Working Groups

This working group meets monthly to share information, discuss operational concerns, and coordinate advocacy efforts for the Afghanistan context.

Staff Contact

Mais Balkhi

Program Manager, Humanitarian Practice

The Basic Education Coalition is an independent, nonprofit advocacy organization working to ensure that all children around the world have access to quality basic education. The Coalition works to influence Congress and the Administration to enhance the effectiveness of education programs. A separate Membership fee paid to BEC is required for participation in the organization’s activities.

The Children and Youth Working Group meets bi-monthly and aims to bridge sectoral divides and elevate children and youth within InterAction’s existing sector working groups. By employing the Whole Child Development approach, this group advocates for U.S. government programs, policies, and funding that are integrated, cross-sectoral, and support children and youth throughout all life stages.

Staff Contact

Caitlin St. Amour

Program Associate

The Climate Advocacy Working Group provides Members with networked learning and collective action opportunities to advocate for U.S. and multilateral policies, approaches, and resources to decelerate climate change and support the world’s most vulnerable to adapt to its effects. This monthly working group is one of three convening spaces supporting Members to implement InterAction’s NGO Climate Compact.

Staff Contact

Sara Nitz Nolan

Senior Manager, Policy and Advocacy

The ad hoc Climate Mainstreaming Working Group supports Members during their climate change education and highlights opportunities and risks associated with climate change in development and humanitarian programming. This is one of three convening spaces supporting Members’ implementation of InterAction’s NGO Climate Compact. 

Staff Contact

Sara Nitz Nolan

Senior Manager, Policy and Advocacy

A monthly forum for senior-level communications staff to network, brainstorm, and collaborate. This group also pulls together common messaging and activities around key development and humanitarian issues and campaigns affecting the InterAction community, including conflict and natural disasters.  

Staff Contact

Morgan Martinez

Director, Communications

The Civil Society Task Force focuses on efforts to strengthen civil society and to ensure NGO access and space for all assistance efforts amid mounting restrictions and threats to civic space due to increasing government authority under the guise of responding to COVID-19. This group convenes monthly to respond to these threats while also thinking through long-term impacts on operations.

Staff Contact

Caitlin St. Amour

Program Associate

Monthly calls with Members focused on identifying field-level humanitarian operational and programmatic impediments as well as potential solutions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Staff Contact

Kathryn Striffolino

Senior Manager, Humanitarian Practice

The monthly Development Finance Corporation (DFC) Working Group tracks the International Development Finance Corporation and advocates for prioritizing sustainable development in U.S. development finance toward U.S. Congress and the Administration.

Staff Contact

Jenny Marron

Senior Director, Public Policy and Government Affairs

This listserv informs and convenes Members in discussions on the role of digital tools, data, and social media in both international development and humanitarian action, including the opportunities and risks associated with their use.

Staff Contact

Adam Fivenson

Director, Data, Development Technology, and Innovation

The Disability Listserv promotes the inclusion of people with disabilities as a human rights issue and a critical component of effective development.

Staff Contact

Carolyn J. Aeby

Vice President, Membership and Public Engagement

The ad hoc Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Working Group provides a forum to share practical international experiences and knowledge and works to improve coordination and raise risk reduction on the international policy and programming agenda. 

Staff Contact

Mohamed Hilmi

Senior Technical Specialist, Shelter

The Environmental Sustainability Working Group provides networked learning opportunities for Members to measure their carbon footprint, chart a course for reducing greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change, and maintain organizational commitment to sustainability. This monthly working group is one of three convening spaces supporting Members to implement InterAction’s NGO Climate Compact.

Staff Contact

Sara Nitz Nolan

Senior Manager, Policy and Advocacy

This Community of Practice builds the capacity of Members to measure and demonstrate the effectiveness of their work and promotes the exchange of information on tools, resources, best practices, and experiences on monitoring, evaluation, accountability, learning, and research. This Community of Practice meets roughly monthly. 

Staff Contact

Ben Bestor

Senior Program Coordinator, Global Development Policy and Learning

The Food Security, Nutrition, and Agriculture Working Group seeks to support and strengthen U.S. NGOs that are active in implementing field programs in international agricultural development and global food security. This group meets monthly and focuses on congressional advocacy to ensure that investments in international agricultural development and global food security are sustained and ideally increased.

Staff Contact

Sara Nitz Nolan

Senior Manager, Policy and Advocacy

The Forced Displacement Working Group (FDWG) aims to strengthen and inform the humanitarian response to issues of forced displacement through INGO engagement with key stakeholders and provides a space to develop collective INGO positioning. The working group meets monthly.

