LibGuides: Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Response (HA/DR): Home

About the HA/DR Research Portal

The NWC's Humanitarian Response Program (HRP) helps to improve the U.S. Navy’s and international militaries’ effectiveness in conducting humanitarian assistance and disaster response operations through innovative education, applied research, and engaging simulation activities. HRP also partners with leading US and international universities, humanitarian organizations, and other bodies engaged in HA/DR to advance civilian-military coordination during responses to complex emergencies and natural disasters. For more information about HRP and its activities, please visit our website or explore this portal in more detail.

Please note, this portal contains content and links to websites that are being provided as a convenience and for general informational purposes only. They do not constitute an endorsement, approval, affiliation, or association with the Department of Defense, Department of the Navy, or the U.S. Naval War College unless specified.

Featured HA/DR Doctrine

Joint Chiefs of Staff, Defense Support of Civil Authorities, Joint Publication 3-28, October 2018
JP 3-28 sets forth joint doctrine to govern the activities & performance of the U.S. Armed Forces in conducting defense support of civil authorities. It provides considerations for military interaction with governmental & nongovernmental agencies, multinational forces, & other interorganizational partners.
Joint Chiefs of Staff, Foreign Humanitarian Assistance, Joint Publication 3-29
This publication sets forth joint doctrine to govern the activities & performance of the U.S Armed Forces in conducting Foreign Humanitarian Assistance. It provides considerations for military interaction with governmental & nongovernmental agencies, multinational forces, & other interorganizational partners.
Navy Humanitarian & Civic Operations, NTTP 3-57.3, July 2014
The NTTP 3-57.3 is a reference for operational and tactical commanders in conducting humanitarian and civic assistance operations, and assists U.S. Navy personnel with the planning, execution, and assessment of humanitarian and civic operations.
NATO Allied Joint Doctrine for the Military Contribution to Humanitarian Assistance, AJP-3.4.3, October 2015
This publication describes the overarching guidelines and fundamentals to assist Allied joint force commanders (JFCs) and their staffs to plan and provide support to humanitarian assistance (HA).
UK Military, Joint Doctrine Publication 03-52: Disaster Relief Operations Overseas, December 2012
JDP 3-52 describes operations by forces generated specifically to support disaster relief efforts for military commanders and their respective staffs who are (or will become) involved in military operations that contribute to disaster relief operations overseas.
APAN Multinational Force Standing Operating Procedures (MNF SOP), Version 2.7, 2011
This MNF SOP provides information & guidance for planning & executing multinational military Humanitarian Assistance (HA) & Disaster Relief (DR) operations for foreign military personnel responsible for planning & executing HA/DR operations.

Featured HA/DR Academic Journals

Crisis Response Journal
The Crisis Response Journal, along with its associated channels, is the global information resource that covers all aspects of human-induced disasters and natural hazards, spanning response, disaster risk reduction, resilience, business continuity and security.
Disasters Journal
Disasters is a major, peer-reviewed, quarterly journal reporting on all aspects of disaster studies, policy and management. It provides an opportunity for academics, policymakers and practitioners to publish the results of high-quality research and practice on natural catastrophes, anthropogenic disasters and complex political emergencies.
Journal of Humanitarian Affairs
The Journal of Humanitarian Affairs is an open access journal hosted jointly by Save the Children UK, Médecins Sans Frontières, and the Humanitarian and Conflict Response Institute at the University of Manchester. It contributes to current thinking around humanitarian governance, policy and practice.
Journal of International Humanitarian Action
The Journal of International Humanitarian Action is an open access peer-reviewed journal for researchers, policymakers, practitioners, and anyone moved to understand contemporary challenges, reflect critically on practices, and engage at humanitarian action’s leading edge.

Featured HA/DR Information

Humantiarian Outcomes Global Database of Humanitarian Organisations (GHDO)
Humanitarian Outcomes GDHO maintains a list of international and local humanitarian organizations from around the world, as well as information about them.
UNOCHA Humanitarian Data Exchange Portal
UNOCHA's Humanitarian Data Exchange (HDX) is an open platform for sharing data across crises and organisations that is managed by OCHA's Centre for Humanitarian Data. The goal of HDX is to make humanitarian data easy to find, share and use for analysis in humanitarian responses around the world.
UNOCHA Humanitarian Response Portal
UNOCHA's Humanitarian Response portal provides country level, operational information from the UN clusters and IASC members operating within a crisis.
UNOCHA Relief Web
UNOCHA's ReliefWeb is a humanitarian information service provided by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) drawing upon information from more than 4,000 sources, including humanitarian agencies at the international and local levels, governments, think-tanks, research institutions, and the media.

