Year in Review 2017

by | Dec 20, 2017 | Staff blogs | 0 comments

Here is a look back at key events in 2017. We would like to thank you for your continuous support and for contributing to the success of HCRI this past year.

January

  • We signed a MoU with Project Trust, an educational charity, to provide educational opportunities for Project Trust returned volunteers and HCRI students.
  • Launched the Manchester Migration Lab a joint initiative between The University of Manchester’s HCRI and the Global Development Institute.

February

  • Professor Roger Mac Ginty (HCRI Acting Director) and his dog Paddy featured in ‘Arts Research‘ (Page 4)
  • Paddy the dog

    Paddy the dog

    Peter Gatrell (Professor of History at Manchester University) talked about European migration, immigration & repatriation on Global Mobility Project podcast

March

  • Student organising committee

    Student organising committee

    Professor Tony Redmond OBE and colleagues from HCRI and UK-Med wrote an article discussing the recruitment, training, deployment, and post-deployment of volunteers during the Ebola epidemic.

April

  • We supported a University campaign which explains how donations to research at the University of Manchester can have a life-changing impact.
  • We hosted our end-of-year closing event ‘Histories of Humanitarian Action’. We were joined by Martin Barber (a former UN Official), Eleanor Davey (HCRI lecturer) and Jean-Herve Bradol (MSF-Crash, Medical doctor) to reflect on historical moments in the humanitarian field and promote discussion on the lessons that can be learned for current and future humanitarian practice.
  • Dr Cathy Wilcock, (Migration Lab co-ordinator) was invited to lead a half-day workshop session at an artist’s residency around the theme of ‘migration and safe space’. This was intended to inform creative practitioners about migration and shape their approach to working with vulnerable groups or with sensitive material about migration issues.

May

  • We signed a global partnership with Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) and international medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) to deliver an educational programme designed to enhance the skills and knowledge of MSF’s personnel for stronger operations and leadership in the field.
  • We welcomed a delegation of visitors from China and Hong Kong as part of an exchange tour on global emergency medical team development, in partnership with Hong Kong Academy of Medicine.
  • Chinese delegation visiting HCRI

    Chinese delegation visiting HCRI

    Hosted a student-led symposium, ‘Aid, Conflict and Peace: Collaborative Research Symposium‘ which presented innovative research from multiple perspectives, and provided a constructive and respectful environment for emerging and established academics to showcase their ideas.

  • Aid, Conflict and Peace: Collaborative Research Symposium

    Aid, Conflict and Peace: Collaborative Research Symposium

    Professor Tony Redmond OBE (HCRI Deputy Director) becomes President of WADEM at Congress 2017

  • The University of Manchester led on new standard for disaster volunteers. The standard, developed by an international team led by Duncan Shaw (HCRI Director of Research) provides guidelines on how groups can make best use of the enthusiastic volunteers

June

  • ‘Not The Fake News’ with other newspapers

    ‘Not The Fake News’ with other newspapers

    Our MA students hosted the 2nd annual Young People in Humanitarianism Day (YPiH). On the day a total of 15 secondary schools from around Greater Manchester with over 150 students and staff taking part. This demonstrates a good engagement level between the University and local community

July

  • Hosted a stall at the Manchester Bluedot Festival, Jodrell Bank Observatory with lots of fun and educational games

August

  • We supported the University to celebrate World Humanitarian Day (WHD), to honour humanitarian workers who risk or have lost their lives supporting people affected by crises across the world. For WHD, Dr Allard Duursma wrote a blog post about research which attempts to explain violence against aid worker and peacekeepers in the field and Aisling O’Rourke also wrote a post for the Manchester Giving Blog about the importance of HCRI’s work and the fantastic work of UK-Med in its fight against the Ebola outbreak
  • Professor Tony Redmond OBE (HCRI Deputy Director) wrote a blog for The Conversation saying ‘The Sierra Leone mudslide disaster isn’t over yet – here’s what the world must do’

