HHIACADEMYHPCR
Through academic research and partnerships ...
Engage in cutting edge research on central dilemmas and challenges of international humanitarian law and policy
Through expert analysis and policy recommendations
Bridging research and practice through critical analysis of dilemmas of law in action, and crafting policy recommendations for organizations working to protect civilians in armed conflict
Through engagement and mobilization of professionals
Build core competencies and critical skills through professional development and the engagement with practitioner communities in humanitarian action
Through advisory services and engagement with policy makers
Engage and support policy makers and their organizations to address humanitarian challenges, including by thinking critically and strategically about the role of law in protecting civilians in armed conflict transforming institutions
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advancing the protection of civilians in armed conflict

 

Featured Research

Monitoring, Reporting, and Fact-finding

This project is geared toward developing capacity building measures, training opportunities, and practical guidance in the domain of monitoring, reporting, and fact-finding (MRF).  HPCR has conducted two years of intensive research in this area and is currently engineering and leading the Harvard Group of Professionals on Monitoring, Reporting, and Fact-finding.

Humanitarian Innovations and Professional Networks

HPCR has launched a new and ground-breaking research project on the role of professional networks in the dissemination of innovation and best practices in the humanitarian sector.The purpose of this research is to discover how professional networks may be used most effectively to promote the sharing of information and experiences on best practices and innovations in the humanitarian sector.

Advanced Training Program on Humanitarian Action

The Advanced Training Program on Humanitarian Action (ATHA) is designed to enhance the knowledge and capacity of humanitarian NGOs operating in complex environments through training courses, policy support, networking and dialogue. The ongoing project cycle 2010-2013 is focused on the management of humanitarian assistance.

Humanitarian Law and Policy Forum

With the Humanitarian Law and Policy Forum, HPCR facilitates the emergence of an active global community of practice, bringing together humanitarian professionals from around the world to access forum discussions and interactive seminars, and to engage with experts and peers on contemporary challenges to the protection of civilians in armed conflict.

IHL in Air and Missile Warfare

Following a series of informal consultations with scholars and governmental experts, the HPCR launched in 2003 a multi-annual Project, with a view to restating the existing law of air and missile warfare. This initiative, culminated in the formulation of the present HPCR Manual on International Law Applicable to Air and Missile Warfare (hereinafter: the HPCR Manual).

International Humanitarian Law in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory

Developed in consultation with the United Nations and other international agencies, this project focuses on issues surrounding the application of international humanitarian law in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). Read more...

International Humanitarian Law Research Initiative

Two central elements of IHLRI include the IHL Research Portal and a series of informal expert meetings. Regularly updated by a team of Harvard-based researchers, the IHL Portal offers access to a comprehensive database of on-line academic and policy-oriented research materials related to international humanitarian law.

Recent Events



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In the year 2008, for the first time in history, more than half of the world’s population was living in urban areas. Cities have become more numerous, more populous, and denser. The complexity and density of urban environments significantly alter the viability of certain humanitarian protection strategies that might work well in rural, more sparsely populated areas. In addition, it has become difficult to draw the line between acute and chronic vulnerability and therefore, the identification of beneficiaries.

This blur in distinction between chronic and acute vulnerability has raised a number of important questions for humanitarian organizations regarding if and how they should intervene. While many such organizations are equipped with the appropriate skills to mitigate overwhelming public health challenges is such contexts, the absence of a crisis point - such as armed conflict or natural disaster - brings th...


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About Us

The Program on Humanitarian Policy and Conflict Research is an international research and policy program based at the Harvard School of Public Health. The Program offers a multidisciplinary approach to new challenges in the field of humanitarian affairs. Key sectors of activity include:

Human security - a complement to state-centric security models with a focus on individual and community needs as an important guarantor for sustainable peace and stability
Conflict management - theoretical and operational strategies to contain and resolve hostilities persisting between state parties and/or non-state actors
International humanitarian law - deriving from the Hague Regulations, the Geneva Conventions, and the Additional Protocols, a set of rules intended to regulate the conduct and effects of armed conflict.

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