Humanitarian Logistics Forum, Hull University

Delegates at the Humanitarian Logistics Forum

I feel very positive after attending the two day Humanitarian Logistics Forum (28+29 Nov) at Hull University Business School.

The meeting brought together around 30 senior practitioners and academics and focused on the logistics skills and capabilities needed to to enable post-disaster recovery and to lay the ground for future economic development.

Pam (right) and Gyöngyi Kovács
at the Hull University,
Humanitarian Logistics Forum, 2011

The conference was truly international with participants from North America, Australia, Scandinavia, the UK and more locations than I can remember. It was a great opportunity to network and to share experiences and  ideas. The meeting concluded with ideas for a research agenda and a white paper will follow shortly.

The event was sponsored by Cocal Cola and chaired by Emeritus Professor of Marketing & Logistics, Dr Martin Christopher of Cranfield School of Management, Cranfield University.

Short term deployment to Sierra Leone

Pam at the UNICEF country office, Freetown

I'm in Sierra Leone on a short term deployment to support the UNICEF country team. Sierra Leone is an extremely poor country, although rich in minerals and natural beauty. The country is still recovering from a brutal 11-year armed conflict that ended in 2002 and 70% of the population live on less than US$1 per day.

Lumley Beach, Aberdeen, Freetown

In April 2010, the Government launched a major initiative to provide free health care to pregnant women and girls. The challenge of addressing maternal mortality in Sierra Leone is enormous, given the country’s poor infrastructure, high levels of poverty and the continuing impact of armed conflict.

The Government has taken some important steps to address these challenges and UNICEF is working with donors and partners to assist the Ministry of Health in improving the situation. I am transferring my skills to colleagues and government logistics teams. I feel proud to be part of this great cause in Sierra Leone, and to work with a wonderful team under the leadership of the country representative.

Davos Annual Meeting 2010 - Rethinking Humanitarian Assistance

I was very interested in this exchange of ideas about the Haiti response and the role of private-sector partnerships from senior executives from the humanitarian and private sectors. The sector continues to learn: what is needed are performance metrics, standards and more innovative ways to respond, e.g. cash for work.

Relief Supply Chain for Disasters: Humanitarian, Aid and Emergency Logistics

When Gyöngyi  told me about her forth coming book I was excited at the prospect of another important publication in the field of humanitarian logistics. Take advantage of the pre-publish price here:  http://www.igi-global.com/bookstore/titledetails.aspx?titleid=50516 .

Evening with Kate

Last night I spent an enjoyable evening with Kate Hughes, a supply chain management consultant  from Australia. Kate is also a PhD student and is studying managerial decsion making in the humanitarian supply chain response at Macquarie Graduate School of Management. Kate co-authored a chapter in the recent book 'Humanitarian Logisitics' (click to find it on Amazon) edited by Martin Christopher and Peter Tatham. It's an informative read and I hope to post a review soon.

Humanitarian Logistics, a Career for Women

I have been delighted by the interest shown in the  publication "Humanitarian Logistics - A Career for Women" (click link to download) which I published on behalf of WISE, the Women's Institute for Supply Chain Excellence.

This compilation of articles and personal stories looks to inspire and encourage women into humanitarian logistics as well as to raise the profile of the profession.
It starts with a collection of articles that give an overview of humanitarian logistics. There is outlined some of the important work being done to raise the profile of both professional logistics, and the role that women play in this field.

 There follows a wide range of personal stories from those with years of experience in the field to those just starting out. In these stories comes through both the challenges that individuals have gone through as well as the passion they have for their work.
"Humanitarian Logistics—A Career for Women" aims to inform the reader as well as touch them on a personal level.