAP’s mission to foster a culture of active learning and accountability to improve humanitarian performance. Innovation and the production of knowledge and new ideas must play an important part in meeting the challenges faced by humanitarians.
ALNAP's study on innovations in international humanitarian response, published in the 8th Review of Humanitarian Action, provides the conceptual and practical foundation of the initiative. The study looks at theories of innovation, case studies of innovations in the humanitarian sector, and outlines key steps to encourage innovations in humanitarian response.
The study findings will contribute to more proactive work by the ALNAP secretariat to promote innovations in humanitarian response. Key points of the study's findings include:
- there is considerable scope for innovation in humanitarian response
- strategic thinking across the sector is lacking on how innovation can best contribute to positive change
- examples exist of successful innovations, and many in the sector express a desire to harness innovation
- there are limited incentives encouraging organisations to be innovative, and innovations that do occur struggle to gain traction and acceptance.
ALNAP is currently undertaking a number of activities designed to build the innovative capacity of the sector, strengthen the relationships important for innovation, and create a context where innovation forms a central part of learning and adaptation in humanitarian response.
- In November 2009, ALNAP held a meeting looking at innovation in humanitarian response. The meeting took place in London and more details are available here.
- A series of ‘Innovations Case Studies’ promotes specific humanitarian innovations, highlighting what they offer for humanitarians, how they were developed, and what future developments they may lead to. As well as promoting the particular innovations, these case studies aim to stimulate constructive analysis of how organisations can foster and harness innovation.
- ALNAP is also examining how it can support further incentives for innovation in humanitarian response, and create a forum for the open exchange and development of new ideas and technologies.
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