Staff Contact

Lissette Almanza

Senior Program Associate, Humanitarian Policy and Practice

The Fragility Listserv offers Members periodic updates on policy and programmatic issues on the challenges of transforming unstable, conflict-affected societies into resilient ones. It focuses on themes of peacebuilding, violence prevention, and operating in fragile contexts.

Staff Contact

Jenny Marron

Senior Director, Public Policy and Government Affairs

The From Pledge to Action (FP2A) Working Group meets monthly and is the central forum for Members to discuss and build consensus around effective approaches to enhance safeguarding and prevent sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment. Together we seek to strengthen policies, procedures, reporting mechanisms, and survivor support systems; share best practices; and build working cultures that allow staff and local communities to thrive.

Staff Contact

Meriwether Beatty

Senior Manager, From Pledge to Action

The G7/G20 Advocacy Alliance is a group of InterAction Members and allies who work together to influence the annual G7 and G20 summits. Each year, the alliance organizes policy teams around specific issues and develops recommendations for G7 and G20 policy papers. Policy papers are used to brief the White House, USAID, and the Department of State, among others.

Staff Contact

Ben Bestor

Senior Program Coordinator, Global Development Policy and Learning

The Gender-Based Violence (GBV) Working Group provides a collective voice to advance the GBV programming and policy concerns of InterAction Member organizations engaged in humanitarian and conflict programs. The working group meets monthly.

Staff Contact

Anna Jaffe

Program Manager, Protection

This working group meets on an ad hoc basis to share information, discuss operational concerns, and coordinate advocacy efforts for the Great Lakes region. 

Staff Contact

Mais Balkhi

Program Manager, Humanitarian Practice

This working group meets on an ad hoc basis to share information, discuss operational concerns, and coordinate advocacy efforts for the Haiti context.

Staff Contact

Mais Balkhi

Program Manager, Humanitarian Practice

This working group meets on an ad hoc basis to share information, discuss operational concerns, and coordinate advocacy efforts for the Horn of Africa region.

Staff Contact

Mais Balkhi

Program Manager, Humanitarian Practice

Building on previous work on innovative finance for development practice, this distribution list circulates updates on opportunities for engagement among InterAction Members.

Staff Contact

Jenny Marron

Senior Director, Public Policy and Government Affairs

This working group meets monthly to share information, discuss operational concerns, and coordinate advocacy efforts for the Iraq context.

Staff Contact

Mais Balkhi

Program Manager, Humanitarian Practice

This working group meets monthly to share information, discuss operational concerns, and coordinate advocacy efforts for the Myanmar/Bangladesh context.

Staff Contact

Mais Balkhi

Program Manager, Humanitarian Practice

InterAction’s NGO Futures initiative brings together CEOs and other executive leaders to explore the role of U.S.-based NGOs. The mission of NGO Futures is to revolutionize NGOs’ ability to adapt to change and shape a thriving global future. This new initiative offers workshops, trainings, and retreats to create a platform for exploration to occur.

Staff Contact

Deborah Willig

Director, NGO Futures

This working group meets on an ad hoc basis to share information, discuss operational concerns, and coordinate advocacy efforts for the Nigeria/Lake Chad Basin region.

Staff Contact

Mais Balkhi

Program Manager, Humanitarian Practice

This working group meets on an ad hoc basis to share information, discuss operational concerns, and coordinate advocacy efforts for the Pakistan context.

Staff Contact

Mais Balkhi

Program Manager, Humanitarian Practice

The Public Policy Committee Budget and Appropriations Subcommittee provides a venue for Members to engage with the annual appropriations process and learn about U.S. government budget issues. This working group meets twice a month.

Staff Contact

Lisa Peña

Director, Policy, Budget and Appropriations

The ad hoc Public Policy Committee Congressional Education and Engagement Subcommittee works with Members to foster relationships with engaged Congressional staff and identify new leaders and champions for development and foreign assistance issues.

Staff Contact

Sara Nitz Nolan

Senior Manager, Policy and Advocacy

The Election 2020 Task Force is a time-bound working group focused on ensuring the InterAction community is well-positioned to advance the coalition’s agenda in the next administration or a second Trump administration.

Staff Contact

Sara Nitz Nolan

Senior Manager, Policy and Advocacy

The Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) Listserv is used to share updates, relevant events, and resources related to the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse to other Members and global inter-agency forums, such as Results Group 2 of the IASC.

Staff Contact

Anna Jaffe

Program Manager, Protection

The monthly Protection Working Group advances the protection programming and policy concerns of InterAction Member organizations. It seeks to strengthen the capacity of Members to identify and respond to protection challenges in the field and at the headquarters level. 