Featured HA/DR Training

USAID Humanitarian Assistance Essentials Course (HAE)
USAID's Humanitarian Assistance Essentials (HAE) course is a free online course that covers key information and best practices of USAID and the US Department of Defense (DoD) during disaster relief operations. The link also has information about USAID's Joint Humanitarian Operations Course (JHOC).
USAID BHA Joint Humanitarian Operations Course (JHOC)
USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) runs in person and virtual JHOC courses for select U.S. military leaders and planners to discuss the relationship between USAID BHA and the U.S. military; and to prepare participants to work collaboratively during humanitarian assistance disaster response (HA/DR) operations.

UN DSS Online Training Courses
The UN Department of Safety and Security (UNDSS) provides a range of free online courses related to humanitarian personal security and safety in the field.
UN OCHA CMCoord Digital Learning Courses
The United Nations Humanitarian Civil-Military Coordination (UN-CMCoord) Digital Learning Courses are a series of free online courses that explore UN-CMCoord concepts and principles and their practical applications in different operating environments.
ICRC Training Center
The ICRC Training Centre centralizes on-site training and e-learning modules on international humanitarian law and other areas of the ICRC's work. The Center also provides an IHL tool kit outlining key IHL resources.
CFE-DM Humanitarian Assistance & Disaster Response Courses
The U.S. Department of Defense's Center for Excellent in Disaster Management and Humanitarian Assistance (CFE-DM) provides four courses focused on different aspects of humanitarian response and disaster relief in natural disasters and conflict settings.

Featured Resources on PRC and RUS HA/DR

Brown University | China and the Future of HA/DR Operations in Great Power Competition
This paper seeks to define the likely PRC approach to future HA/DR operations and their implications using an extensive literature and interviews with 14 subject matter experts.
CSIS | China’s Humanitarian Aid: Cooperation amidst Competition
This report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) explores China's deployment of humanitarian aid during the COVID-19 pandemic While this assistance may not fit the principled, non-politicized definition of humanitarian aid used by many donors, it reflects how China thinks about short-term humanitarian action in the context of natural disasters and pandemics.
Marine Corps University Press | Russian Foreign Humanitarian Assistance: Identifying Trends Using 15 Years of Open-Source Data
This article in the Expeditions Journal explores trends in Russian foreign humanitarian assistance (FHA) during the past 15 years by using open-source data from 40 Russian entities that have reported delivering aid 5,014 times to Georgia, Ukraine, Syria, and Nagorno-Karabakh.
The Atlantic Council | Five years of Russian aid in Syria proves Moscow is an unreliable partner
This article from the MENA Source blog explores the development of Russia's humanitarian ecosytem in Syria and how it has grown to become a key part of Russia’s ‘softer’ engagement in Syria.

Featured HA/DR Resources

The Humanitarian Principles
The humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence provide the foundation for humanitarian action. They are central to establishing and maintaining access and delivering humanitarian assistance
Sphere Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Response
The Sphere Handbook is an internationally recognized set of common principles and universal minimum standards in humanitarian response.
UN Cluster System
When emergencies occur, coordination is necessary to prevent gaps and overlaps in the assistance delivered by humanitarian organizations. To do this, both UN and non-UN entities use a system called a cluster system, which assembles each of the main sectors of humanitarian action (e.g. Water, Health, Logistics) into groups or clusters.
Urban Outbreak 2019 Pre-Analytic Quick Look
Urban Outbreak 2019 focused on the challenges and opportunities for organizations responding to a rapidly spreading infectious disease in a notional, dense, coastal, urban environment of 21 million people.

HRP Academic Offerings

The HRP offers tailored HA/DR education to the U.S. Navy through the following courses.

Fleet Leaning Humanitarian Operations Course (FLHOC) – Dynamic, tailored, and scalable courses and simulations to prepare U.S. Navy Fleet headquarters and Carrier / Expeditionary Strike Group staffs to effectively plan, execute, and assess HA/DR operations.
Maritime Humanitarian Assistance Survey Team (MarHAST) Course – Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet-directed course that prepares select personnel from U.S. Navy Fleet headquarters and Carrier / Expeditionary Strike Group staffs to serve as a tactical level reconnaissance and liaison element during HA/DR operations.
Naval War College In-Residence Courses – HRP provide lectures and simulations for CFMCC Flag Courses, ELOC, MOPC, and NWC Master’s Degree Electives.

If you are interested in learning more about these courses, or require a tailored solution to fit your HA/DR education needs, please contact Hank Brightman at Hank.Brightman@usnwc.edu or Jonathan Robinson at jonathan.robinson.ctr.uk@usnwc.edu.

Disclaimer

Please note, this page contains content and links to websites that are being provided as a convenience and for general informational purposes only. They do not constitute an endorsement, approval, affiliation, or association with the Department of Defense, Department of the Navy, or the U.S. Naval War College unless specified.