Marking the 45th Anniversary of RedR
Bernadette Sexton
To mark RedR’s 45th anniversary, CEO Bernadette Sexton delivered a speech at our recent Annual Reception, reflecting on the organisation’s evolution and continued relevance in today’s humanitarian landscape. She addressed the growing global need for assistance, the challenges posed by shrinking funding, and the vital role of RedR’s locally led approach and partnerships in delivering lasting impact. Read the full speech below.
When we developed the strategy last year, we engaged with many stakeholders to determine how best we could deliver our mission: to develop the capacity of aid workers and organisations to respond to humanitarian needs and mitigate the impact of crises on the most vulnerable people.
Our mission remains sadly relevant because the demand for humanitarian assistance has never been higher. 1 in 22 people worldwide require humanitarian assistance.
This need is informed by escalating natural disasters, protracted conflicts, and deepening social inequities. At the same time, we are observing extreme weather events, with 2024 being the hottest year on record. So, the need has never been greater.
But, as needs continue to increase, the available funding has decreased. In this context, RedR’s impact is clear: we strengthen local responders to improve delivery, reduce waste, and contribute to a more effective humanitarian system.
In this context, RedR’s impact is clear: we strengthen local responders to improve delivery, reduce waste, and contribute to a more effective humanitarian system.
That was in 2024. Since then, at the start of 2025, there have been significant cuts to humanitarian funding globally. This presents an existential challenge for the humanitarian sector as the sector considers how to fundamentally rethink how we create global impact.
In this landscape, RedR’s locally led approach has become even more acutely necessary.
Through our training and technical assistance, we gain localised insight regarding the immediate challenges being faced in disaster situations, allowing us to inform improvements through convening and sharing at the sectoral level.
That’s where our partnerships come to the fore. Whilst we are a small core team, our reach is wide.
We hosted our strategy launch at the offices of Arup, one of our longstanding partners. It’s just one visual example of how we engage within an ecosystem of partners where values align and where we benefit from synergies.
Those partnerships allow us to extend and amplify our impact.
What does this look like in practice? It includes:
- Developing standards for camp management to support the flow of refugees and internally displaced populations in Nigeria and Ukraine
- Designing resources to support responders to conflict related sexual violence in several languages including Burmese, French, Ukrainian, and English
- Building climate resilience in drought and conflict vulnerable contexts in Somalia and Afghanistan
- Training local NGOs delivering nutrition in emergencies in Mali to address extreme hunger
- Delivering engineering in emergencies services in response to earthquakes and floods in Morocco, Libya, Turkey and Syria
- Supporting global commitments to provide clean water, and improved sanitation and hygiene systems through the WASH roadmap.
- Conducting blast damage assessments to allow safe return to homes; and supporting reform and repair of the water utilities in Ukraine.
RedR’s work is only possible through this ecosystem.
We have relied on your training and technical expertise that allows us to deliver our work to a high standard.
We have tapped into your networks that have connected us to key stakeholders to ensure a contextualised approach that builds on best practice.
We have benefited from your funding as individuals, as trusts and foundations, and as companies that has allowed us to deliver this work.
This year marks the 45th anniversary of RedR. Our founder Peter Guthrie remains an enthusiastic supporter. Anytime, I meet up with Peter, I come away from that discussion with a renewed sense of urgency from one of the most inspiring people I’ve ever met and a sense of how RedR has evolved to continue to be relevant and make a difference.
RedR was established in 1980. Since 1988 Her Royal Highness has been our President and has remained steadfast in her support of RedR, and has displayed an active interest in our work.
What we see in our work in crisis-affected areas – is that investing in people, knowledge and skills creates a ripple effect that has long lasting impact.
Thank you for your ongoing support.
Read our strategy here.
