The humanitarian sector has gained valuable experience conducting pilots, however it is struggling to bring innovations to scale. In a sector that is chronically under-funded - how can we strengthen efforts to move from pilots to sustainable and scalable innovations? One approach to this challenge is designing innovative business models.
Innovation in the humanitarian sector is one of the areas given high priority in Norway’s Humanitarian Strategy. Innovation Norway administers funds for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs under the Humanitarian Innovation Programme (HIP Norway). A pilot programme from 2018–2022 had extremely successful results, and a new agreement on the provision of NOK 100 million was recently signed.
Innovation Norway is through the Humanitarian Innovation Programme looking for bold innovation projects, aiming to improve humanitarian action. The 2022 call for proposals is now open. If you were not able to join the info session 31 May, you can get in touch to receive the recording.
Historically, most technology is designed by men, for men. Prevailing gender norms, roles and relations result in women and men facing different challenges, concerns and experiences. These have often been overlooked when developing new solutions. We sat down with two of the innovators from the HIP Norway portfolio that are applying a gender-responsive approach to disrupt this trend.
Social media is a great tool spark engagement about your innovation project. Here are some quick tips to get you started.
Communications is a crucial part of the innovation process. However, in a hectic workday, it is often the first thing to be down-prioritized. This article presents some tips on how to make it a priority, and some simple steps on how you can use your communications toolbox strategically to reach your project goals.
Engineers Without Borders Norway and their partners Polyfloss Factory and Field Ready are disrupting the field of shelter winterization. They are developing a solution based on candyfloss technology to produce shelter insulation locally, using plastic waste. Meet their project manager, Egil!
Humanitarian organisations supported through HIP Norway have used innovative procurement procedures since 2018. We were interviewed by The National Programme for Supplier Development. Read the interview (in Norwegian) here.
We are excited to present the ten innovation projects that were granted support by the Humanitarian Innovation Programme in 2021.