2nd March 2026
Join HLA at HNPW 2026, over three sessions to discuss youth leadership through the lens of crisis response in Ukraine, Peru and Türkiye; what can be done to drive change towards a locally led research agenda; and local leadership in humanitarian AI development. This year we are pleased to collaborate with Start Network, H2H Network, ELRHA, Open Space Works Ukraine, and KAOS.
Click the registration buttons to register for your sessions of interest. We look forward to connecting with partners and learners attending during the in-person week.
Bridging digital divides: centring local leadership in humanitarian AI development
📅 Tuesday 3 March |🕛11:00-12:00 UTC | 📍Remote
AI is rapidly shaping humanitarian work, but local actors are still largely excluded from how these technologies are designed and governed, risking deeper inequalities.
This session explores how AI can become a driver of localisation itself by embedding inclusion, ethics, and collaboration into humanitarian systems. Drawing on new research and frameworks, panelists will discuss practical ways to build locally led AI ecosystems and reimagine humanitarian action as co-created, context-driven, and collectively intelligent.
Unsettling the status quo: The case for locally led humanitarian research
📅 Tuesday 10 March | 🕛10:00 – 11:30 UTC | 📍Hybrid
Despite strong rhetoric around localisation, humanitarian research is still largely controlled by well-resourced Western institutions, with local actors often sidelined into limited roles. This undermines the value of locally led research, which is typically more relevant, culturally grounded, and responsive to affected communities—especially critical amid shrinking sector funding.
This session will explore the power shifts, funding changes, and norm-setting required to advance a genuinely locally led research agenda, drawing on insights from local research organisations, funders, and humanitarian leaders working to drive this change.
A Call to Action for Youth Leadership and the Future of Humanitarian Action
📅 Thursday 12 March | 🕛13:00 – 14:30 | 📍Hybrid
Young people are already playing critical roles in humanitarian response across the world, yet their leadership remains poorly defined, under-recognised, and weakly embedded in humanitarian systems. Often active as volunteers and innovators, youth face limited pathways to formal leadership and professional growth.
This panel will explore how the sector can shift from ad-hoc youth engagement to genuine youth leadership, drawing on global research and lived experiences to identify practical, safe, and empowering pathways for youth to lead in humanitarian action.