About this Research Topic

Background

Humanitarian action is often seen as a non-political undertaking motivated by ethical concerns – especially by practitioners, but also to some extent in the scholarly community. When aid organizations fail to deliver on their promises of alleviating human suffering, such shortcomings are often traced back to insufficient coordination between stakeholders, restricted ‘humanitarian access’, or a lack of capacities among key providers of aid. However, critical scholars have pointed to more fundamental tensions surrounding the notion of humanitarianism, and highlighted deep-seating problems like the paternalism of dominant Western actors in the humanitarian system.

The humanitarian sector has attempted to address such issues through ‘localization’, that is, the devolution of humanitarian tasks from international agencies to actors that are closer to the humanitarian situation, such as national and sub-national authorities of affected states, local non-governmental organizations, community initiatives and the affected population/beneficiaries themselves. While the idea of ‘localization’ has reached near-consensual status in global debates on humanitarian action, recent evaluations have concluded that its implementation remains flawed and incomplete.

Why has the localization of humanitarian action and disaster relief remained stunted despite the broad rhetorical support? Most policy analysts observe a general reluctance of established organizations to relinquish power and control. While the concerns of established actors are sometimes justified by the need to uphold universal standards or a lack of local capacity, critical scholars and practitioners have argued that such perceptions are embedded in deep-structural hierarchies in international politics, such as racism and postcolonial conditions, which act as impediments to ‘true’ localization. Despite the high stakes, systematic research on the matter is sparse and dominated by the white gaze of Western scholarship, whereas insights from the Global South remain underrepresented. To broader our understanding of localization in humanitarian action, this Research Topic assembles research on the politics of humanitarian action and disaster relief from a variety of perspectives.

For this Research Topic, we are especially interested in contributions that:
• evaluate to what extent localization has changed humanitarian governance and practice, including in different humanitarian settings;
• explore the limitations and contestations of localization, including different understandings of what localization entails, and how they are rooted in diverging interests or normative convictions;
• discuss the normative implications of localization, including unintended consequences, as well as potential alternative concepts;
• investigate the historical and contemporary significance of humanitarian agents from outside the ‘humanitarian club’, including non-Western states but also local or transnational organizations led by subaltern and/or marginalized groups, and how they relate to dominant conceptions about the international humanitarian order;
• analyze the role of race and racism in humanitarian action and disaster relief and its implication for localization;
• critically reflect on how research on humanitarian action and disaster studies has treated localization, and how this research and its potential biases relates to humanitarian practice.

We look for contributions that touch upon these and other questions from a variety of different theoretical and epistemological standpoints, and particularly encourage contributions by scholars from the Global South. Empirical case studies are particularly welcome.

Keywords: humanitarian assistance, disaster management, localization, racism, politics of aid

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

Frequently asked questions

• What is a Research Topic?

  Frontiers' Research Topics are collaborative hubs built around an emerging theme.Defined, managed, and led by renowned researchers, they bring communities together around a shared area of interest to stimulate collaboration and innovation.

  Unlike section journals, which serve established specialty communities, Research Topics are pioneer hubs, responding to the evolving scientific landscape and catering to new communities.

• Why does Frontiers publish Research Topics? 

  The goal of Frontiers' publishing program is to empower research communities to actively steer the course of scientific publishing. Our program was implemented as a three-part unit with fixed field journals, flexible specialty sections, and dynamically emerging Research Topics, connecting communities of different sizes and maturity.

  Research Topics originate from the scientific community. Many of our Research Topics are suggested by existing editorial board members who have identified critical challenges or areas of interest in their field.

• Why are Research Topics important for journals?

  As an editor, Research Topics will help you build your journal, as well as your community, around emerging, cutting-edge research. As research trailblazers, Research Topics attract high-quality submissions from leading experts all over the world.

  A thriving Research Topic can potentially evolve into a new specialty section if there is sustained interest and a growing community around it.

• How do we ensure the quality of articles within Research Topics?

  Each Research Topic must be approved by the specialty chief editor, and it falls under the editorial oversight of our editorial boards, supported by our in-house research integrity team. The same standards and rigorous peer review processes apply to articles published as part of a Research Topic as for any other article we publish.

