While humanitarian action and international disaster response have long traditions in terms of the actions of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent and a number of Christian charitable organizations (and of course, the coping mechanisms of societies and communities), humanitarianism in its present form really dates from the end of World War II. The construction of the notion of an international community of humanitarian actors (UN agencies, Red Cross/Crescent, and NGOs) grew alongside the development of the United Nations system, the Bretton Woods institutions, and the retreating of the European imperial powers and was reinforced with the ending of the Cold War.
Today’s world is being reshaped rapidly, and the post-WWII construct feels increasingly uncomfortable as the best and most effective way of alleviating suffering in acute crises. Today’s world is being shaped by four trend-blocks, all of which affect humanitarian action and its future.