[From left to right: Béatrice Mauconduit, Noha Shalan (IOM), Daphne Henning (IOM), Abigail Maristela (IOM), Ljubica Salamic (IOM), Sofia Jarvis, Monika Grinschgl, Federico Rodriguez (IOM), Raphaël Capony]

From February 26th to March 1st, DEMAC team traveled to Washington D.C. to meet with our partners, USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) and IOM United States, to discuss future collaboration and strategic directions. 

During this one week exchange, DEMAC highlighted the vital role of diaspora actors in responding to climate change induced crisis and the importance of incorporating diasporas in global climate resilience and adaptation strategies, which are also covered in our upcoming report consisting of five case studies about climate change and diaspora response. 

DEMAC also presented our activities in Ukraine, case study regarding recent crises in Sudan, and private sector engagement during multiple sessions with a wide array of USAID colleagues.  

Reflecting on the visit, Béatrice Mauconduit, DEMAC Senior Project Coordinator, states, “We are delighted to finally have had the opportunity to visit our trusted partner USAID BHA here in Washington. We discussed future projects for diaspora engagement in humanitarian response, aiming for an even closer collaboration for the years to come."

USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance has been a trusted DEMAC partner since 2020, playing an integral role in increasing the visibility and recognition of diasporas among institutional humanitarian actors.

DEMAC is looking forward to strengthening our partnership with USAID and IOM to advocate for a stronger voice of diasporas in the overall humanitarian response.

[From left to right: Sofia Jarvis, Monika Grinschgl, Béatrice Mauconduit, Daniela Villacres (USAID BHA), Mariellen Jewers (USAID BHA), Raphaël Capony]