Just under a year into a fragile ceasefire, 150,000 people in southern Lebanon continue to deal with the potentially lethal aftermath of Israeli bombing, highlighting the devastating long-term effects of conflict.
Wars and oppression leave behind not just rubble and graves. They leave behind invisible wounds, profound trauma carried by survivors. And most often, women carry the largest burden. They are targeted not only because of their gender, but because surviving and leading threaten structures based on patriarchy and domination.
In recent months, the humanitarian crisis in Haiti has taken a considerable turn for the worse, with armed gangs continuing to exert dominance over nearly 90 percent of the capital, Port-Au-Prince. Rising violence, the collapse of essential services for millions, and severe cuts to humanitarian funding have left the international community struggling to provide immediate relief and find a sustainable, long-term solution.
Tom Dannatt is a Founder and CEO of Street Child, an international non-government organization active in over 20 disaster-hit and lowest-income countries – working for a world where all children are ‘safe, in school and learning’. Tom founded Street Child in 2008 with his wife Lucinda and has led the organization since its inception. Street Child leads the civil society constituency within ECW’s governance and, accordingly, Dannatt represents the constituency on the Fund’s High-Level Steering Committee.
Despite climate change being a health risk multiplier, health is often underrepresented in climate negotiation processes.
Experts attribute this to a lack of funding by the African governments and a lack of capacity building among climate negotiators.
Over the past week, Afghanistan’s humanitarian situation has deteriorated significantly following the August 31 earthquake, which measured over 6.0 in magnitude and caused an immense loss of life and widespread destruction of critical infrastructure. Compounded by the nation’s fragile economy, severe shortages of essential resources, and persistent access challenges, humanitarian organizations have found it increasingly difficult to reach vulnerable communities—especially women and children.
Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have risen over the last two centuries, with current and accumulated emissions per capita from rich nations greatly exceeding those of the Global South.
At a time of great transformation for global health, solidarity is more important than ever. As other countries have retreated from their commitments, Japan has instead continued its steadfast investment in a shared future that prioritizes human dignity and security.
It is becoming increasingly apparent that planet Earth is evolving into the planet of the aged. In nearly every country around the world, the numbers and percentages of the aged, commonly defined as individuals aged 65 years or older, have
increased rapidly.
2025 has been marked by a significant escalation of the climate crisis and its effects on vulnerable populations, as the World Meteorological Organization (
WMO) warn that average global temperatures could exceed the 1.5°C threshold within the next five years. In Latin America and the Caribbean, rising temperatures and emissions continue to strain access to essential services and deepen poverty, particularly among children.
Over the past decade, major strides have been made in expanding global access to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services, with billions of people around the world seeing improvements in overall health and well-being. Despite these gains, people largely from low-income countries and marginalized groups still lack access to clean water, leaving them vulnerable to disease and hindering social development and inclusion.
Marking the United Nations’ International Day Against Nuclear Tests, young activists and experts gathered at the UN University in Tokyo for an event titled “
The Role of Youth in Supporting Global Hibakusha.” The forum underscored how youth solidarity can amplify the voices of survivors of nuclear testing and bombings, known collectively as the “Global Hibakusha” — communities scarred by the use, production, and testing of nuclear weapons, from Hiroshima to the Marshall Islands — and strengthen global momentum toward nuclear abolition.
On 7 August, the
Inter-American Court of Human Rights delivered a groundbreaking decision that could transform women’s lives across the Americas. For the first time in international law, an international tribunal recognised care as an autonomous human right.
Advisory Opinion 31/25, issued in response to a request from
Argentina, elevates care – long invisible and relegated to the private sphere – to the level of a universal enforceable entitlement.
Generally thought to be diseases of the wealthier classes, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like hypertension and diabetes are on the rise among India’s underprivileged working classes in semi-urban and rural sprawls.
For more than a century,
asbestos was an indispensable fixture in the American industry, particularly the military. This versatile natural mineral was widely utilized to line Navy ships and strengthen their installations. What many were unaware of was that once damaged, asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) can release toxic fibers that could lodge in tissues covering internal organs of those exposed, where they build up over time.
As funding for sexual and reproductive health rights was on a “cliff edge,” parliamentarians now needed to play a “visionary” leadership role because “financing strong, resilient health systems for all their people rests with governments,” said Dr. Alvaro Bermejo, Director General of the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF).
In Tawila, North Darfur State in Sudan, more than 1,180 cholera cases, including 300 cases in children, and at least 20 deaths have been reported since the
first case was detected on June 21. Tawila has absorbed 500,000 internally displaced people who are escaping violence, many of them fleeing about seventy kilometers from the state capital of Al Fasher, making this rapid surge in cases a major health concern amidst worsening hygiene, medical, and food supply chain deteriorations.
World Humanitarian Day (August 19) honors humanitarian aid workers, raises public awareness for humanitarian crises, and advocate for strengthened international cooperation. Through this year’s theme, A Call to #ActForHumanity, the United Nations underscored the need for increased funding for lifesaving humanitarian missions, stronger protections for aid personnel, and accountability for violations of international law.
Dr. Faiza Hassan is the Director of the Inter-Agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE). A chemical engineer who transitioned into education leadership, Dr. Hassan brings close to 20 years of diverse experience in education, social policy reform and humanitarian response. She has a proven track record in strategic management, technical leadership and driving impactful, large-scale complex programmes.
My family lost six herds of cattle during the devastating El Niño-driven drought that swept Zimbabwe in 2024. The loss was as emotional as it was financial. Guilt gnawed at me.
It’s 8am when Nasser Hospital in Gaza opens its doors. Aitor Zabalgogeazkoa,
Doctors Without Borders’ emergency coordinator in the besieged territory, has already been at work for more than three hours.