Date
24 Feb 2024
The 2024 Humanitarian Symposium Munich, held for the ninth time, hosted multiple speakers from the fields of humanitarian aid and global health to discuss People with Disability in Humanitarian Crises.
The day started with explorations of disability concerning humanitarian work in Lebanon by Maysa Baroud from the Middle East Council on Global Affairs. Dr. Heinrich Schöneich, a plastic surgeon from the NGO Interplast, gave insights about reconstructive surgery in the humanitarian settings of Afghanistan and Myanmar. A discussion on enhancing meaningful participation and equal access to humanitarian assistance with and for persons with disabilities (what is at stake), as well as lessons learned, was delivered by Ulrike Last. The morning session was completed by a series of real-world examples of people with disabilities in the war in Ukraine, but also in other fragile settings, such as the Central African Republic, by the journalist and photographer Till Mayer, who also provided a photographic exhibition in the exhibitors’ area in the breaks.
Maria Kett gave insights into her work and experiences in assistive technology in disaster-affected and humanitarian settings. Amani Chibashimba talked about his role inside the Vivo international organization in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where he is implementing a concept called narrative exposure therapy with victims of conflict-related trauma and its sequelae. Patrice Vestel gave insights about policy and approaches at Doctors Without Borders on the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the humanitarian projects run by NGOs worldwide. Eric Weerts, a rehabilitation specialist from Humanity & Inclusion, concluded our day by presenting his framework on access to physical rehabilitation services in humanitarian contexts for persons with chronic conditions and new injuries. We are delighted that around 40 participants participated in this symposium and engaged with our speakers. As CIHLMU , we look forward to continuing this discourse and hope to see you again next year for the 2025 Humanitarian Symposium in Munich, which will take place on Saturday, 15 February 2025.
Written by: Carmen Dumitrescu and Guenter Froeschl
Please find more information in the HSM 2024 flyer.
Please find the detailed agenda here HSM_2024 agenda.
Registration
The registration is now closed
Contact
For more information, contact humanitarian.symposium@lrz.uni-muenchen.de