Digital Humanitarian

When Hurricane Helene hit early in the morning, six states lost power, fiber lines, and communication. Many communities in western North Carolina were unreachable. In this episode, Dana Yaari speaks with Patrick Riley , an Emergency Management Specialist for the North Carolina Department of Public Safety . Patrick recounts how traditional radio networks failed and why the lack of communication was...

In late 2024, rising waters threatened communities in Kogi State, Nigeria, where floods have long devastated lives and livelihoods. However, this time, people were ready. In this episode, Dana Yaari talks with Federico Barreras , Humanitarian Programme Manager at GiveDirectly , the organization that delivered no-strings-attached cash to over 4,000 people ahead of the flood. Federico shares that th...

When historic floods overwhelmed Rio in 2024, civil society mobilized quickly, but tech coordination lagged, and someone needed to step in. In this episode, Dana Yaari speaks with Dr. Caroline Vanzellotti and Dr. Olimar Teixeira Borges of Bonanza , a Brazil-based NGO that helped lead the local response. They recount the early days in Porto Alegre, when the streets were submerged for weeks. Dr. Car...

During the 2023 Maui wildfires, technology became the lifeline for restoring communication and helping communities survive. In this episode, Dana Yaari talks with Dr. Jarone Lee and Mary Showstark from Health Tech Without Borders about their time supporting relief efforts in Lahaina, Maui. They discuss the critical hours passed during the fires, when communication lines were down and survivors wer...

Three million people were affected, roads were underwater, and a digital command center was put to the test. In this episode, Dana Yaari speaks with Miguel Garcia , Operations Center Supervisor at the Philippine Disaster Resilience Foundation (PDRF), about the 2023 Typhoon Falcon response. As floodwaters rose, Miguel’s team faced a surge of requests, scattered communications, and overlapping aid e...

The calm after the storm starts with a signal. Dana Yaari sits down with Armando Samayoa , Regional Director at Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF), to explore what it truly takes to reconnect a community in the aftermath of a disaster.  From the moment Hurricane Dorian struck the Bahamas in 2019, TSF mobilized lightweight satellite gear, hopped helicopters, and raced to restore communication on the gr...

Capturing land rights before disaster strikes…with just a conversation. In this episode, Dana Yaari speaks with Ibere Lopes from IOM and Raphael Schoenball from UNDP about their pilot project, LandLedger. Set in a small fishing village in the Philippines, this project used storytelling, AI, and human-centered design to document informal land rights before the next typhoon could force evacuations....

Over 10,000 families. One disaster. And the tech-driven response that changed everything. In this episode, Dana Yaari talks to Christoph Gorder from Airbnb.org and Maribel Marin from 211 LA to discuss their partnership during the 2025 LA wildfires. Together, they navigated chaos, coordinated across teams, and faced overwhelming demand, all while under immense pressure.  Christoph and Maribel share...

What happens when the humanitarian system built to help… doesn’t? In this episode of Digital Humanitarian, host Dana Yaari talks with Abril Páez , Director at Proyecto Concentrarte , who shares her experience responding to the 2021 Haiti earthquake.  It’s a story about what happens when traditional disaster response systems fall short—and how, in the face of chaos, a simple tech solution sparked a...

Disaster response is at a turning point. Traditional humanitarian tools - paper logs, slow coordination, limited scalability - can’t keep up with the growing scale and pace of global crises.  And as political instability reduces available resources, it's more critical than ever to adopt bold, technology-driven solutions.  Digital Humanitarian takes you to the front lines of disaster relief, where...