Australian Red Cross led an effort to solve this by establishing a verifiable digital credentials solution in order to remove some of the structural barriers and administrative burdens to onboarding.
Welcome to the Solferino Academy
What We Do
Strategy 2030
Thought Pieces
Top 40 Under 40
Young people can have a real influence when given the opportunity to do good. After receiving funding, coaching and support from the Limitless youth innovation programme, hundreds of Red Cross and Red Crescent youth innovators have powerful impact stories to tell us.
Impact Stories
Innovation Stories
Limitless wins 2022 Global Good Award – Monash Action Lab + IFRC Solferino Academy
Participants of Limitless were invited to create short-form videos outlining the challenges they faced in their communities, their proposed solutions and resources required. Through Action Translate, these videos were able to be translated into 17 languages – enabling worldwide distribution.
“We trained 120 farmers from 15 different communities how to make organic fertilisers, and they are now training other members of their communities!”
I started out searching for a solution on how to help members of my local community overcome the hunger crises brought about by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. I wanted to help farmers with a more cost-effective way of farming, of which the long term benefit would cut across their personal health and the environment at large.
Foresight
Trainings
Governance
Design
Intelligence
Strategic Foresight
It combines evidence and insight with scenario development and creative problem solving.
Recent Events
Solferino FutureFellows announcement 2022
Following a successful pilot in 2021, FutureFellows will be back this year! We will launch the call for applications on Wednesday 30 March via our mailing list and...
SMCC Summit 2021
Coordination has always played a crucial role in enhancing our Movement’s ability to respond to humanitarian crises. Over recent years, the Strengthening Movement Coordination and Cooperation (SMCC) has contributed to improving efficiency by enabling complementarity and reducing duplication. Now in its phase 2.0, SMCC continues to shape our Movement’s response to medium- to large-scale emergencies around the world.
Planet:Red Summit showcased the power of many
On October 12-14, 2021, we came together as the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and organised a global, virtual summit Planet:Red. The focus of this summit was on two of the greatest threats in contemporary times, the climate crisis and pandemics, and also on stepping up the Movement’s local action to drive global impact on the humanitarian dimensions of both.
Solferino FutureFellows Programme 2022
An innovative professional development program for emerging leaders of the network of the IFRC FutureFellowsVolunteerLeadership voices
Three Priorities for the Humanitarian Future
Liana Ghukasyan focuses on three IFRC priorities that have changed the way humanitarian assistance is delivered and will be instrumental in shaping the humanitarian future.
The IFRC wants to leverage financial markets to keep up with the world’s unprecedented humanitarian needs. Here’s how
The humanitarian and private sectors may appear to be at opposite ends of the spectrum, but closer collaboration could yield solutions to the world’s biggest problems. I believe it’s possible to move toward a shared ownership approach, whereby both the private sector and humanitarian partners align their objectives, including financial returns.
Are we doing enough to prepare for the Future?
The global picture is quite grim – pandemic, protracted conflicts, impacts of climate crisis, growing inequalities and polarisation, increases in gender-based violence and drastic worsening of mental health. In addition, the crisis in Ukraine has brought another layer of uncertainty, complexity and heart-breaking human suffering with global implications.
The Solferino Academy is an initiative of the IFRC and its member national societies that aims to help the Red Cross and Red Crescent network anticipate, understand and adapt to trends and emerging issues
Our Major Partner is the Croce Rossa Italiana (Italian Red Cross)
Solferino Academy Selection
A selection of the best events from the Red Cross Red Crescent Network focusing on innovation, foresight and transformation. A curated collection from the Solferino Academy superstars and delivered straight to you. You’ll never have to miss a cool event again.
45 minutes | How can we decarbonise social and humanitarian actions?
The climate crisis is already having devastating effects on the health & humanitarian sector. On the frontline, the Red Cross Red Crescent network is anticipating future...
Episode 2 of the Humanitech Perspective
In episode 2 of the Humanitech Perspective we asked 🌏 Usman Iftikhar what problems he is looking to solve into the future? His answer Climate Migration, it was a powerful answer as it hits home to the realities that many people are facing around the globe already.
A virtual journey through the eyes of refugees
What if you had to flee your home? What if the future of your whole family depended on your decisions? What kind of choices would you make?
Join us on a virtual journey through the eyes of refugees on Wednesday November 24th 12:30-14:00 CET.
Thought pieces
Why do we need a glocalized development? Way to decentralize aid
It has been six years since the humanitarian agenda has reached a milestone after the UN Secretary General’s call for turning locally-led humanitarian action at the World Humanitarian Summit in 2016. This was a call to change the function of global humanitarian system as the international humanitarian actors are falling back to meet up with the increasing needs derived from protracted natural hazards and long-lasting armed conflicts. As the costs of services increase and the high level of risks restrict international actors’ actions, aid has come to a bottleneck.
Digitalisation in Humanitarian Action: the path forward
As crucial key enablers in delivering effective and timely humanitarian aid to the people in need, digital technologies allow aid organisations to improve collaboration and communication while enabling the delivery of aid more efficiently; rendering a tailored emergency response based on the needs of the beneficiaries. In this scope, digitalisation is one of the Movement’s prioritized topics because it is rapidly shaping how our humanitarian operations and assistance activities are carried out; therefore, impacting how the humanitarian sector is serving the aforementioned affected populations. To stay up-to-date and relevant in different contexts, the humanitarian sector is testing and adopting digital technologies on a multitude of different levels in order to improve the speed, efficiency, and effectiveness of humanitarian operations.
Baking Social Impact Business into Sustainable Humanitarian Financing Model
How can we better co-design and prototype emerging technology with communities at the center? Over the past year, Nepal Red Cross, Cameroon Red Cross, Nesta UK, and IFRC Solferino Academy explored how emerging technology, specifically Artificial Intelligence (AI), could support the effective delivery of humanitarian work by involving communities in the design in two very different contexts. This project was done during a global pandemic and ongoing emergencies with the everyday complexities of humanitarian response.
Insights and Inspirations
How major tech changes have transformed the way we work
Alasdair is an IFRC Alumni. He is now a Senior Lecturer at the School of International Relations, University of St. Andrews. He is the the author of a new book: “Humanitarians on the Frontier”.
Being Data Responsible as a Team
Data protection principles and practices should guide every humanitarian at each stage of project development. What makes you and your team responsible data users?
Where to start with your team’s data journey?
We’ve hosted data playbook workshops with avocados, limes, oranges, and a bag of peanuts: You can learn about data quality standards, decision-making with data, and basic data analysis,… and have snacks!
Case Studies
Disaster Preparedness through Virtual Reality
The Trinidad and Tobago Red Cross Society
Innovating to identify the most effective social change mechanisms to engage Roma communities
Romanian Red Cross
Support for women’s health and autonomy
Red Cross of Benin
Are you interested? We’d love to hear from you!