International

Read blog posts from the Canadian Red Cross about our international programs and relief efforts

Latest Posts

Discovering International Humanitarian Law: A non-lawyer’s perspective

Sitting people studying

Nicole O. Melanson, Manager for Internal Communications at the Canadian Red Cross, attented an intensive summer course on international humanitarian law. In this article, she shares the top five lessons learned from this experience. 

Sitting people studying

Read about humanitarian worker and author France Hurtubise

France is wearing glasses and an orange vest while smiling at the camera in an outdoor setting

France Hurtubise, a retired Communications delegate living in Montréal, looks back on her experience in the humanitarian sector and shares her story with us. Over the course of 25 years working abroad, France traveled to four continents and worked in countries heavily impacted by conflicts and disasters. In May 2022, she published “Grandeur et dénuement”, an account of her years with the Red Cross (ICRC, IFRC and CRC) and the UN.

France is wearing glasses and an orange vest while smiling at the camera in an outdoor setting

Life-Changing Support During Trying Times: Cash and Voucher Assistance in Haiti

Devastation on a beach in Haiti

As of early 2023, Haiti continues to experience a major security, social, economic, and public health crisis. Despite the deteriorating security situation, namely tied to armed violence, the Red Cross continues its essential work in support of the people of Haiti. One approach we have taken is providing direct financial assistance for the people who are still recovering from the 2021 Earthquake. To date, the Cash and Voucher Assistance program has enabled 1,400 households in the municipalities of Corail and Pestel, in Grande Anse, to meet their essential humanitarian needs and provides much needed relief during these difficult times.

Devastation on a beach in Haiti

The mind-body connection: Providing mental health support in Ukraine

Dr. Oleh Berezyuk is discussing with patients while smiling and hoilding a piece of paper in is left hand

Mondays are always the busiest day for the psychology team at Lviv Clinical Hospital of Emergency and Intensive Care in western Ukraine. Follow psychiatrist Dr. Oleh Berezyuk and his team around the hospital as they meet with new and existing patients across the rehabilitation, intensive care, surgery and internal medicine units.

Dr. Oleh Berezyuk is discussing with patients while smiling and hoilding a piece of paper in is left hand

Heartbreak and hope: One year of conflict in Ukraine 

An older woman smiling up at the camera

What does it mean to live through a year of armed conflict? For some, it means having to leave behind everything they know for somewhere safer. For others, it means spending hours in bomb shelters, or hours without electricity. For too many it means being separated from family, struggling to access basic medical care and not knowing what will happen next. 

An older woman smiling up at the camera

Language, culture, and mental health support following a disaster

Guy Choquet, the Red Cross Director of Operations, Alberta Fire Recovery in Fort McMurray was one of thousands of people evacuated when flood waters came into the downtown area on April 26, 2020.
Choquet was also instrumental in supporting the Flood Collaborative, a group of local community organizations that formed to identify and address any gaps in services as residents began the recovery process.

What responding to emergencies in Canada and West Africa taught me

Sarah Parisio walking in flooded water with 3 Red Cross members

Sarah Parisio's role within the Canadian Red Cross involves supporting people impacted by disasters through leading teams of fellow humanitarians who respond to emergencies in Canada and around the world. Discover how she brought with her skills developed through responding to emergencies in Canada to an international context and what new knowledge she brought back home in return.

Sarah Parisio walking in flooded water with 3 Red Cross members

On the front lines of migration in the Sonoran Desert

A man and a woman stand outside facing each other, appearing to be in discussion, with fields in the background

Last November, a delegation from the Canadian Red Cross visited the Mexican Red Cross team in Nogales, a city in the state of Sonora bordering the U.S. state of Arizona. Many of the residents of this arid desert town came from other parts of the country to work in one of the numerous cross-border manufacturing plants, or maquiladoras, that produce goods for international export.

A man and a woman stand outside facing each other, appearing to be in discussion, with fields in the background

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About The Blog

The purpose of this blog, quite simply, is to talk. This blog is an opportunity for Red Cross staff, volunteers, supporters and friends to share stories about what is happening in your community and the important work you are doing. It is a tool that will help keep all of us connected.

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