Journalism that creates positive change
In 2014, 102 million people needed humanitarian aid. Ten years later, that number has nearly tripled due to compounding factors of climate change and conflict. The era of the polycrisis has arrived (see our list of trends shaping humanitarian needs in 2024 for more detail), highlighting the limitations of the current international emergency aid system and the need for new approaches.
There is a growing push for humanitarian response to be democratised, involving local leaders, citizen volunteers, and the private sector. Independent media are crucial for exchanging ideas, identifying trends, and holding decision-makers accountable, especially in an age of misinformation.
Despite the recognition of independent journalism’s value, the media sector faces a crisis, with many outlets reducing international coverage due to financial pressures. Non-profit journalism has tried to fill this gap but faces its own challenges.
TNH has been a leading source of field-based news about crises for nearly 30 years, contributing to transparency and accountability in the aid sector. By providing nuanced information about crises and bringing more transparency and accountability to the complex and under-scrutinised aid sector, TNH is part of a positive change in humanitarian response. TNH serves the needs of the aid community, including its donors, but more importantly, those who are most affected by crises. As the media industry searches for a way forward, The New Humanitarian is leading the effort to build a viable model for international journalism that serves those most in need.
Centering impact in our work
The New Humanitarian seeks to contribute to more effective, accountable, and inclusive ways to improve the lives of people affected by crises. Our four pathways to generate positive impact are:
1. Informing policymakers and practitioners working in humanitarian response or related fields by delivering unique, real-time reporting independent of vested interests, prioritising the voices of those most affected by crises to better allocate resources, provide context-specific assistance, deepen understanding among humanitarian actors, and provide early warning of crises.
2. Acting as a catalyst for concrete policy change by providing accountability and transparency over governments, aid agencies, and others meant to help – or responsible for the suffering of – people in need, challenging dominant narratives, and exposing inconsistencies, corruption, and system failures.
3. Raising awareness of forgotten crises among a wider public by providing compelling stories and in-depth coverage of crises around the world that aim to increase global solidarity and an enabling environment for humanitarian response.
4. Providing a platform for conversation and discussion with and among affected and marginalised people by empowering and amplifying their voices to decision-makers and fostering mutual learning and support within communities facing crises.
Our recognition
Over the years, TNH has been recognised with several prestigious awards for its reporting and impactful storytelling. Explore our achievements through the dropdown menu for each year below:
2025
- One World Media Awards: The Yemen Listening Project was longlisted in the Innovative Storytelling category, and Greece jailed "Pylos 9" despite knowing they were innocent as Egypt prosecuted the real smugglers was longlisted in the Refugee Reporting category.
2024
- Fetisov Journalism Awards: Revealed: Why the UN is not climate neutral, in collaboration with Mongabay, and Inside Egypt's secret scheme to detain and deport thousands of Sudanese refugees, in collaboration with the Refugees Platform in Egypt, have been shortlisted in the Outstanding Investigative Reporting category.
- One World Media Awards: Art in time of crisis: Drawing Derna by Zainab Chamoun was longlisted in the Environmental Reporting Award. TNH fellow Zubaida Baba Ibrahim’s piece, Money clubs help displaced Nigerians create their own safety nets, was longlisted in the Women's Solutions category. Finally, Arlette Bashizi was longlisted for the New Voice Award, for her reporting on displacement in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
2023
- One World Media Awards: WhatsApp, Lebanon? and How one small Syrian NGO is tackling period poverty, one pad at a time were longlisted for the One World Media Awards in the Digital Media and Women's Solutions Reporting categories, respectively.
- Geneva Engage Awards: The New Humanitarian picked up an award at this year’s Geneva Engage Awards in recognition of our outreach and engagement across social media.
- 2023 Elisabeth B. Weintz Humanitarian Award: The Harvard Humanitarian Initiative (HHI) selected The New Humanitarian as the 2023 HHI Elisabeth B. Weintz Humanitarian Award recipient. For the first time, HHI nominated an institution instead of an individual to acknowledge The New Humanitarian’s remarkable contribution as a leading trusted news source for policy-makers and practitioners in humanitarian response.
- Hostwriter Prize: Makepeace Sitlhou and Ninglun Hanghal won the prestigious European Hostwriter prize for their story on refugee doctors working along the India-Myanmar border. The story was also shortlisted for the Mumbai Press Club’s RedInk Awards.