Once again this year, the CCHN is organising a World Summit on Frontline Humanitarian Negotiation to rethink humanitarian negotiations and how to effectively respond to future crises. This unique conference brings together thought leaders, policymakers, government representatives, academics and humanitarian actors from international and non-governmental organisations.
Today, the world—and the most vulnerable communities in particular—is facing increasing fragility and fragmentation due to COVID-19, extreme climate events, protracted conflicts, or a rise in migrants crossing borders every day.
With growing geopolitical, social and economic fault lines and increasingly tense environments, humanitarians must still find a way to build trust with their counterparts and provide humanitarian assistance. They are not only expected to negotiate a response to these crises but also to prevent and reduce the risks of politicisation, at a time when the use of misinformation and disinformation has become a serious threat to humanitarian action.
Join the CCHN Summit to discuss the future challenges for which humanitarian actors need to be prepared in this fast-changing context. Share your experiences to identify and re-think together solutions to streamline and professionalise humanitarian negotiation practices.

Dates
1-3 November 2022
Physical venue
Intercontinental Hotel
Geneva, Switzerland
Online venue
Some sessions will be live-streamed via an interactive platform (coming soon)
Registration fees
Free of charge
A rich agenda informed by humanitarian negotiators’ real-life challenges
The Summit agenda is shaped by contributions of hundreds of frontline humanitarian professionals from around the world, who are sharing their own challenges and dilemmas and identifying key topics for discussion.
You will have the opportunity to develop your negotiation skills by joining several sessions led by negotiation experts from the private sector, academia, think tanks and research institutions. For the first time, the World Summit will also feature a negotiation simulation run by experienced frontline negotiators from around the world.
Between March and September 2022, the CCHN is holding a series of local meetings with the members of our community of frontline negotiators across five world regions, gathering their reflections and feeding their expertise into the Summit. Stay tuned as we finalise the agenda according to their guidance.
By joining the CCHN World Summit, you’ll be able to…
- Shape the global debate on the role of humanitarian negotiations to improve humanitarian aid.
- Gain access to negotiation tools, resources and capacity-building opportunities for your team, organisation and partners.
- Discover the latest cutting-edge research, best practices and innovations in humanitarian negotiations.
- Get answers to critical issues when it comes to negotiating on the front lines or finding solutions to humanitarian challenges.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are our community members saying about the Summit?
The World Summit agenda also includes the annual meeting of the CCHN community of practice – an opportunity to meet, exchange, and guide the CCHN’s future activities.
Find out what other community members are saying about their participation in the Summit!
Who will be attending the CCHN Summit?
The CCHN World Summit is designed to encourage discussions, exchanges and reflections among a global community of frontline humanitarian practitioners and a broader network of professionals working across humanitarian policy and management, peacebuilding, mediation and diplomacy.
The first CCHN World Summit, which was held in a hybrid format in June-July 2021, saw the participation of more than 1,400 professionals joining either in person or remotely from 125 countries and 750 organisations.
How may I join the CCHN Summit?
The CCHN World Summit will be held at the Intercontinental Hotel in Geneva, Switzerland. Accessing the event is free of charge. Please note that our venue has a limited capacity and we may have to select participants through an application process.
Certain sessions in our agenda will be live-streamed on an interactive platform and available in multiple languages. Check the event agenda for more information.
What is the Centre of Competence on Humanitarian Negotiation?
Since its foundation in 2016, the Centre of Competence on Humanitarian Negotiation (CCHN) has been capturing, analysing and sharing humanitarian negotiation experience and practices—most importantly, thanks to the expertise of the 4,000 humanitarian practitioners who are currently part of our global community—and providing a space for dialogue across organisations.
The CCHN is a joint initiative of five humanitarian agencies: the International Committee of the Red Cross, Médecins Sans Frontières Switzerland, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the United Nations World Food Programme, and the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue.
The CCHN is administratively hosted by the International Comittee of the Red Cross and based in Geneva, Switzerland.

Get in touch
For any questions related to the CCHN Summit,
please reach out to:
Barbara Sartore
Head of Communication
[email protected]