Open AccessHumanitarianism at home
Author(s) -
Daniel McAvoy,
Annalise Ingram,
Luke Bearup
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
the humanitarian leader
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2653-1011
DOI - 10.21153/thl2022art1527
Subject(s) - vulnerability (computing) , refugee , poverty , political science , pandemic , relevance (law) , humanitarian crisis , subject (documents) , economic growth , sociology , covid-19 , development economics , criminology , law , medicine , computer security , disease , pathology , library science , computer science , infectious disease (medical specialty) , economics
Australia has faced various unprecedented challenges in recent years: the extended bushfire season of 2019–20, wide-spread and increasingly severe storms and flooding, and the grave health and socio-economic impacts of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Such events have prompted greater awareness of our shared vulnerability to disasters. They have also exacerbated food insecurity, homelessness, poverty, family violence, and increased the vulnerability of refugees and people seeking asylum in Australia. Where disasters and similar issues are identified in low-income countries, they are typically framed in terms of humanitarian need and may even be the subject of international humanitarian action. Why is it then, that the language and practices of humanitarianism are not ordinarily applied in Australian settings? What indeed is humanitarianism when it is not international? What, if anything, do international experiences of humanitarianism have to offer in Australian contexts? This paper describes a research program that has been prompted by these questions and shares some preliminary findings concerning the perspectives of Australian practitioners on the relevance of humanitarian values, knowledge, and practices in Australia.