Humanitarian.info is the consultancy set up and run by Paul Currion. It’s entirely possible that I don’t know what I’m talking about, but hopefully this page will allow you to judge for yourself. Below is a one-page resume that covers all the high points of my humanitarian work (or possibly low points, it depends how I’m feeling); if you want to know more, then you will find a copy of my full-length CV here.
Professional Expertise
- Information Management, managing Humanitarian Information Centres (OCHA), Tsunami Information Management (WFP) and WASH Cluster IM (UNICEF).
- Humanitarian Co-ordination, working for OCHA, WASH Cluster, the NGO Councils of Kosovo and Macedonia, and the International Council of Voluntary Agencies.
- NGO Collaboration, managing ECB Phase 1 Initiative 4, developing the NetHope emergency working group, convening Cluster working groups in various field locations.
- Project Evaluation, including the Crisis Management Initiative, the NGO Forum of South Sudan, Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining, and ACAPS.
- Field Experience, inc. Georgia (2008), Bangladesh (2007), Tsunami-affected region (2005), Liberia (2003), Iraq/Cyprus (2003), Pakistan/Afghanistan (2001-2002), Kosovo (1999-2000).
Other Skill Sets
I also have experience in Training and Training Development; Project Management at HQ and field levels, including managing staff, finances and grants; Strategic Communication, including advocacy, facilitation and report-writing; and IT Expertise, including GIS and database development, website development and open source software production.
Education / Training
- MSc Architecture (2011), Centre for Alternative Technology / University of East London
- BA Hons African Studies and History (First Class) (1995), University of Birmingham
- Trained as Cluster Co-ordinator (Sept 2009) and Cluster Information Manager (March 2009)
- I’ve also trained in SPHERE Standards, Logical Framework Analysis (DFID), International Humanitarian Law (ICRC), Financial Management for Non Financial Managers (INTRAC), Media Relations (Reuters).
Key Publications
I have published a range of professional reports and articles, including: Strength in Numbers: A review of NGO coordination in the field (ICVA 2011); NGO Information Technology and Requirements Assessment (ECB Project 2006); ICT4Peace: the role of ICT in preventing, responding to and recovering from conflict (UN ICT Task Force 2005); and the Humanitarian Information Centre Handbook (DFID 2003).
Other Projects
I have helped to set up and support a number of projects on a volunteer basis, including: Aid Workers Network (an early aid worker social network), the Sahana Open Source Disaster Management Software (the first software platform developed specifically for aid coordination) and ISCRAM (the first academic community focusing on technology in disaster response). I am currently a member of the Grants Approval Panel of the Humanitarian Innovation Fund, act as a peer reviewer for Disasters and Forced Migration Review, and am on the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management.