On 3 December, 2025, Lviv Polytechnic National University will become a platform for professional and academic dialogue with the renowned Swiss humanitarian expert Yvan Sturm – a consultant with over forty years of experience in the field of international protection, human rights and humanitarian operations management. His professional activities include 21 years of work at the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), cooperation with UNRWA, IOM, OCHA, ICRC and a number of leading international organizations and missions in crisis, conflict and post-conflict regions in the world.
In his presentation, Yvan Sturm will offer an integrated overview of the modern architecture of the international humanitarian system and its ability to respond to multidimensional crises of the 21st century. Particular attention will be paid to:
- the structural dynamics of the UN, in particular the context of the 80th anniversary of the Organization and the UN80 Initiative – a program to improve the effectiveness and adapt the system to new challenges;
- the role of key UN agencies in global humanitarian management (UNCHR, UNICEF, WHO, WFP, UNDP, UNESCO, etc.);
- standardization of humanitarian activities, including the development of procedures, logistics protocols, mechanisms for controlling and monitoring the supply of aid;
- the field experience of the UNHCR mission in Ukraine (2022–2023), where the speaker was responsible for ensuring logistical chains, stock management, developing SOPs for partners and supporting regional offices in Kyiv, Lviv, Dnipro, Chernivtsi, Uzhhorod, Vinnytsia and Odesa.
The meeting will cover both global aspects of humanitarian policy and local contexts of Ukrainian realities, demonstrating the interaction of international organizations, government agencies, local NGOs and civil society.
The event will also include an overview of the modern architecture of the UN, key humanitarian agencies and the UN80 Initiative – a global program for reforming the UN’s activities, aimed at improving the effectiveness, responsiveness and quality of the international system in the 21st century.
This is a rare opportunity to hear from an international expert who has actually worked in the Ukrainian crisis zone, shaped policies that directly affect the lives of thousands of people, and knows the humanitarian system from the inside.
The venue of the event is the Julian Zachariewicz Hall, Lviv Polytechnic National University. The event starts at 9:00.
The organizers invite students, faculty, researchers and everyone interested in international processes, humanitarian policy, pedagogy, psychology and the work of the UN system.
This is an event you can’t miss. Join us to hear the voice of a person who sees the world of the humanities from the inside!