September

  • Dr Gemma Sou (HCRI Lecturer) was interviewed on BBC Breakfast (2h12 mins), BBC Radio Manchester (2h26 mins) and BBC Radio Scotland (1h36min) in September to talk disaster relief and rebuilding processes in the wake of the destruction caused by Hurricane Irma. Gemma also Chaired a post-show discussion on home, displacement and identity among refugees after a performance of #JeSuis at HomeMCR. The discussion centred around ‘Not the Fake News: Activism and The Art of Displacement’.
  • Hosted the Annual Peacebuilding Conference: ‘Peacebuilding During an Age of Crisis’. This two day event included a number of panels related to the theme of ‘peacebuilding during an age of crisis’ and keynote speech from Professor Christine Bell
  • Launched the first of the much anticipated 2017/18 HCRI speaker series ‘Bringing participatory development into conflict analysis – experience from Rakhine state, Myanmar’ presented by Anthony Ware (Deakin University – Hallsworth visiting scholar).
  • Dr Jenna Murray de López (HCRI Lecturer) was featured as New Generation Thinker in the SALC Research Issue and interviewed on Mater Observator organisation website about research in reproductive anthropology
  • Dr Rubina Jasani (HCRI Lecturer) Invited to be on the Board of Trustees on two Women’s organisations in Manchester in 2017; Sisters for Safety and Women Asylum Seekers Together (WAST). While the former supports women from ethnic minority background in Manchester fleeing domestic violence, the latter is an activist Feminist organisation working with failed women asylum seekers.

October

HCRI undergraduate listening to Andrew Taylor Policy and Advocacy Coordinator at MAG (Mines Advisory Group)

HCRI undergraduate listening to Andrew Taylor Policy and Advocacy Coordinator at MAG (Mines Advisory Group)

November

  • Hosted our first partnership event with Project Trust ‘What Inspires Humanitarian Action?’. The event gave students from the University and local school and colleges the opportunity to network and facilitate debate with keynote speech from Jane Cocking (Chief Executive of Mines Advisory Group (MAG) and Honorary Lecturer at HCRI)

  • Event programme and Project Trust

    Hosted our 7th Annual Landmark Lecture with Pierre Carli, a leading expert in disaster medicine who is currently the chairman of the emergency medical service (SAMU) in Paris. His lecture, entitled ‘The 2015 Paris Terrorist Attacks: Medical Management and Lessons Learned’, provided an insight into the medical response to the Bataclan Terror Attacks.

  • Our Postgraduate and intercalated BSc students engaged with Women Asylum Seekers Together (WAST) in the classroom to highlight long-term health issues, legal frameworks for accessing health and dealing with destitution in forced migration.
  • Our Postgraduate students went on a tour at the Greater Manchester Police (GMP) Headquarters and received talks from representatives of Police, Fire, Ambulance services, and local Council. In emergency management.
  • Professor Duncan Shaw and Dr Gemma Sou were awarded a grant from Alliance Manchester Business School to continue their research in Puerto Rico. They will use this to fund to conduct interviews with households , NGO and government officials.
  • Dr Eleanor Davey (HCRI Lecturer) became a member of the British Academy’s International Engagement Committee (IEC). The IEC takes a strategic overview of the Academy’s international engagement, relations, programmes and activities.

December

  • We supported our good friends at Save the Children for their annual Christmas Jumper Day to raise funds and help protect children from easily preventable yet still deadly diseases like malaria, diarrhoea and pneumonia.

  • Merry Christmas from the HCRI PSS Team

    Gemma Sou and Dr Félix Aponte-González have published a policy brief for their research in Puerto Rico ‘Making efforts count after Irma and Maria: household relief and recovery in Puerto Rico’. The impacts of Hurricane Irma and Maria have caused over 58 official casualties (in addition to 422 estimated deaths) and had estimated economic losses up to 73% of the country’s GDP for hurricane Maria alone.

And finally these honorary appointments we made in 2017:

  • Tony Barnet, Professorial Research Fellow at Department of Global Health & Development, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine – Honorary Professor
  • Gareth Owen, Humanitarian Director at Save the Children – Honorary Research Fellow
  • John Simpson, Medical Director at UK-MED – Honorary Professor
  • Nancy Claxton, Senior Officer, Health Promotion at International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC) – Honorary Teaching Associate
  • David Dodman, Director of the Human Settlements Group at International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) – Honorary Research Fellow
  • Hassaan Afzal, Academic Clinical Fellowship in Emergency Medicine at Pennine Acute Trust – Honorary Research Fellow
  • Marie-Luce Desgrandcham, Teaching Assistant in the Department of General History at the University of Geneva – Visiting Academic
  • Larissa Fast, Senior Research Fellow at Humanitarian Policy Group – Visiting Academic
  • Antoine Burgard – Visiting Postdoctoral Fellow

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