Decolonizing humanitarian innovation

Humanitarians can have the best of intentions, but does bias get in the way of being truly helpful? A research project by a multidisciplinary team at Royal Roads University is examining power imbalances and beliefs in humanitarianism.

“Given the work of humanitarian actors across borders and across cultures, it’s vital that we take time to step back, reflect and examine the knowledge and beliefs upon which the humanitarian agenda is founded,” says Assist. Prof. Athena Madan of the School of Humanitarian Studies, who is leading the project.

Challenging and Reimagining ‘Humanitarian Innovation’: Power, Inequity, and Cultural Invasion examines how colonialism manifests itself in humanitarian work  and explores what other philosophies could be used for creative problem solving and innovation, specifically in low-resource settings and Indigenous communities.

The project is funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and managed collaboratively by Elrha, a global charity, and the Tokyo Innovation Hub. The project focuses on humanitarian innovation in four countries: the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guatemala, Indonesia, and the Philippines.

Researchers from across Royal Roads are involved in this project, including Canada Research Chair Ash Prasad of the School of Business, associate faculty Olaolu Adelaye of the School of Communication and Culture and the School of Humanitarian Studies, and graduate students Walter Alvarez, Chafika Eddine, Aanuolu Ighagbon, Kenny Panza and Nitish Patil.

Humanitarianism as a style of colonialism

“Indirectly we're looking at humanitarianism being a new third style of colonialism,” Madan says. Concluding the end of May 2021, this project looks to forge a new way forward.

“Are we failing to learn and understand how creativity can best be explored and supported in different cultures? Are we imposing values and methodologies which may be inappropriate in other contexts? Are we perpetuating a Western dominance that is ultimately hindering necessary power shifts towards local leadership in humanitarian response? These are the key questions we are exploring,” Madan explains.

An award-winning academic, Madan was recently honoured with the Confederation of University Faculty Associations of British Columbia 2021 Distinguished Academic Award for her work on work on global public health, social accountability, humanitarian intervention and her “commitment to peace, justice, and the development of strong global institutions.”

She says we need to explore ways of understanding innovation more expansively and in a way that respects and dignifies different perspectives and different sets of values.

“The sector’s deep roots in colonialism are well documented,” states the project’s terms of reference. “Organizations are being challenged to reflect deeply about how they are contributing to perpetuating the system of massive power gaps, inequity, and structural racism, and how they can change it through education, policies, and practice. It is important that we engage in deep reflection on humanitarian innovation and open this agenda up to further scrutiny.”

Interdisciplinary research, wide relevance

The research’s interdisciplinary approach makes it applicable to business, social innovation, philanthropic, development, and humanitarian actors.

“We don't have many – and definitely not enough – cross-faculty, interdisciplinary, funded research projects, says Dean Robert Mittleman of the Faculty of Management. “A project like this one highlights what's special about Royal Roads and our approach to research.

“There's so much potential in this method to explore complex questions in a way that could actually have impact."

Madan says she was inspired by her observations of how “the practices tend to be dominated by a few individuals who have agendas or who have things that they want to promote.”

“It just tends to lose local conceptualizations of what is most beneficial for people's health and healing,” she says. “And then with respect to monitoring intervention, its humanitarianism is often an extension of foreign policy...it's also really timely given this wave of anti-racism work sweeping from George Floyd’s death last year and the move to decolonize institutions.”

How can people with an interest in humanitarian work can approach it ethically? Madan suggests to start by deeply listening.

“Just pause before going in and talk to people, find out what their experiences are and their stories and try to understand what your place is in their story,” she says.

“And maybe you don't have a place in a story. Maybe their story is not about you at all. And in humanitarian aspects, a lot of times that's the case. Just ask ‘How can I help? What do you need?’ and then listen to that. Ask, ask, ask.”