Achieving Fairness in Assessing Student Groupwork

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Pitfalls of civil-military co-operation in disasters

ANALYSIS: Problems inherent in co-operation between civil and military organisations can make disaster relief difficult, writes GRAHAM HEASLIP THE AMERICAN military are operating the airport at Port-au-Prince in Haiti, looting has begun and there are claims that the aid is not getting to those who need it. Why? Two words: co-operation and co-ordination

Logistical Challenges of Coordinating Military and Civilian Agencies in Humanitarian Operations

It seems that when disasters, either natural or man-made occur, governments often turn to the military for help as the military have certain resources immediately to hand, such as food, medicine and fuel as well as logistical resources of transport, communications and human assets with which to distribute them. Recent events in Haiti, Pakistan and more recently Australia showing relief agencies distributing food and medicines under the protection of military forces, or aid workers and military working together to construct refugee camps, set up field hospitals, provide emergency water and sanitation, has heightened the expectation of a smooth interaction. Due to fundamental differences between international military forces, humanitarian and development agencies in terms of the principles and doctrines guiding their work, their agendas, operating styles and roles, the area of civil military logistical coordination in humanitarian relief has proven to be more difficult than other interagency relationships. This paper outlines the current challenges as they relate to the logistic aspects of disaster/emergency preparation and response, and to discuss the areas in which the development of closer civil-military cooperation could be of particular benefit. To achieve this, the first section will reflect on examples as illustrations of the challenges inherent in the achievement of successful civil-military cooperation. The subsequent sections will discuss the logistical challenges facing civil military cooperation in humanitarian relief operations. The paper will conclude with proposals to improve civil military logistical cooperation within humanitarian relief

The changing role of a humanitarian logistician

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Modelling a Humanitarian Supply Chain using the Structured Analysis and Design Technique (SADT)

Conflicts since the end of the Cold War have seen military and civilian assets deployed side by side as part of an overall UN mandated solution. In order to visually present the integrated nature of humanitarian supply chains ‘Structured Analysis and Design Technique’ (SADT) has been used. SADT was chosen as it provides a robust structured method to model hierarchical systems and for this research it provides an opportunity to define and analyse the coordination and co-operation in terms of the humanitarian supply chain process, humanitarian supply chain activities and the actors involved. This research demonstrates that the visualisation facility that SADT provides not only helps in understanding the interrelationships between the actors and stakeholders involved in a humanitarian supply chain but also to some extent explains how a more effective co-ordination of humanitarian operations by military and civilian organisations involved in a complex emergency can be achieved

Prospects and Bottlenecks of Reciprocal Partnerships Between the Private and Humanitarian Sectors in Cash Transfer Programming for Humanitarian Response

As an alternative to commodity-based programming (in-kind aid), Cash Transfer Programming is attracting both humanitarian organizations' and institutional donors' attention. Unlike in-kind aid, Cash Transfer Programming transfers purchasing power directly to beneficiaries in the form of currency or vouchers for them to obtain goods and/or services directly from the local market. In distributing currency to beneficiaries, the private sector, especially financial service providers, plays a prominent role, due to the humanitarian sector's limited relevant resources. The present work unveils challenges for the private and humanitarian sectors, which hinder implementing Cash Transfer Programming. Based on primary and secondary qualitative data, the paper presents the main characteristics and the mechanisms of Cash Transfer Programming to explore how the private sector is involved with Cash Transfer Programming. Then, this study presents bottlenecks of reciprocal relationships between financial service providers and humanitarian organizations in Cash Transfer Programming

Jellyfish Support High Energy Intake of Leatherback Sea Turtles (Dermochelys coriacea): Video Evidence from Animal-Borne Cameras