  In 2023, 80% of the Research Topics we published were edited or co-edited by our editorial board members, who are already familiar with their journal's scope, ethos, and publishing model. All other topics are guest edited by leaders in their field, each vetted and formally approved by the specialty chief editor.

• What are the benefits of publishing my article in a Research Topic?

  Publishing your article within a Research Topic with other related articles increases its discoverability and visibility, which can lead to more views, downloads, and citations. Research Topics grow dynamically as more published articles are added, causing frequent revisiting, and further visibility.

  As Research Topics are multidisciplinary, they are cross-listed in several fields and section journals – increasing your reach even more and giving you the chance to expand your network and collaborate with researchers in different fields, all focusing on expanding knowledge around the same important topic.

  Our larger Research Topics are also converted into ebooks and receive social media promotion from our digital marketing team.

   
• What types of articles can be published in a Research Topic?

  Frontiers offers multiple article types, but it will depend on the field and section journals in which the Research Topic will be featured. The available article types for a Research Topic will appear in the drop-down menu during the submission process.

  Check available article types here 

• Can I suggest a new Research Topic? 

  Yes, we would love to hear your ideas for a topic. Most of our Research Topics are community-led and suggested by researchers in the field. Our in-house editorial team will contact you to talk about your idea and whether you’d like to edit the topic. If you’re an early-stage researcher, we will offer you the opportunity to coordinate your topic, with the support of a senior researcher as the topic editor. 

  Suggest your topic here 

• Who leads a Research Topic? 

  A team of guest editors (called topic editors) lead their Research Topic. This editorial team oversees the entire process, from the initial topic proposal to calls for participation, the peer review, and final publications.

  The team may also include topic coordinators, who help the topic editors send calls for participation, liaise with topic editors on abstracts, and support contributing authors. In some cases, they can also be assigned as reviewers.

• What is the role of a topic editor?

  As a topic editor (TE), you will take the lead on all editorial decisions for the Research Topic, starting with defining its scope. This allows you to curate research around a topic that interests you, bring together different perspectives from leading researchers across different fields and shape the future of your field. 

   

  You will choose your team of co-editors, curate a list of potential authors, send calls for participation and oversee the peer review process, accepting or recommending rejection for each manuscript submitted.

• What support will I receive when editing a new Research Topic? 

  As a topic editor, you're supported at every stage by our in-house team. You will be assigned a single point of contact to help you on both editorial and technical matters. Your topic is managed through our user-friendly online platform, and the peer review process is supported by our industry-first AI review assistant (AIRA).

• As a junior researcher, can I be involved in editing a Research Topic? 

  If you’re an early-stage researcher, we will offer you the opportunity to coordinate your topic, with the support of a senior researcher as the topic editor. This provides you with valuable editorial experience, improving your ability to critically evaluate research articles and enhancing your understanding of the quality standards and requirements for scientific publishing, as well as the opportunity to discover new research in your field, and expand your professional network.

• Can I get a certificate for editing a Research Topic?

  Yes, certificates can be issued on request. We are happy to provide a certificate for your contribution to editing a successful Research Topic.

• Who will I collaborate with?

  Research Topics thrive on collaboration and their multi-disciplinary approach around emerging, cutting-edge themes, attract leading researchers from all over the world.

• How long does it take to publish a Research Topic?

  As a topic editor, you can set the timeline for your Research Topic, and we will work with you at your pace. Typically, Research Topics are online and open for submissions within a few weeks and remain open for participation for 6 – 12 months. Individual articles within a Research Topic are published as soon as they are ready.

  Find out more about our Research Topics

• What fee support is available to authors publishing in a Research Topic?

  Our fee support program ensures that all articles that pass peer review, including those published in Research Topics, can benefit from open access – regardless of the author's field or funding situation.

  Authors and institutions with insufficient funding can apply for a discount on their publishing fees. A fee support application form is available on our website.

• Will there be a printed version of my Research Topic?

  In line with our mission to promote healthy lives on a healthy planet, we do not provide printed materials. All our articles and ebooks are available under a CC-BY license, so you can share and print copies.