‘When disasters and conflict collide’ is a podcast series that explores how conflict increases people’s vulnerabilities to disasters around the world.
It examines what we can do to change this, in ways that not only help people cope with future disaster impacts but also contribute to peace. It asks why so little has been done to improve disaster risk reduction in fragile and conflict-affected contexts, and identifies examples of policies and programmes that have been successfully adapted to these contexts.
The podcast series is borne out of a two-year research project by ODI in cooperation with G.I.Z on behalf of the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development.
Frequently asked questions
Episode one: Conflict – the elephant in the diplomatic meeting room
In this episode, we explain why disasters are not natural, how conflict has been the elephant in the diplomatic meeting room for decades and what’s being done to rewrite a better future for affected people.
Interviewees:
- Banak Joshua Dei Wei, Director General for Disaster Management and National Focal Point for the Implementation of Sendai Framework in South Sudan for the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management, Republic of South Sudan
- Margareta Wohlstrom, President of the Swedish Red Cross
- Dr Ayesha Siddiqi, Lecturer in Human Geography, Department of Geography, Royal Holloway University of London
- Loretta Hieber Girardet, Regional Director, United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction for Asia and the Pacific
- Oenone Chadburn, Head of Humanitarian Support, Tearfund
- Zahi Chahine, Project Manager of Disaster Risk Management Unit, Lebanon
Frequently asked questions
Episode two: The politics of disasters
In this episode, we focus on the politics of disaster risk reduction policies and strategies and how disaster risk manifests on the ground. We draw on observations from research in Chad, Colombia and Lebanon to reveal the realities of disaster risk reduction in conflict-affected contexts.
Interviewees:
- Dr Ilan Kelman, Reader, UCL Institute for Risk and Disaster Reduction
- Ms Mami Mitzouri, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction
- Zahi Chahine, Project Manager of Disaster Risk Management Unit, Lebanon
- Loretta Hieber Girardet, Regional Director, United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction for Asia and the Pacific
- Dr Ayesha Siddiqi, Lecturer in Human Geography, Department of Geography, Royal Holloway University of London
- Bina Desai, Head of Policy and Research, Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC)
- Chitra Nagarajan, Senior Advisor, Centre for Civilians in Conflict
Frequently asked questions
Episode three: A call to action
In this episode, we share six logical and also some radical ideas for how we can improve the support provided to communities who are living with the risk of disasters while also contending with conflict.
Interviewees:
- Chitra Nagarajan, Senior Advisor, Centre for Civilians in Conflict
- Oenone Chadburn, Head of Humanitarian Support, Tearfund
- Kassem Chalaan, Disaster Risk Reduction Programme Manager, Lebanese Red Cross
- Raghida Abdel El Hamid Chasim, Director, Takmiliyat Al Kobba Secondary School
- Animesh Kumar, Deputy Chief, Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, UNDRR
- Rina Meutia, Disaster Risk Management Specialist, Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery
- Dr Ayesha Siddiqi, Lecturer in Human Geography, Department of Geography, Royal Holloway University of London
- Loretta Hieber Girardet, Regional Director, United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction for Asia and the Pacific
Frequently asked questions
Episode four: Live from the UN Climate Action Summit
In this special episode, we're live from New York City at the UN Climate Action Summit, discussing the intersection of conflict, climate change and disaster risk reduction.
Interviewees:
- Eliot Levine, Director, Environment, Energy and Climate, Mercy Corps
- Anne Hammill, Director, Resilience, International Institute for Sustainable Development
- Alec Crawford, Senior Policy Advisor and Lead, Environment, Conflict and Peacebuilding, International Institute for Sustainable Development
- Aditya Bahadur, Research Associate, Risk and Resilience, Overseas Development Institute (ODI)
- Yves Daccord, Director General, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
- Ms Mami Mitzouri, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction
- Loretta Hieber Girardet, Regional Director, United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction for Asia and the Pacific
