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In the autumn of 2014, with the 2013–16 West Africa Ebola epidemic spiralling out of control, the United Kingdom announced a bespoke military mission to support—and in some ways lead—numerous Ebola response functions in Sierra Leone. This study examines the nature and effect of the civil‐military relationships that subsequently developed between civilian and military Ebola response workers (ERWs). In total, 110 interviews were conducted with key involved actors, and the findings were analysed by drawing on the neo‐Durkheimian theory of organisations. This paper finds that stereotypical opposition between humanitarian and military actors helps to explain how and why there was initial cooperative and collaborative challenges. However, all actors were found to have similar hierarchical structures and operations, which explains how and why they were later able to cooperate and collaborate effectively. It also explains how and why civilian ERWs might have served to exclude and further marginalise some local actors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent policy discourse on the localisation of disaster management and humanitarian assistance lacks attention to the culture, history, and traditions of the Global South. This special issue of Disasters argues that it is imperative to recognise the dynamic, interactive, contested, and negotiated nature of local knowledge. Such local knowledge saves lives by enabling responders to situate ad hoc, one‐off events such as disasters in the broader and deeper context of community relationships, thereby providing more appropriate and more effective aid. Through the cases of China, Japan, Indonesia, and the Philippines, this special issue examines such dynamic local knowledge using an analytical framework consisting of three manifestations of local knowledge, namely: social capital; contextual historical memories; and adaptation to new ideas. These three manifestations show the ways in which local knowledge creates local capacity, via which local, national, and international disaster respondents can centre their response coordination, and in turn, demonstrate how local capacity reformulates local knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chinese humanitarian actors have worked frequently with the Chinese diaspora in disaster‐affected areas, but little, if any, research has been conducted into the important role of the diaspora in disaster response and humanitarian assistance. This paper investigates what local knowledge the Chinese diaspora has offered to humanitarian actors from the People's Republic of China (PRC), and how this has contributed to their effectiveness. Based on a case study of the semi‐autonomous Indonesian province of Aceh in the aftermath of the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004, this paper argues that the diaspora can serve as a linchpin in local and international humanitarian action. It can do so by strengthening networks and bringing together local ethnic communities, local governments, and the PRC's humanitarian actors, while also offering local knowledge in the form of contextual memory. Such local knowledge may have to be fully utilised to address any underlying ethnic tensions in disaster‐affected areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Breakthroughs in international biomedical science circa 1900 meant that plague could be contained through strict quarantine regulations. These measures were successfully deployed with help from local governments during outbreaks of pneumonic plague in Manchuria (1910–11), Shanxi (1918), and elsewhere in North China. This containment shows the effectiveness of uniting international knowledge and local cooperation in disaster response. Yet, in later outbreaks in similar locations, control measures identical to those instituted a decade earlier were rejected, and plague spread largely unchecked. Historical case studies of the control and spread of infectious disease in North China reveal the complexities of the relationship between global knowledge and its broader, local integration, variation in what constitutes effective 'local' cooperation in adopting international knowledge, and the paramount importance of the locality to the landscape of disaster response. History can reveal critical issues in localisation of disaster response still salient today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on research with key stakeholders, this paper draws on theories of organisational and political listening to analyse the critical emergence of 'localisation' during the 2016 World Humanitarian Summit. The central focus is the two‐year pre‐summit consultation process, engaging 23,000‐plus people, mainly from the Global South, and organised specifically to bring different views and experiences to the task of reforming the global humanitarian agenda. This research explores 'voice and listening' during the consultations, investigating how these were framed by, and have framed, power differentials within the humanitarian system. The consultations were a unique event, evoking optimism among participants that change might be possible. However, the space to speak, and the listening that occurred, struggled to breach the political sphere. The 'Grand Bargain', some interviewees claim, amounted to a re‐silencing. Notably, the localisation debate happened when a largely coherent message from the Global South and allies emerged, making unmet but heard claims on powerful actors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the World Humanitarian Summit in 2016, debates about the localisation of humanitarian aid have intensified. Dominant discourse focuses on reform, although calls for the broader decolonisation of aid are mounting. This paper examines the impact of neoliberal‐inspired competition that incentivises institutional expansion and clashes with localisation. It introduces the concept of the 'conflict paradox' to illustrate how armed conflict and restricted humanitarian access for international actors can both empower and disempower local and national humanitarian actors (LNHAs). These themes are then demonstrated using case studies of Myanmar, Somalia, and Somaliland, revealing the potential for LNHAs to demand humanitarian system change, as well as the challenges to doing so. The paper concludes that for localisation to progress towards decolonisation, fundamental ideological shifts away from the neoliberal competitive mindset are essential. Notably, there is a need to move from low‐quality localisation (subcontracting) to high‐quality localisation grounded in solidarity and an emancipatory agenda. