Angelus Novus Paul Klee’s Angelus Novus, created in 1920, is a small artwork with a very life. The image, now in the collection of the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, became widely known mostly because of the German philosopher Walter Benjamin, who bought it in 1921 and later interpreted it as the “angel of history.” The angel in the image appears startled, fragile, and suspended. Its eyes are wide open, its wings are wide raised, and its body seems caught between movement and st

Authors/Contributions from: Adriana Stibral, Thea Hilhorst, Palash Kamruzzaman, Mihir R. Bhatt, Khayal Trivedi At a time when the global humanitarian system is under extraordinary strain, the HOISA’s panel discussion on “Status of Humanitarian Studies: A View and Beyond” brought together leading voices to reflect on the future of the field. Speakers included Dr. Adriana A. Stibral (Charles Darwin University), Professor Palash Kamruzzaman (University of South Wales), Professor

Authors: Anisa Abeytia, Asma Derja, Alphoncina Lyamuya, Heriberto Tapia, John Jaeger, Khayal Trivedi, Mihir R. Bhatt The rise of AI contains the possibility to accelerate the achievement of humanitarian justice across humanitarian systems, but not accounting for Model Drift may derail this potential. The rise of AI holds the potential to accelerate humanitarian justice across global systems. Yet that promise is fragile. Anisa Abeytia, the author of Model Drift: How Subtle

Contributions from: Aparna Tandon, Isber Sabrine, Paola Jani, Mihir R. Bhatt and Khayal Trivedi What place does cultural heritage protection have within the humanitarian efforts while planning for aid and relief? How must we protect the invaluable world heritage during times of crisis? And how do we manage the risk, and provide first-aid to cultural heritage during emergencies? Conflicts, disasters and climate change stand as major threats to human civilisation, its systems

Contributions from: Susanne Jaspars, Marga Fekadu Angerasa, Behaylu Giram The Sudanese conflict has plunged the region into another cycle of instability and crisis. It therefore becomes critical to look at the situation from a regional perspective to analyse and prepare for how this could affect a much larger population in the region, and what lessons South Asia can learn from it. In one of the webinar sessions in 2023, HOISA discussed the challenges for the humanitarian net

Contributions from: Prabodh Chakrabarti, Pradnya Paithankar, Achyut Luitel, Barkat Ullah Maruf, Mihir R. Bhatt and Khayal Trivedi South Asia is one of the most diverse and densely populated regions in the world with one fourth of the world’s population in merely one fifteenth of the geographical area. Having witnessed some of the worst humanitarian crises - from famines to wars, migration, child mortality, poverty, hunger, and disasters such as floods, earthquakes etc, it has

Authors: Dr. M.V. Ramana Murthy, Flora Bawi Nei Mawi, Sourav Kumar Biswas and Khayal Trivedi According to a 2020 report by the UN, more than 7000 extreme events have been identified since 2000 resulting in a sharp increase in floods and droughts globally. With the accelerating climate change, warmer weather, and frequent marine heatwaves, our coasts are particularly at a greater risk of facing frequent flooding, soil erosion, and loss of agriculture and natural defense system

Author: Lien Vandamme, Hyeonggeun Ji, Moumita Das Gupta, Mihir Bhatt, Khayal Trivedi The March 12, 2025, HOISA panel members proposed for COP30 that Human rights offer the moral and legal foundation for climate justice as well as humanitarian justice. Without rights-based remedies, every disaster response risks becoming another cycle of neglect rather than a path to just recovery. For a decade now, international institutions and human rights law, along with the many develo

Author: Dr. Dorothea Hilhorst, Sarian Jarosz, Mohammed Jelle, Mihir R. Bhatt, and Khayal Trivedi 2024 has been a particularly challenging year for the world—but especially for the humanitarian and development sector. In the wake of increased defence funding, military operations and an ongoing arms race, funding for the humanitarian sector has been drastically reduced in several parts of the world. The USAID freeze, one of the major causes and triggers of this change, led to

Authors: Sudhanshu S. Singh, Ali Al Mokdad, Jaipreet Kaur, Mihir Bhatt, Khayal Trivedi Amidst the ongoing crisis of legitimacy and funding for the international humanitarian system, there is a serious challenge to the sustainability and equity of the current aid system. At a recent panel discussion, hosted by Humanitarian Observatory Initiative of South Asia Humanitarian, All-India Disaster Mitigation Institute, and Humanitarian Aid International, humanitarian actors gathere

Authors: Dr. Shabana Khan, Dr. Jyoti Mishra, Dr. Nova Ahmed, Mihir R. Bhatt, Khayal Trivedi, Edited by Spandan Pandya Technological advancements in communication and digital technologies have greatly influenced the humanitarian sector, enabling better, more effective risk communication even in remote and geographically vulnerable areas during disasters. Similarly, early warning systems have drastically reduced the mortality in natural disasters such as cyclones, floods, and h

Authors: Authors: Anisa Abeytia, Shanyal Uqaili, Mihir Bhatt and Khayal Trivedi Published at ISS Bliss: https://issblog.nl/2024/11/07/ai-and-emerging-tech-for-humanitarian-action-opportunities-and-challenges/ In this blog, members of the Humanitarian Observatory Initiative South Asia (HOISA) including Anisa Abeytia, Shanyal Uqaili, Mihir Bhatt and Khayal Trivedi consider the applications of AI and other emerging technologies for humanitarian action. With UNHCR and other orga