Season 1: Episode 4 - Greening the System

Episode 4 – Greening the System During humanitarian emergencies, local actors often struggle to be heard. Their microphone isn’t off – they're just on mute, with the voices of international actors drowning them out. Fortunately, this is changing. The last decade has brought with it an unfortunate plethora of humanitarian emergencies, and with it, the realisation, that local actors are often best placed to lead local humanitarian responses. I Think You’re on Mute will explore how we build a better, more locally-led humanitarian sector. Throughout the series, Co-Founder and Director of the Humanitarian Advisory Group, Beth Eggleston, will share stories from the people shaping a better humanitarian future. In Episode 4, we speak to: Sesimani Lokoutui, National Coordinator at the Civil Society Forum of Tonga, about the aftermath of the Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha’apai volcanic eruption; Zaki Ullah from GLOW Pakistan, about the environmental impact of humanitarian responses in the country; Emeline Siale Illolahia from PIANGO, about the outlook for localisation in the Pacific. This episode features the following audio: Volcanic eruption in Tonga - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owlRuul5Tk4 News clip on Tonga - https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/2/tong News clip on Tonga - https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-02-02/tongas-covid-cases-rise-outbreak-not-linked-to-australian-aid/100798962 Kathy Jetnil Kiljner - https://www.kathyjetnilkijiner.com/united-nations-climate-summit-opening-ceremony-my-poem-to-my-daughter/ Keen to do some further reading? Greening the System: A Vision for a Green Humanitarian Future: https://humanitarianadvisorygroup.org/insight/greening-the-system-a-vision-for-a-green-humanitarian-future/ Treading Gently: Building on Positive Environmental Practice in the Tonga Volcano Response: https://humanitarianadvisorygroup.org/insight/treading-gently-building-on-positive-environmental-practice-in-the-tonga-volcano-response/ This brings us to the end of our four-part series. We’ve looked at why the humanitarian system is broken, accountability to local actors, centring and elevating local voices, and greening the system. We hope you’ve enjoyed this journey with us. We’ve linked all of the research referenced in this series in the show notes of each episode. We’ll be back next year with more podcast episodes, but don’t be a stranger! Connect with us on our socials, linked in the show notes, and be a part of the conversation. More importantly, let’s stay mindful of which voices might be on mute in our conversation. Trust me, it’s better when everyone can use their microphone