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contributions on localisation often focus on interactions between local organisations and the international community, with limited attention paid to dynamics within the locally‐led part of the response. The humanitarian operation in non‐government‐held areas of Syria is considered a key example of localisation, in which the health sector has assumed a leading role. Drawing on fieldwork among Syrian medical‐humanitarian organisations conducted in southern Turkey in 2017, this paper offers a view from below on the localisation debate. It provides a nuanced perspective on 'the local', showcasing how localisation is interpreted and expressed among Syrian non‐governmental organisations (NGOs) themselves, and in their interaction with each other. The paper shows how most organisations have moved to a hybrid model that emphasises their local and international character, resisting simplistic classifications. However, despite the sometimes strategic nature of its invocation, localisation does not lose its relevance as a lived experience, especially for local field staff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Local actors are promoted as important agents in the humanitarian sector's latest reform efforts. Opinions on the exact meaning and the best means of implementing localisation differ, however. Applying an interface perspective, this paper analyses how the Rohingya response in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, became an arena of contestation, competition, and sometimes convergence among different actors in relation to localisation. It shows how misconceptions and divergent understandings of localisation and the best methods of achieving it were prevalent and hampered the joint endeavours of international and local humanitarian bodies. Although both sides sought common ground, conflicting views, interests, and perceptions of 'self' and 'other' stood in the way. A lack of trust between international and local organisations intensified divisions. The paper argues, therefore, that the humanitarian sector needs to engage in trust‐building between the various entities involved in humanitarian response if localisation is to be realised, including addressing underlying structural and systemic issues of (neo)colonialism, racism, and classism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 and the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals call for action to build back better in ways that leave no one behind. At the same time, ensuring a local voice is increasingly central to humanitarian engagement. These aims contrast with limited analysis of how local actors might be supported in these respects during response and recovery, and how far recommendations are specific or generalisable across richer and poorer national contexts. The paper begins by comparing lessons learnt by survivors and community organisations in Sint Maarten, Dutch Caribbean, following a high‐income state‐led response to Hurricane Irma in 2017 with the priorities of lower income, humanitarian‐led endeavours. The differences reveal the importance of economic resources as the basis for individual self‐reliance and a fragmented civil society with limited leadership ambitions in Sint Maarten. Strong cross‐cultural alignment nevertheless allows for a globally‐relevant and yet contextually‐sensitive framework for survivor‐led action and reconstruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Humanitarian governance is usually understood according to the classic, Dunantist paradigm that accords central importance to international humanitarian agencies. However, this is increasingly paralleled by 'resilience humanitarianism' that focuses, among other things, on including national actors in humanitarian governance. This article views humanitarian governance as emerging through interactions between authorities, implementing agencies and communities. It is based on interactive ethnography in five countries by Partners for Resilience (PfR). Using the Theory of Change (ToC) tool, it analyses the various interpretations and priorities of actors involved in humanitarian problems, solutions and programme governance. For example, PfR had a 'software' focus, aiming to unlock communities' potential for resilience, whereas communities and authorities preferred to receive tangible 'hardware' support. The findings highlight the crucial role of local authorities in shaping humanitarian aid. This is especially pertinent in view of the international agenda to localise aid, which requires the understanding and support of national actors in order to responsibly protect the vulnerable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the crucial part that faith‐based organisations (FBOs) play in acting as intermediaries between international donors and local faith communities (LFCs) implementing humanitarian relief projects for Syrian refugees. Humanitarian responses to the mounting Syrian refugee crisis have coincided with greater collaboration between international donors and LFCs. This cooperation often is facilitated by a complex web of non‐state intermediaries at the international, national, and local level. This study probes the breadth of roles of these intermediaries, drawing on primary data from case studies of two Christian intermediaries supporting Christian LFCs as they deliver aid primarily to Muslim Syrian refugees in Jordan and Lebanon. The results of the study are connected to the wider literature on LFCs in humanitarian response, revealing how intermediaries address issues of accountability, capacity‐building, impartiality, neutrality, and professionalism. The paper concludes by offering suggestions for further research on intermediaries as key actors in the localisation of humanitarian assistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Local actors are promoted as important agents in the humanitarian sector's latest reform efforts. Opinions on the exact meaning and the best means of implementing localisation differ, however. Applying an interface perspective, this paper analyses how the Rohingya response in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, became an arena of contestation, competition, and sometimes convergence among different actors in relation to localisation. It shows how misconceptions and divergent understandings of localisation and the best methods of achieving it were prevalent and hampered the joint endeavours of international and local humanitarian bodies. Although both sides sought common ground, conflicting views, interests, and perceptions of 'self' and 'other' stood in the way. A lack of trust between international and local organisations intensified divisions. The paper argues, therefore, that the humanitarian sector needs to engage in trust-building between the various entities involved in humanitarian response if localisation is to be realised, including addressing underlying structural and systemic issues of (neo)colonialism, racism, and classism., (© 2021 The Authors Disasters © 2021 ODI.)