HPCR International, in cooperation with the Program on Humanitarian Policy and Conflict Research at Harvard University, offers a series of advanced trainings in international humanitarian law and policy in partnership with leading institutions and universities. The trainings, as well as the related e-learning resources, are tailored to meet the needs of policymakers and practitioners working in the field of humanitarian assistance and protection in conflicts around the world.

HPCR believes that professionals working in the field of protection in conflicts and disasters require both dynamic expert instruction and policy tools that are directly linked to practice and contemporary challenges.

In these intensive trainings, which are entering their seventh year, participants acquire and refine skills necessary to address complex humanitarian challenges through a range of pedagogical tools, including legal instruction from leading experts, policy discussions and debates, and simulation exercises and case studies based on real world conflicts. For all trainings, faculty and expert facilitators are drawn from diverse universities and international organizations.

Core Training

The core trainings on humanitarian law and policy are designed to provide professionals with advanced concepts and principles on humanitarian protection. Focusing on practical situations and interventions, participants will be able to use legal and policy methods to analyze protection challenges and craft appropriate responses.

Prior to the advanced training, participants are required to complete online introductory and refresher modules reviewing basic concepts of international humanitarian protection and implementation of IHL. Participants will be able to view the online sessions on-demand, access selected readings, and pose questions in course discussion forums in the weeks preceding the core training sessions.

The on-site core training consists of a three-day seminar engaging leading experts and policymakers on the challenges faced in the application and implementation of IHL in current conflicts.

These advanced trainings include topics such as conduct of hostilities, humanitarian access, high-tech warfare, direct participation of civilians in hostilities, and negotiation with non-state actors. Participants are also able to discuss key dilemmas they face in their work with renowned experts during a closing panel. Throughout this course, topics of instruction will be linked to current dilemmas in practice, giving participants a sense of how the law interacts with policy. For more information on 2008 core trainings: click here.

Thematic Workshops

In addition, HPCR International will offer a series of thematic workshops in 2008 designed to deepen the knowledge and experience of professionals on critical issues and challenges faced by the humanitarian community. These workshops are open to alumni from previous core trainings as well as those with equivalent experience or expertise in IHL. The topics for the thematic workshops in 2008 are based on requests from participants in the advanced trainings for in-depth engagement on particular topics. They include:

• IHL and counterterrorism
• Humanitarian access
• Human rights
• Private security companies
• Islamic law and the protection of civilians
• Occupation and peacebuilding

The methodology of the thematic workshops reflects the one used in the core trainings: practice-oriented legal instruction, real-world simulations and case studies, and close discussion and policy debate with leading experts. For more information about the thematic workshops: click here.

The thematic workshops will be offered directly following the core course to allow those who wish to participate in both sessions to do so. The completion of the core training and two thematic workshops constitutes the basic requirements for the Professional Certificate in Humanitarian Law and Policy. For more information on the Professional Certificate: click here.