On September 23, the World Peace Foundation hosted a panel titled “Staying safe in armed conflict contexts: What do crisis-affected people prioritize and does it work? Do humanitarian actors and others take note?”

Moderated by Feinstein’s Dyan Mazurana, the panel explored civilian self-protection. Speakers emphasized the importance of understanding this subject so that humanitarian responses to conflict do not interfere with people’s own strategies for defending themselves.

Feinstein’s Dan Maxwell spoke on lessons learned from the Somalia crisis, detailing the extraordinary choices people made to avoid displacement and to protect their livelihoods. In addition, Dan highlighted social networks and connections as critically important to survival in a conflict setting.

To learn more about the other speakers and to see key tweets from the event, click here.