I spent nine years watching trucks get stuck in the mud outside Goma, waiting for paperwork that never came. While the economists in Geneva were …
Where the Poverty Line Comes From
July 2026
Acting Before the Disaster Arrives
I spent most of my nine years in East Africa watching people argue over high-resolution satellite imagery and complex meteorological modeling while the actual supply …
Poverty in Middle Income Countries
I remember sitting in a humid warehouse outside Goma, staring at a stack of shipping manifests for a shipment of vaccines that was technically “too …
Hostile Environment Basics
I’ve sat through enough three-day security seminars in Geneva to know that most of the training is pure theater. They hand you a glossy binder …
Graduating Out of Aid Eligibility
I remember sitting in a dusty warehouse outside Goma, staring at a stack of high-level policy briefs that promised “sustainable systemic shifts” while the actual …
Inclusion Beyond a Policy Statement
I spent a decade in South Sudan watching NGOs burn through six-figure budgets on “sensitivity training” workshops held in air-conditioned hotels, only to watch the …
Why Land Titles Change Behaviour
I spent a decade watching NGOs fly in with glossy brochures about “empowerment” and “sustainable growth,” but none of that matters when a local chief …
Humanitarian, Development and Peace Together
I once spent three days in a humid warehouse outside Goma, staring at a stack of high-level strategy papers that detailed exactly how the triple …
Carrying Notes Across a Border
I spent nine years watching cargo trucks get hijacked in the DRC, and I can tell you that the most expensive armored plating in the …
The Global Health Funds and Transition
I once sat in a humid tent outside Goma, staring at a spreadsheet that claimed three million dollars had been “allocated” for malaria prevention. On …