The endangered leatherback turtle is a large, highly migratory marine predator that inexplicably relies upon a diet of low-energy gelatinous zooplankton. The location of these prey may be predictable at large oceanographic scales, given that leatherback turtles perform long distance migrations (1000s of km) from nesting beaches to high latitude foraging grounds. However, little is known about the profitability of this migration and foraging strategy. We used GPS location data and video from animal-borne cameras to examine how prey characteristics (i.e., prey size, prey type, prey encounter rate) correlate with the daytime foraging behavior of leatherbacks (n = 19) in shelf waters off Cape Breton Island, NS, Canada, during August and September. Video was recorded continuously, averaged 1:53 h per turtle (range 0:08–3:38 h), and documented a total of 601 prey captures. Lion's mane jellyfish (Cyanea capillata) was the dominant prey (83–100%), but moon jellyfish (Aurelia aurita) were also consumed. Turtles approached and attacked most jellyfish within the camera's field of view and appeared to consume prey completely. There was no significant relationship between encounter rate and dive duration (p = 0.74, linear mixed-effects models). Handling time increased with prey size regardless of prey species (p = 0.0001). Estimates of energy intake averaged 66,018 kJ•d−1 but were as high as 167,797 kJ•d−1 corresponding to turtles consuming an average of 330 kg wet mass•d−1 (up to 840 kg•d−1) or approximately 261 (up to 664) jellyfish•d-1. Assuming our turtles averaged 455 kg body mass, they consumed an average of 73% of their body mass•d−1 equating to an average energy intake of 3–7 times their daily metabolic requirements, depending on estimates used. This study provides evidence that feeding tactics used by leatherbacks in Atlantic Canadian waters are highly profitable and our results are consistent with estimates of mass gain prior to southward migration

Movement Patterns for a Critically Endangered Species, the Leatherback Turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), Linked to Foraging Success and Population Status

Foraging success for pelagic vertebrates may be revealed by horizontal and vertical movement patterns. We show markedly different patterns for leatherback turtles in the North Atlantic versus Eastern Pacific, which feed on gelatinous zooplankton that are only occasionally found in high densities. In the Atlantic, travel speed was characterized by two modes, indicative of high foraging success at low speeds (<15 km d−1) and transit at high speeds (20–45 km d−1). Only a single mode was evident in the Pacific, which occurred at speeds of 21 km d−1 indicative of transit. The mean dive depth was more variable in relation to latitude but closer to the mean annual depth of the thermocline and nutricline for North Atlantic than Eastern Pacific turtles. The most parsimonious explanation for these findings is that Eastern Pacific turtles rarely achieve high foraging success. This is the first support for foraging behaviour differences between populations of this critically endangered species and suggests that longer periods searching for prey may be hindering population recovery in the Pacific while aiding population maintenance in the Atlantic

Logistical Challenges of Coordinating Military and Civilian Agencies in Humanitarian Operations

It seems that when disasters, either natural or man-made occur, governments often turn to the military for help as the military have certain resources immediately to hand, such as food, medicine and fuel as well as logistical resources of transport, communications and human assets with which to distribute them. Recent events in Haiti, Pakistan and more recently Australia showing relief agencies distributing food and medicines under the protection of military forces, or aid workers and military working together to construct refugee camps, set up field hospitals, provide emergency water and sanitation, has heightened the expectation of a smooth interaction. Due to fundamental differences between international military forces, humanitarian and development agencies in terms of the principles and doctrines guiding their work, their agendas, operating styles and roles, the area of civil military logistical coordination in humanitarian relief has proven to be more difficult than other interagency relationships. This paper outlines the current challenges as they relate to the logistic aspects of disaster/emergency preparation and response, and to discuss the areas in which the development of closer civil-military cooperation could be of particular benefit. To achieve this, the first section will reflect on examples as illustrations of the challenges inherent in the achievement of successful civil-military cooperation. The subsequent sections will discuss the logistical challenges facing civil military cooperation in humanitarian relief operations. The paper will conclude with proposals to improve civil military logistical cooperation within humanitarian relief

Pitfalls of civil-military co-operation in disasters

ANALYSIS: Problems inherent in co-operation between civil and military organisations can make disaster relief difficult, writes GRAHAM HEASLIP THE AMERICAN military are operating the airport at Port-au-Prince in Haiti, looting has begun and there are claims that the aid is not getting to those who need it. Why? Two words: co-operation and co-ordination