Humanitarian inversions: COVID-19 as crisis.

Area of Science:

• * Human Geography
• * Global Health Studies
• * Humanitarian Aid Research

Background:

• * The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted global emergencies, blurring lines between humanitarianism, development, and global health.
• * Existing complex emergencies were exacerbated as international focus shifted inward during the pandemic.
• * Traditional frameworks for understanding and intervening in crises are being challenged.

Purpose of the Study:

• * To analyze how COVID-19 has disrupted humanitarian efforts through spatial and temporal 'infrastructural inversions'.
• * To explore the geographical dimensions of the COVID-19 crisis within humanitarian, development, and global health contexts.
• * To examine the conceptual utility of 'infrastructural inversion' for future geographical research agendas.

Main Methods:

• * Conceptual analysis drawing on Geoffrey Bowker's 'infrastructural inversion' framework.
• * Contextualization of current humanitarian debates within geographical research.
• * Examination of how COVID-19 has been framed and addressed as a humanitarian emergency.

Main Results:

• * COVID-19 has fundamentally altered the spatial and temporal dimensions of humanitarianism.
• * The pandemic has exposed and intensified pre-existing global emergencies.
• * The crisis challenges established boundaries between humanitarianism, development, and global health.

Conclusions:

• * The concept of 'infrastructural inversion' offers valuable insights into the pandemic's impact on humanitarianism.
• * Geographical research agendas need to adapt to the increasing porosity between humanitarian, development, and global health sectors.
• * Understanding these shifts is crucial for developing more effective responses to complex global crises.