Shaping the Future of Humanitarian Action
Responding to a system under strain
The humanitarian system is at a breaking point, again. But this time, the crisis runs deeper: legitimacy is eroding, funding is shrinking, and power remains concentrated far from the people most affected by crisis.
In response, NEAR is co-leading a new initiative with ODI Global: the Advisory Panel on the Future of Humanitarian Action. This year-long initiative is not another consultation. It’s a deliberate attempt to reorient influence and to ensure that the strategic decisions shaping aid’s future are grounded in lived experience, political clarity, and practical vision from the Global South.
What Is the Panel?
The Advisory Panel is a small, independent group of experts drawn from across the humanitarian sector, including leaders of national NGOs, former system insiders, policy thinkers, and movement builders. Together, they will offer timely, strategic advice to donors helping them navigate immediate crises while preparing for longer-term shifts.
Through this initiative, we are building a wider clearing house for bold ideas – a space where different actors and regions can shape the debate and influence real decisions.
NEAR’s Role
NEAR is co-hosting the secretariat of this initiative with ODI Global. Together, we are coordinating and supporting the panel’s work and ensuring it remains connected to the realities and perspectives of crisis-affected people and frontline actors.
Our role is to:
Ensure that Global South leadership and lived experience shape every stage, from co-design to delivery
Convene targeted conversations with civil society, regional networks, and others often left out of formal reform spaces
Help frame the panel’s work in ways that are accessible, politically honest, and grounded in real-world dynamics
Contribute to policy analysis that reflects longstanding frontline knowledge, not just technical reform language
Support follow-through and uptake by donors and system actors
This initiative reflects NEAR’s commitment to a more responsive, inclusive, and realistic approach to humanitarian transformation, one where those most affected are central to shaping the way forward.
Why Now
The humanitarian system is under pressure from multiple directions: a sharp drop in donor funding, growing political fragmentation, and a growing gap between global decision-making spaces and the people most affected by crisis.
While these challenges are not new, their scale and convergence are forcing a reckoning. Longstanding issues – like centralised control, weak accountability, and limited local leadership – are no longer sustainable.
This initiative is not a response to a single crisis. It is a space to think more clearly, collectively, and politically about what comes next, and how to ensure that future choices are shaped by those with the most at stake.
Get Involved
We will be sharing updates, insights, and invitations to contribute throughout the year.