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Bridging the research-practice gap in disaster relief: using the IFRC Code of Conduct to develop an aid model

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Abstract

Bridging the gap between research and practice has been a recognized problem in many fields, and has been especially noticeable in the field of disaster relief. As the number and impact of disasters have increased, there has been a jump in interest from the research community in an attempt to provide tools and solutions for some of the challenges in the field. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) Code of Conduct (CoC) for Disaster Operations provides a qualitative set of guidelines that is an excellent building block for operational theory, but is insufficiently rigorous in guiding quantitative decision making. In this paper, we review the CoC, exploring each of the ten core principles and identifying three significant operational trade-offs. We then propose a model framework that can be implemented as a stand-alone model, or can be used as a foundation for other quantitative aid allocation models. Finally, we provide an example of how the proposed model could be used to guide decision making in a Microsoft Excel\(^{{\text{\textregistered} }}\) environment using CoinOR’s OpenSolver\(^{\text{\textregistered} }\). New insights in the field of aid disbursement are provided by examining the challenges of financial management and investment as dictated by the CoC. This paper fills a unique gap in the literature by addressing the issue of financial allocation as guided by a qualitative standard used by the disaster relief community, and serves as a complement to the work in the field of humanitarian logistics.

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Author notes

  1. John B. Coles

    Present address: Information Exploitation Sector, CUBRC Inc., Buffalo, NY, 14225, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, SUNY at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, 14260, USA

    John B. Coles

  2. Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, 14260, USA

    Jing Zhang & Jun Zhuang

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  1. John B. Coles
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  2. Jing Zhang
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Correspondence to Jun Zhuang.

Additional information

This research was partially supported by the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) through the National Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events (CREATE) under award number 2010-ST-061-RE0001. This research was also patricianly supported by the United States National Science Foundation under award numbers 1200899 and 1334930. However, any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations in this document are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect views of the DHS, CREATE, or NSF. The authors assume responsibility for any errors.

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Coles, J.B., Zhang, J. & Zhuang, J. Bridging the research-practice gap in disaster relief: using the IFRC Code of Conduct to develop an aid model. Ann Oper Res 312, 1337–1357 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10479-017-2488-1

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