Humans of Security

In this episode we speak to Dr Alexander Gilder, lecturer in International Law and Security at the University of Reading. His research is interdisciplinary, drawing on perspectives from law and international relations.

 In this podcast we speak to Lee Beales, a medic in the Army with a background in dentistry and an interest in public health and human security, who recently completed his MA in Defence Studies, focussing on health matters.

In this podcast we speak to Maj Helen Bryan a Human Security Advisor and previous Gender and Child Protection officer in MONUSCO in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

In this podcast we speak to Dr Simon Rushton, a lecturer at the University of Sheffield specialising in global politics of health and linking health and security.

In this podcast we speak to Prof. Shahrbanou Tadjbakhsh, a university lecturer at Sciences Po university in Paris and a UN consultant in peace-building, conflict resolution, counter-terrorism, and radicalisation.

In this episode we speak to Prof. Daniel Bar-Tal, an academic, social psychologist, author, and laureate of the Morton Deutsch Conflict Resolution Award of the Society for the Study of Peace, Conflict, and Violence. We discuss what it means for someone to feel secure, the subjectivity of individual and societal insecurity, and the importance of putting psychology and security under the same spotlight.

In this episode we speak to Prof. Gyöngyi Kovács, a Professor in Humanitarian Logistics, about managing humanitarian logistics in conflicts and crisis. We discuss how those parts of the world that are most affected by human insecurities are often those that are the hardest to reach, or to operate in as a humanitarian organisation, or to access infrastructure to communicate and coordinate relief efforts and programmes. Consequently, humanitarian logistics is crucial to ensuring human security. We also touch on programmes such as cash-based assistance and discuss the pandemic as a human-security concern that is close to home. Mentioned in the podcast are the following links:

HUMLOG Institute: www.hanken.fi/humloginstitute

MOOC: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/humanitarian-logistics/2

In this episode, we speak with Fred Koolhof about the power of dialogue in facilitating communication between groups and understanding and resolving conflict. This conversation is especially relevant to the people-centric concept of human security, which compels us to think more deeply about understanding how different groups and populations develop their own sense of safety and security. 

Fred is a reserve officer in the Dutch military. He has worked as a civil-military cooperation (CIMIC) specialist in the Dutch Civil-Military Integration Command (CMIC) and at NATO’s Civil-Military Cooperation Centre of Excellence. He is also a lecturer, writer, and speaker. 

Coming to us directly from the field, in this podcast Rachel Agelou talks to us about her human security work at the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), including its work in military communication. From Rachel we learn how different crisis actors – military and humanitarian sector – operate in the same space in order to facilitate human security. Rachel, like our guest in episode 4, emphasises the importance of using a common language to enable effective conversation around human security, and the importance of paying attention to words. She also explains how to achieve effective human security.  

 Rachel Agelou is a former UK senior military officer with a background in Influence, Intelligence Operations (IO), CIMIC and Civil Affairs, and has military time served in the UK, Middle East and North Africa. As a Gender Advisor for UK military, she also worked on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) and contributed to gender and human security capacity building. She transitioned to the humanitarian community in 2010 and has worked for WHO, WFP and OCHA. 

In this episode, we speak with Major Leon Marshall, a UK Royal Marine Commando who is focussing on what human security means for UK forces, specifically the Commandos. Leon discusses how he first become introduced to the concept of human security and then went on to study the concept in-depth for his dissertation. He talks about the changing nature of military activities in light of the evolution of the contemporary operating environment, and also touches on some of his experiences in the field.  

Major Leon Marshall is a Commando in the Royal Marines, which are the UK Royal Navy’s elite amphibious fighting force. 

Note: This episode was recorded over Skype with a slightly unfavourable internet connection, so please excuse the inconsistent audio quality.