From the Field

Essential infrastructure including roads and bridges were destroyed by the August earthquake.
IOM/Monica Chiriac

FROM THE FIELD: Haiti’s gruelling post-quake road to recovery

18 September 2021
Humanitarian Aid

Thousands of Haitians continue to take refuge in neighbours’ houses, makeshift shelters, chapels or informal displacement sites, a month after a devastating 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck the west of the Caribbean island where they live. That’s according to the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM) which has been assisting in recovery efforts. 

Ola al-Aghbary is the founder of the Sheba Youth Foundation for Development which focuses on youth and women empowerment in Yemen.
Hana Haza’a

FROM THE FIELD: Women owning the peace

16 September 2021
Peace and Security

The contribution of women activists towards building peace across the world is being highlighted in a UN exhibition of images taken by women photographers which is opening online and in New York.

The community of Les Cayes was destroyed when a 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck Haiti.
© WFP/Marianela González

FROM THE FIELD: Bringing aid to Haiti, a country at breaking point

4 September 2021
Humanitarian Aid

Humanitarian workers supporting relief efforts in Haiti following the devastation caused by a 7.2-magnitude earthquake, are contending with widespread insecurity, including gang violence, as well as logistical challenges, as they try to reach hundreds of thousands of vulnerable people.

A typhoon destroyed the house of a family in Molinao, Philippines.
UNOCHA/Martin San Diego

FROM THE FIELD: Human ‘damage’ on the front-line of the climate crisis

16 August 2021
Climate and Environment

The damage to people and livelihoods caused by climate change is happening at a scale that “people on the front lines cannot manage”, according to the UN’s humanitarian office, OCHA.

Halong Bay in Viet Nam..
Unsplash/Gary Cacciatore

FROM THE FIELD: The pollution challenge facing the ‘Dragon’s Jewels’ of Viet Nam

15 August 2021
Climate and Environment

A community-led project to manage some 28,000 tonnes of plastic waste and prevent 5,000 tonnes from ending up in the ocean is being supported by the UN in one of the most popular tourist attractions in Viet Nam.

Items recovered in a warehouse in the former Yugoslavia where men and boys were held, were used as evidence in trials at the ICTY.
ICTY/Isabella Tan Hui Huang

FROM THE FIELD: A genocide timeline; Srebrenica massacre remembered

20 July 2021
Human Rights

Survivors of a massacre of mainly Muslims in the former Yugoslavia, and people associated with the perpetrators of what has become known as the Srebrenica genocide, have been telling their stories in a new exhibition by the United Nations, released 26 years after the events took place.

FAO has provided aquaculture training to displaced men and women so they can breed fish for their own consumption and for sale.
© FAO Cameroon

FROM THE FIELD: Cameroon’s displaced, get hooked on fish

18 July 2021
SDGs

Cameroonians who have been displaced by conflict and climate change in the north of the West African country are turning to aquaculture as an alternative source of income, thanks to support from the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

A man wades through what is left of Bujumbura’s nautical centre.
IOM 2021/Armel Nkunzimana

FROM THE FIELD: A flood of humanitarian needs for Burundi lake dwellers

17 July 2021
Migrants and Refugees

Some 52,000 people have been displaced by flooding in Burundi since March this year, following the rise of waters in Lake Tanganyika in East Africa and most need humanitarian assistance, according to the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM).

Tuareg women artisans produce leather goods as part of a project supported by the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali, MINUSMA.
MINUSMA/Gema Cortes

FROM THE FIELD: Desert artisans in Mali foster dialogue and tolerance

11 July 2021
Peace and Security

Traditional arts and crafts are being used to build peace and dialogue in Mali thanks to the work of the UN peacekeeping mission in the country, MINUSMA.

Young displaced people who have returned home in South Sudan are learning new engineering skills.
IOM 2021/Aleon Visuals

FROM THE FIELD: South Sudan’s displaced youth, help power change

10 July 2021
SDGs

Young people who were displaced by conflict in South Sudan have returned home to power change in their community.