A new Sphere e-learning course will help users gain the skills needed to promote Sphere within their own network and to leverage improved quality and accountability for people affected by crisis and disaster. The one-hour interactive course is aimed at anyone involved in humanitarian action who wishes…

  Following the launch of the Sphere Handbook in November, Sphere’s partners are already at work translating the Handbook into their own languages. These efforts will bring the Handbook to more humanitarian professionals and communities around the globe to support preparedness, response, and training initiatives. Translation projects have…

Credits: Lynette Nyman/IFRC   How can humanitarian standards support the empowerment of local actors, including affected people? With the localisation agenda receiving much attention and the 2018 Sphere Handbook focusing even more on using standards in context at the local level, this question was discussed by a group of 20 experts.

Dear Sphere friends, As a very busy and successful 2018 draws to an end, we would like to thank you for your support and engagement over the past many months. The Sphere network has been growing stronger each year and 2018 was no exception. You are all playing a key…

The event, held in Geneva on 6 November, saw the participation of an experienced group of panellists who shared their reflections on past and future challenges of the Sphere standards. Photo: Alexander Petrenko     “When we started it, we had a real hard time publishing the Handbook”, said Peter…

The members were called to elect a new President as well as representatives for the Sphere Executive Committee. Photo: B. Sartore / Sphere   The Sphere General Assembly met in Geneva, Switzerland, on 5 November. The meeting was aimed at welcoming the new members who joined Sphere during 2018,…

  The Sphere Handbook is the oldest initiative in the field of humanitarian standards. It has been field-tested over twenty years and  regularly updated to ensure it remains fit for purpose in a changing world. What does not change is its rights-based foundations: people have the right to…

The World Conference of Humanitarian Studies took place on 27-29 August 2018 in The Hague. Photo credits: IHSA   Can humanitarian standards contribute to empowering local actors and affected populations during humanitarian response and recovery phases? Aninia Nadig, Sphere Advocacy and Policy Manager, discussed this question during a panel discussion…

Sphere will convene an extraordinary session of its General Assembly during the week of 5 November to welcome new Sphere members who have joined since the launch of the membership campaign in June. The General Assembly will also elect the new Sphere Executive Committee and its officers.

The Ecuadorian government reaffirmed the Sphere standards’ role as the foundation of the country’s risk management structures as it unveiled its recently updated National Disaster Response Plan (RESPONDE Ec). In April 2016, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit the country, killing almost 700 people and leaving 700,000 more in need…