Information and Risks: A Protection Approach to Information Ecosystems

"Information is an essential component of any humanitarian crisis; it can contribute to mitigating protection risks and it can create new or exacerbate existing protection risks."

These guidelines were developed to support a range of information actors - such as local media, civil society, and government - who work to share information and engage with communities impacted by crisis. In particular, the guidelines are designed to help information actors to strengthen the capacity of affected communities to understand information-related protection risks so they can interact more safely with the information ecosystem and make informed decisions in crisis situations. The guidelines do this by providing guidance on how to identify the origin of potential threats and their impacts on affected communities and to develop media and humanitarian interventions that will build or strengthen the capacities of those communities to eliminate or mitigate information-related protection risks.

This resource was created as part of Internews' Community Voices for Better Protection (CVBP) project, which seeks to understand the risks associated with information in humanitarian contexts from the perspective of humanitarian field workers, specialist protection agencies, and media and other information providers. Using field work conducted in 2022-23 in three locations - Iraq, Mali, and the Philippines - the guide seeks to address a gap in the understanding of, and response to, risk and information.

As explained in the guide, "Individuals are constantly making decisions about the risks and benefits of accessing services, and access to information is no different. People affected by crises need to have safe and meaningful access to accurate information to know and exercise their rights and entitlements and participate in decisions that affect them. As a result of denial of access to information, communities affected by crisis can be deprived of services and foster negative coping mechanisms. This can exacerbate other protection risks including gender-based violence, discrimination, trafficking in persons, or restriction of movements. Despite the recognition of the centrality of information needs for people affected by crises, the lack of a common, systematic, and structured approach among humanitarian actors and other information actors results in information gaps or practices that create or exacerbate protection risks for the affected communities, humanitarian workers, and other information providers." Even with well-intentioned goals, it is important to be aware that how organisations work can increase or decrease risk and harm to individuals and communities. For example, not providing access to reliable information creates risks; however, creating opportunities for increased participation through people speaking up, sharing concerns, or even attending meetings also comes with risks that need to be considered and mitigated.

The guidelines were developed to address information gaps in two areas:

1. What can be done to increase safe and meaningful access to accurate information?
2. How should this be done in a way that ensures stakeholders are not adding risks to the community in the process?

The guidelines can be used at any point in a humanitarian response and are also relevant to development contexts. They can:

• ƒinform the design of humanitarian and media programmes;
• support implementation;
• ensure community engagement is being done safely;
• contribute to feedback and complaint mechanisms design;
• ensure that audience outreach work doesn't put people at further risk; and
• support the development or update of data management tools for sectoral or multi-sector assessments, for protection monitoring, and within monitoring and evaluation exercises.

The guidelines are composed of four modules that can be used independently of each other. Seven annexes containing tools and templates accompany the modules and are linked at specific points throughout the module content.

Module 1: Getting started: who, why and how to be involved in building safer information ecosystems - This module introduces key concepts and outlines the specific guidance provided in Modules 2-4 and how to use the tools provided in Annex 1-8.

Module 2: How can I contribute to a safer information ecosystem by adapting my ways of working? - This module is relevant to anyone working in humanitarian and development contexts interested in understanding how to increase safe and meaningful access to information. It provides guidance on why and how one should always look at safety when engaging with the affected community, risks one should consider when providing information using online platforms, and why coordination between information actors in a humanitarian crisis is essential.

Module 3: Reducing information-related protection risks: an analytical framework - This module supports readers to undertake a protection analysis of the information ecosystem to identify activities that will reduce information-related protection risks. The first section is dedicated to a framework that compiles the data useful to understanding information-related protection risks present in a specific context. The second section is a guide to help organise data for analysis and recommendations based on an organisation's objectives and expertise. Local media, civil society, humanitarian actors, and protection specialists will make different use of this section depending on their activities and capacities. This module is focused on risks communities face from the crisis context itself, whether armed conflict, migration, natural or climate disaster, or other any other crisis.

Module 4: Reducing harm: a guide for media and journalists in emergencies - This module is tailored for journalists, media professionals, and content creators who engage in activities like reporting on, interviewing, filming, photographing, or collaborating with crisis-affected community members to address their information needs and amplify their voices. Drawing inspiration from journalistic ethics, the module adopts a principled approach to content creation that seeks to avoid exacerbating harm for vulnerable communities facing crises.

Annexes:

Annex 1 - Glossary

Annex 2 - Safe-programming assessment template

Annex 3 - Community focus group discussion tool

Annex 4 - Household survey tool

Annex 5 - Key informant interview tool

Annex 6 - Media focus group discussion tool

Annex 7 - Information Protection