Staff Contact

Anna Jaffe

Program Manager, Protection

The Public Policy Committee (PPC) provides a venue for Members to come together to share information and coordinate joint advocacy work focused on U.S. government policymakers in Congress and the executive branch. This group meets monthly.

Staff Contact

Jenny Marron

Senior Director, Public Policy and Government Affairs

The Results-Based Protection Program gathers experts working to identify, review, and document key elements that support results-based approaches to protection programming.

Staff Contact

Jessica Lenz

Senior Technical Advisor, Protection

This working group meets monthly to share information, discuss operational concerns, and coordinate advocacy efforts for the Sahel region.

Staff Contact

Mais Balkhi

Program Manager, Humanitarian Practice

The Security Listserv is open to Member staff whose responsibilities include the safety and security of their staff as a means to share relevant information on current issues. Ad hoc security-focused meetings are occasionally scheduled and based on Member needs.

Staff Contact

Kathryn Sidlowski

Program Associate, Humanitarian Policy and Practice

The Shelter and Settlements Working Group (SSWG) focuses on improving the collaboration, capacity, policy, and practice of organizations involved in the humanitarian shelter and settlement sector. It serves as a link to their global efforts with the intent of increasing the contribution and impact of humanitarian assistance. This working group meets regularly.

Staff Contact

Mohamed Hilmi

Senior Technical Specialist, Shelter

InterAction’s Social Media listserv shares social media campaign toolkits, news, and best practices. 

Staff Contact

Michelle Neal

Creative and Digital Manager, Communications

This working group meets monthly to share information, discuss operational concerns, and coordinate advocacy efforts for the South Sudan/Sudan context.

Staff Contact

Mais Balkhi

Program Manager, Humanitarian Practice

InterAction’s Strengthening Partnerships listserv provides information that facilitates greater cooperation between the U.S. government and NGOs. Its goal is to provide better program designs, increase efficiency, and engage policymakers and legislators in their efforts to increase the impact of U.S. foreign assistance.

Staff Contact

Jenny Marron

Senior Director, Public Policy and Government Affairs

On an ad hoc basis, we create a new listserv to address sudden-onset crises, such as COVID-19. These listservs are typically open to all Members unless the information being shared is highly sensitive from a security standpoint, in which case we limit them to humanitarian actors implementing programs in the affected geographies.

Staff Contact

Kathryn Striffolino

Senior Manager, Humanitarian Practice

This working group meets monthly to share information, discuss operational concerns, and coordinate advocacy efforts for the Syria context.

Staff Contact

Mais Balkhi

Program Manager, Humanitarian Practice

The Together Project addresses common issues facing U.S.-based NGOs by strengthening collective capacity, sharing best practices, and developing strategies to combat shrinking civil society space. Structured through six workstreams, Members engage on topics such as bank de-risking, disinformation response, positive public image, and interfaith connections. Members of this initiative pay additional dues.

Staff Contact

Princess Bazley-Bethea

Director, Together Project & Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

The UNHCR Partnerships Working Group seeks to facilitate greater collaboration, strengthen partnerships, and advance strategic engagement on policy and programmatic concerns between UNHCR and INGO implementing partners. The working group meets regularly.

Staff Contact

Lissette Almanza

Senior Program Associate, Humanitarian Policy and Practice

This working group meets monthly to share information, discuss operational concerns, and coordinate advocacy efforts for the Venezuela context.

Staff Contact

Mais Balkhi

Program Manager, Humanitarian Practice

The Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) Working Group seeks to improve U.S. government policies related to WASH issues to increase sustainable access to these basic services in the developing world, improve the integration of WASH across development sectors, and prioritize service access to communities most in need.

Staff Contact

Sara Nitz Nolan

Senior Manager, Policy and Advocacy

This working group meets monthly to share information, discuss operational concerns, and coordinate advocacy efforts for the West Bank/Gaza region.

Staff Contact

Mais Balkhi

Program Manager, Humanitarian Practice

The ad hoc World Food Programme (WFP) Partnerships Working Group seeks to leverage the experience and voice of INGOs to strengthen partnership relations, as well as to promote greater cooperation and programmatic input of INGOs in WFP strategy, programming, and practices. 

Staff Contact

Lissette Almanza

Senior Program Associate, Humanitarian Policy and Practice

This working group meets monthly to share information, discuss operational concerns, and coordinate advocacy efforts for the Yemen context.

Staff Contact

Mais Balkhi

Program Manager, Humanitarian Practice