Curricular Unit:Code:
Ethical Dilemmas in Humanitarian Action1153DEAH
Year:Level:Course:Credits:
1DoctoratePolitical and Humanitarian Studies11 ects
Learning Period:Language of Instruction:Total Hours:
Spring SemesterPortuguese/English143
Learning Outcomes of the Curricular Unit:
a)Encouraging global understanding of humanitarian action: understanding the geopolitical contexts and ethical dilemmas resulting from them;
b)Promoting an intersectional analysis of ethical dilemmas in the field of humanitarian;
c)Developing responses to humanitarian issues, taking into account different political and institutional dimensions, as well as education, culture, religion, access to justice, the eradication of economic and social inequalities, and different forms of exclusion;
d)Developing autonomous research skills in research and selection of primary sources, as well as sources of scientific information;
e)Developing scientific communication skills including the presentation of practical research papers in specialized conferences;
f)Developing interpersonal relationship skills through teamwork;
g)Applying, rigorously and ethically, the knowledge acquired.
Syllabus:
I. Methodologic issues: 1. Intersectional approach; 2. Contextualized approaches; 3. Ethical dilemmas and respect of Human Rights; 4. Ethical dilemmas and relevance of postcolonial approaches.
II. Ethical dilemmas: Decision-making processes; 2. Vulnerability in situations of catastrophe; 3. Humanitarian action, dependence and empowerment of affected populations; 4. Interaction of NGOs with populations and problems of representation; 5. Evaluation of the efficacy of humanitarian interventions; 6. Surpassing of the standard notion of “humanitarian” and of “humanitarian intervention”
Demonstration of the Syllabus Coherence with the Curricular Unit's Objectives:
This subject provides students with fundamental knowledge in the field of humanitarian action, as well as in the field of NGOD operating in this domain. This enables the understanding of the need for a cultural translation, contributes to the discussion on the change of paradigms framing the humanitarian action and enables the students to work from within grounded knowledge on the problems of humanitarian. This knowledge can be applied both to academic research and to field working in humanitarian action.
Teaching Methodologies (Including Evaluation):
Teaching methodology will include theoretical lecturing, research, reading and discussion of specific book references, as well as thematic debating and critical reflection. Assessment will be continuous and based on presentation of critical reviews of articles on the issues discussed in chapter I (40%), a practical individual report with oral and written presentation (50%) and work discussion during classes, on chapter II (10%). The participation of the students in the execution of theoretical and practical tasks in the classroom, and in the participation in scientific activities such as seminars and conferences being held at the University corresponds to 10% of the final grade.
Demonstration of the Coherence between the Teaching Methodologies and the Learning Outcomes:
Explanation of the problematic underlying humanitarian action, namely in its relationship with the universal value of Human Rights, of the debates around this universality and proposals that try to reconcile human rights with respect for cultural expressions of respect for human dignity (relevance of the notion of “cultural translation”). Framing the international organizations of humanitarian action in the thematic of human rights. Critical presentation of the plus and minus of these organizations. The students will choose a case study. This task aims to enable the students to analyse the mission and intervention of a NGOD according to the theoretical instruments discussed during classes. The guided reading of bibliography and documentation is meant not only to inform but also to train interpretative competences. The presentation of cases of humanitarian action in the framework of international organisations will illustrate theory with cases and problems emerging from ground work. Group debates in class will enable a grounded critical view on humanitarian action in the political context. The assessments will register a grounded theoretical approach to the topics developed during the semester.
Reading:
Delgado, C. & Kherbiche, L. (2019). Ethics Training for Humanitarian Interpreters Working in Conflict and Post-Conflict Settings, Journal of War & Culture Studies, 12(3), 251-267
Eggert,L. (2018). Harming the Beneficiaries of Humanitarian Intervention. Ethical Theory and Moral Practice 21:1035–1050
Lidén, K. (2019). The Protection of Civilians and ethics of humanitarian governance: beyond intervention and resilience Disasters, 43(S2): S210-S229
McDonald, F. et al (2020). Facemask use for community protection from air pollution disasters: An ethical overview and framework to guide agency decision making. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction 43.
Pawinski,M. (2018). Going beyond Human Terrain System: Exploring Ethical Dilemmas. Journal of Military Ethics 17(2–3): 122–139
Toldy,T. (2016), Carol Gilligan: Cuidar numa voz diferente, in Ferreira e Henriques (org.), Marginalidade e Alternativa: vinte e seis FILÓSOFAS para o século XXI. Lisboa: Edições Colibri, 133-142