The Fraternity – International Humanitarian Federation (FIHF), through its Training and Development Subcommittee, gathered together a group of organizations that develop policies for mitigating the risks in catastrophes, for an online training on the Sphere Handbook.
Participating was the Civil Defense of the cities of Mariana, Barra Longa, Rio Doce and Santa Cruz do Escalvado, the Risk Management Committee (CGR), the Safe School Project (ES), and the Community Protection and Civil Defense Center (NUPDEC), brought together by the environmental consulting organization H3M.
All these environmental and geotechnical organizations were active in the emergency response to the disasters in the Brazilian cities of Mariana in 2015 and Brumadinho in 2019.
The Sphere Handbook, recently translated into Portuguese by the Humanitarian Fraternity (FIHF), “represents a global standard of humanitarian action capable of ensuring a response and assistance based on the guarantee of human dignity,” according to what Friar Thomas, monk of the Grace Mercy Order and facilitator of the T&D Subcommittee, explains.
“The work plan for this course was adjusted based at H3M’s own request. The contents of the Sphere Handbook were presented in a summarized way, both within the scope of ethical principles and in technical standards, paying special attention to the Sphere Standards applied in urban contexts,” explains the Friar.
In all, there were nineteen participants that fully completed the training, among them was Isabella Dias Cunha, consultant of the H3M, who declared: “I have always been interested in understanding the conflicts and questions associated with human rights, but I had never studied humanitarian assistance. What I found incredible in the training was the fact that the Humanitarian Fraternity (FIHF), working in the field, managed to combine theoretical and practical information. That formed a more tangible scenario for me.
Because of the growing humanitarian crisis and taking into consideration that human displacements are increasing throughout the planet, Friar Thomas recognizes the importance of this training for different types of groups; “learning the Sphere standards becomes fundamental knowledge for many groups, such as in the case of this H3M grouping, formed by professionals of different areas – from civil defense agents to social workers.”
In the end, both those who took the course and those who trained them had reasons for celebrating. Isabella said: “I loved the training. From the first approach, the contact was incredible. The whole team was very helpful and always ready to exchange ideas and present solutions.”
And on his part, Friar Thomas concludes: “The group remained focused and attentive. One gained the impression that they recognized the importance of learning about the Sphere Handbook as an important complement to their own field of professional training.”
