Michael Kleinman
Michael Kleinman is an aid worker, lawyer, and consultant. From 2004 to 2007 he worked for CARE, first as the organization's Advocacy Advisor in Afghanistan, then covering Sudan, and finally as CARE's Regional Advocacy Advisor for East and Central Africa. He left CARE in early 2007 to take a position with International Relief & Development in Iraq. Prior to going overseas, Michael worked for the Harvard Program on Humanitarian Policy and Conflict Research, providing assistance to the United Nations. He is a graduate of Yale College and Harvard Law School. He runs change.org's blog on a humanitarian relief.
Obama and Darfur - What to Expect
Author: Michael Kleinman
This blog post is taken from Michael Kleinman's change.org blog on humanitarian relief There have been a number of articles recently providing advice about how the new U.S. administration should address the crisis in Darfur. For instance, the Enough Project, Save Darfur and the Genocide Intervention Network recently issued A Peace Surge for Sudan, an open letter to President-Elect Obama with a number of specific policy recommendations. (For a summary, see the recent post by my co-blogger Michelle.) Yet to get a sense of what an Obama Administration might actually do, it's useful to take a moment and look back at some of the statements he made over the course of the campaign, and even before. ...
Author: Michael Kleinman
This blog post is taken from Michael Kleinman's change.org blog on humanitarian relief There have been a number of articles recently providing advice about how the new U.S. administration should address the crisis in Darfur. For instance, the Enough Project, Save Darfur and the Genocide Intervention Network recently issued A Peace Surge for Sudan, an open letter to President-Elect Obama with a number of specific policy recommendations. (For a summary, see the recent post by my co-blogger Michelle.) Yet to get a sense of what an Obama Administration might actually do, it's useful to take a moment and look back at some of the statements he made over the course of the campaign, and even before. ...
Whose Life Is Worth More, Whose Life Is Worth Less?
Author: Michael Kleinman
This blog post is taken from Michael Kleinman's change.org blog on humanitarian relief
There's anexcellent IRIN article this week about the threats faced by Afghan aid workers. According to one Afghan who works for a humanitarian agency:
"If the Taliban know that I work for an international organisation, it will not take them long to either kill or kidnap me."
The situation is particularly bad in Afghanistan, yet national staff face similar threats in conflicts worldwide, as humanitarian agencies increasingly transfer risk from international to national staff in the field.
...
Author: Michael Kleinman
This blog post is taken from Michael Kleinman's change.org blog on humanitarian relief
There's anexcellent IRIN article this week about the threats faced by Afghan aid workers. According to one Afghan who works for a humanitarian agency:
"If the Taliban know that I work for an international organisation, it will not take them long to either kill or kidnap me."
The situation is particularly bad in Afghanistan, yet national staff face similar threats in conflicts worldwide, as humanitarian agencies increasingly transfer risk from international to national staff in the field.
...
The impact of the global financial crisis on humanitarian funding
Author: Michael Kleinman
This blog post is taken from Michael Kleinman's change.org blog on humanitarian relief With far over a trillion dollars worldwide going to various bailout packages, the money will have to come from somewhere. (Theoretically, at least.) Though it would be nice if humanitarian and development spending were immune from such cut-backs, history shows quite the opposite. The Center for Global Development offers by far the best analysis of how the financial crisis will affect humanitarian (and development) funding. It's not a pretty picture. According to their most recent article, History Says Financial Crisis Will Suppress Aid: "After each previous financial crisis in a donor country since 1970, the country's aid has declined." ...
Author: Michael Kleinman
This blog post is taken from Michael Kleinman's change.org blog on humanitarian relief With far over a trillion dollars worldwide going to various bailout packages, the money will have to come from somewhere. (Theoretically, at least.) Though it would be nice if humanitarian and development spending were immune from such cut-backs, history shows quite the opposite. The Center for Global Development offers by far the best analysis of how the financial crisis will affect humanitarian (and development) funding. It's not a pretty picture. According to their most recent article, History Says Financial Crisis Will Suppress Aid: "After each previous financial crisis in a donor country since 1970, the country's aid has declined." ...
Talking to the Taliban (Hopefully)
Author: Michael Kleinman
This blog post is taken from Michael Kleinman's change.org blog on humanitarian relief. It's been a brutal year for aid workers in Afghanistan. Thirty Afghan and international aid workers have been killed since January, with another 92 abducted. This includes the killing of three UN staff in Kandahar on September 14th, as well as four IRC staff in Logar Province on August 13th. This spiraling insecurity means that fewer and fewer people receive assistance - 40-50% of the country is now too dangerous for the UN to operate. ...
Author: Michael Kleinman
This blog post is taken from Michael Kleinman's change.org blog on humanitarian relief. It's been a brutal year for aid workers in Afghanistan. Thirty Afghan and international aid workers have been killed since January, with another 92 abducted. This includes the killing of three UN staff in Kandahar on September 14th, as well as four IRC staff in Logar Province on August 13th. This spiraling insecurity means that fewer and fewer people receive assistance - 40-50% of the country is now too dangerous for the UN to operate. ...
