CDAC Network is the global alliance committed to ensuring people can access safe, trustworthy information during crises. In our podcast we'll have conversations about the big issues in communication, accountability, community engagement and participation.
We'll talk about topics, such as how harmful information is impacting communities and aid responses, how digital innovations in community engagement are shifting the power, and if AI advancements in humanitarian action are including communities affected by crisis - CDAC speaks to the key experts and members who are dealing with these critical issues.
Building trust in digital humanitarian action: Safe and ethical AI (HNPW 2025 panel)
AI has the ability to accelerate safe innovation and change humanitarian action for the better. Yet, there is a real risk of an underfunded, overstretched humanitarian sector accelerating towards unsafe use of AI to reduce costs with serious unintended consequences for vulnerable populations.
This live discussion comes from CDAC Network's panel at Humanitarian Networks and Partnerships Week 2025. It brings together a number of organisations in the tech-humanitarian space who are leading on harnessing AI in a way that puts people affected by crisis at the centre of these new technological developments. They discuss what is in the pipeline and what is needed to reshape responsible innovation in humanitarian action through clear standards, practical guidance, and ethical oversight.
Chair: Helen McElhinney, Director, CDAC Network
Panel:
Aleksandra Berditchevskaia, Nesta
Sarah Spencer, SAFE AI team lead
Giulio Coppi, Access Now
Anjali Mazumder, The Alan Turing Institute
Michael Tjalve, Humanitarian Al Advisory
For more information about the SAFE AI project or CDAC's other panels at HNPW, please visit the website (https://www.cdacnetwork.org/).
9 Apr 2025
When disinformation distorts: Enhancing accountability amid information disorder (HNPW 2025)
In an era where digital networks amplify both truth and falsehood at unprecedented speeds, humanitarian organisations face mounting challenges in maintaining operational integrity and public trust. CDAC Network's panel at Humanitarian Networks and Partnership's Week (HNPW) 2025 examined the intricate relationship between disinformation and humanitarian accountability, and explored how false narratives can impede aid delivery, compromise community relationships, and distort public understanding of humanitarian crises.
Drawing from experiences in contexts like Sudan and Ukraine, our panel explored practical solutions for maintaining transparency and trust while adapting to the accelerated pace of modern information flows. We ask the core question: how do we protect humanitarian integrity in an age of algorithmic amplification and strategic disinformation?
Chair: Ila Schoop Rutten, Information Integrity Lead, CDAC Network
Panel:
Wala Mohammed, Independent Consultant and Digital Rights Activist in Sudan
Christina Willie, Director, Insecurity Insights
Mariya Frey, Member of the Management Board, , Suspilne Ukraine
Amil Khan, CEO, Valent
Alasdair Stuart, Senior Advisor, BBC Media Action
Find out more about CDAC at HNPW 2025, or our work on disinformation by visiting the website (https://www.cdacnetwork.org/).
9 Apr 2025
Community-centred innovation: Shifting power in community engagement in aid (HNPW 2025 panel)
As the humanitarian sector grapples with calls for localisation and decolonisation —now further complicated by the recent USAID funding freeze—how do we ensure innovations in community engagement genuinely shift power to crisis-affected populations?
This Humanitarian Networks and Partnerships Week (HNPW) 2025 panel explores how different engagement methodologies - from radio to digital platforms - can either reinforce or transform existing power structures in humanitarian response. The discussion will critically examine what "innovation" truly means when communities are placed at the centre of humanitarian action, and how we can move beyond tokenistic participation to meaningful community leadership.
Chair: Ila Schoop Rutten, CDAC Network
Panel:
Sophie Tholstrup, Director of Policy & Climate, Ground Truth Solutions
Alex Ross, Loop Lead, Talk to Loop
Ellie Kemp, Strategic Partnerships Director,, CLEAR Global
Noor Lekkerkerker, CEO, Upinion
Quito Tsui, Collaborator, MERL Tech
To find out more about CDAC's other events at HNPW, visit our website (https://www.cdacnetwork.org/).
9 Apr 2025
Information and power sharing between big and little aid in the Sudan response (HNPW 2025 panel)
As the crisis in Sudan intensifies and the global funding crises deepens, the relationship between international humanitarian organisations and local responders has become both crucial and complicated.
CDAC's panel at Humanitarian Networks and Partnerships Week 2025 brought together international players, local organisations, and mutual aid groups to explore how information flows - or doesn't flow - between different levels of humanitarian response in Sudan. Through the lens of the ongoing crisis, panellists will examine practical challenges and emerging solutions in information, and power, sharing between "big aid" and "little aid."
Chair: Eva Khair, Sudan Transnational Consortium
Panel:
Phuong T. Nguyen, UNICEF
Dr Zaza Johnson Elsheikh, BIMA Group
Hisham Taha, Centre for Humanitarian and Development Excellence
Mukhtar Elsheikh, CDAC Network
Reem Gasim, Cash Consortium
Daniel Ayliffe, FCDO
Ammar Abumedian, Nidaa
To find out more about CDAC Network at HNPW or our work on Sudan, visit our website (https://www.cdacnetwork.org/).
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