ILS Duty of care Pavilion and Conference at AIDEX 2025
ILS is excited to be hosting and curating another instalment of the Duty of Care Pavilion and Conference at AidEx 2025 in Geneva.
In past years, ILS has worked with our partners and clients to deliver an agenda addressing all things 'Duty of Care.' From technologies to diverse profiles, LGBTQIA+ approaches to risk management to crisis management simulations, legal aspects of Duty of Care to Insurance provision, the Pavilion and Conference is the go-to place to share and learn together as a community.
In 2024, the Duty of Care Pavilion & conference featured 18 exhibiting organisations,a dedicated conference space hosting 13 sessions, 43 speakers and 570 attendees across 2 days, and a networking space for attendees and speakers alike to collaborate on innovative solutions to enhance the safety of aid workers.
This year, the theme of the Duty of Care Pavilion and Conference will be, "Escalating Risks x Decreasing Budgets: Collaborative, Cost-effective Innovations for Staff Safety and Care."


The ILS Duty of Care pavilion will continue to explore topics including safety and security, safeguarding, wellbeing, cyber risk, travel risk and more. It will be structured to include:
- An expanded exhibition area
- A networking and peer support space
- A large conference space hosting a curated agenda featuring leaders and experts in duty of care.
For more information about the ILS Duty of Care Pavilion please contact the ILS team at commercial@locationsafety.com
Agenda 2025
Please note: agenda details are subject to change and will be updated regularly
Day 1 - October 22nd 2025
Session
Time
Format
Title
1
10:00 - 10:15
Keynote
Keynote opening address
Speaker: Stephen Cornish (MSF)
Opening remarks of the Duty of Care pavilion at AIDEX 2025
2
10:20 - 11:20
Panel
Escalating Risk x Decreasing Budgets
Lead: ILS
Considering these intersections of escalated risks to aid worker safety and decreased budgets for organisations delivering aid or international development programming; how can we support the safety and security of staff in the face of a funding crisis? How does the funding crisis impact staff safety and security? What ways can organisations innovate to support the holistic integration of safety and security for their staff amidst a funding crisis? The panel discussion brings together experts from across the sector to discuss innovations, capacity sharing and building, research and insights on ways organisations can stay resilient amid a humanitarian crisis nexus.
3
11:35 - 12:30
Workshop
Establishing a Global Community of Practice: Advance Staff Care, Mental Health, and Psychosocial Support for Humanitarian Workers
Lead: Protect Humanitarians
In this session, Protect Humanitarians present the Community of Practice on staff care, mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) for humanitarian personnel, currently being developed and supported through Protect Humanitarians. This community of practice brings together a wide range of humanitarian organisations, academic partners, experts, and survivors of violence; serving as a technical and learning hub for issues related to staff care and MHPSS for frontline humanitarian staff.
4
13:15 - 14:10
Panel
Localising Responsibly: From Language to Logistics
Lead: ILS and Translators Without Borders
This session explores localisation as it is increasingly driven by external pressures: from shrinking international aid budgets and deteriorating access, to donor demands for efficiency. Drawing from recent trends and case studies, this seminar will examine how localisation efforts may inadvertently result in the transfer of risk and how organisations can localise responsibly.
5
14:25 - 15:05
Presentation
Insuring Resilience: Innovative Risk Transfer for Duty of Care in a Cost-Pressured Era
Lead: Ambrelia Insurance
In today’s humanitarian landscape, aid organisations face escalating physical, digital, and legal risks - while operating under increasing financial strain. Amid crises, insecurity, and staff burnout, the principle of Duty of Care remains non-negotiable. But how can NGOs sustain this responsibility when resources dwindle? This panel, hosted by Ambrelia, a specialist in NGO insurance brokerage, will explore how fit-for-purpose insurance mechanisms can serve as strategic tools for safeguarding people, missions, and reputations.
6
15:20 - 16:15
Panel
Getting the Most out of Low-cost Tech: Creative Processes for Cost Efficiency
Lead: Dataminr
Technology is only as useful and cost effective when leveraged with creative processes and innovative systems within organisations. This session will explore how organisations can effectively utilise low-cost/free technologies and tools to support humanitarian safety and security in the wake of limited resources.
7
16:30 - 17:10
Case Study
Exploring the Case of Mauchline v. CADUS
Lead: Proper Support
Reflections on the recent Mauchline v. CADUS legal proceedings in Berlin.
Day 2 - October 23rd 2025
Session
Time
Format
Title
1
10:00 - 10:50
Panel
Stronger Together: Rethinking NGO–Private Sector Collaboration to Sustain Duty of Care
Lead: GISF
Many of the services that enable context appropriate Duty of Care, such as emergency medical response, legal advice, and risk insurance, are primarily delivered by private actors. In fact, security functions in the aid sector already rely on commercial providers more than most humanitarian sectors. Yet these relationships are often ad hoc, expensive, or poorly understood on both sides. This session focuses on how smarter, more coordinated approaches can ensure all aid workers, regardless of employer size, benefit from robust, fit-for-purpose Duty of Care mechanisms.
2
11:05 - 11:55
Workshop
Innovating Under Pressure: Using Systems Change for Risk Management in the Humanitarian Sector
Lead: ILS
The workshop addresses how escalating risks and shrinking budgets can undermine an organisation’s Duty of Care and uses systems thinking to explore more sustainable, collaborative ways to protect staff safety and wellbeing - even when resources are limited. By shifting the focus from reactive fixes to underlying systems, this session empowers participants to explore the root causes of persistent safety challenges and identify low-cost, high-impact actions that can improve safety outcomes across departments and roles.
3
12:10 - 13:05
Workshop
HEAT Training for the Mind: Building a Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) Toolkit
Lead: IW Response Associates
This workshop looks at how non specialist staff can provide first response psychological care to staff members who are struggling. Following an overview of the philosophy and theory of mental health first aid (MHFA), participants will explore a MHFA sample training in managing a panic attack, a common and alarming manifestation of psychological distress that can be safely handled by mental health first responders.
4
13:35 - 14:30
Case Study
Power to Act: Women Shaping Security and Duty of Care in Crisis Settings
Lead: MSI
Despite decades of commitments, women remain underrepresented in global security efforts. When women lead, missions are stronger, trust runs deeper, and peace lasts longer. As one of the largest SRH service providers in humanitarian settings globally, MSI’s gender-responsive and conflict-sensitive approach to duty of care focuses on our clients, staff, and the communities in which we operate. This session exploring two case studies from MSI's holistic and locally-led duty of care package, Papua New Guinea and Myanmar, on how they have built positive security cultures that protect our colleagues and our programmes.
5
14:40 - 15:30
Workshop
Training as a Lifeline: Strengthening Local and Regional Risk Management Capacity in Times of Scarcity
Lead: ILS
This session will explore how learning and development for risk management can be strategically adapted and deployed as a cost-effective tool to strengthen field teams, uphold duty of care, and mitigate rising mental health challenges particularly in a context of increasing localisation without matched investment in support structures.