The closeout and learning event was designed as a learning, dialogue, and exhibition platform to synthesize evidence from the FIRM pilots and the broader financing ecosystem review, while shaping practical scale-up pathways for innovative financing in Somalia The event aimed to strengthen multi-stakeholder alignment around innovative financing, highlight Somali-led solutions, inform future programming, and generate actionable learning products and policy recommendations.

If we do not actively encourage those among us that we can label as innovators or agents of change, then we will always end up with the same results. This guide is a starting point, for all that are responsible for producing innovation within their teams, and those who wish to see the creation of a new way of thinking.

Brought to you by Liban Mohamed, a thought piece reflecting on the livelihoods behind “messiness”.

As StartupBlink's Ecosystem Partner in Somalia and recognised as one of the "Notable Startup Ecosystem Builders", Response Innovation Lab remains committed to deepening our collaboration with the private sector and the local innovation community—working together to build a more connected, resilient, and thriving ecosystem.

On 7 May 2026, the Uganda Response Innovation Lab (U-RIL) organised the Innovative Financing Convener.

On Tuesday, 5 May 2026, the Response Innovation Lab (RIL) hosted a special edition of its Thoughtcast series in Amman, focusing on analysing challenges within the agricultural sector as an entry point for developing practical, context-driven solutions. The session brought together stakeholders from across the agricultural ecosystem for a more targeted and focused discussion.

U-Learn, together with Rwanga Foundation, ALNAP, the Humanitarian Library and Shelter Center, co-hosted a webinar on learning, innovation, and evidence uptake in humanitarian contexts. The webinar aimed to share practical approaches to strengthening learning and evidence uptake in humanitarian and refugee responses. Check out the webinar recording and relevant resources!

At this year’s #HNPW, we hosted a session on March 5 reflecting on a decade of humanitarian innovation, bringing together perspectives from practitioners, innovators, and ecosystem actors across different regions.

Jordan’s humanitarian landscape is under growing pressure, with rising needs, shrinking funding, and a continued reliance on short-term interventions. In this context, finding ways to deliver impact more efficiently, locally, and sustainably has become increasingly urgent.

On January 6, the Somali Response Innovation Lab (SomRIL) hosted a national-level Humanitarian Research & Innovation Futures Consultation in Mogadishu , convening a diverse cross-section of Somalia’s humanitarian ecosystem to collectively shape a forward-looking, nationally grounded agenda for humanitarian research and innovation.

Using Elhra’s Humanitarian Research & Innovation Futures Toolkit, the consultation applied strategic foresight methods to examine key drivers of change, surface critical uncertainties, and stress-test existing humanitarian approaches—ensuring future responses remain adaptive, evidence-driven, and locally relevant.

RILx25 brought together 130 participants from 35 countries across various sectors and geographies. The event was organised in collaboration with Superpool and IFDO, with the generous support of Danish Refugee Council, Elrha, Grand Challenges Canada, the Oxfam Novib HST-LHL programme, and Save the Children International. Check out the takeaways from RILx25 and get inspired on how to prepare for the next “crossroads”.

Bilow Capital is an innovation project supported by the Somali Response Innovation Lab through the FIRM Challenge 2024. In this piece, Co-founder and General Partner Hana Kaise Abdi—also a speaker at RILx25 on the “Local Innovation Ecosystems” panel—shares her insights on what it takes for a local innovation ecosystem to truly thrive.

Climate-smart agriculture isn’t just a buzzword — it’s a lifeline for farmers on the frontlines of climate change. In this piece from a South Sudan perspective, we explore what truly makes a solution “climate-smart,” from boosting productivity and resilience to cutting emissions and protecting natural resources. We look at which food-system actors can drive this shift, what farmers in resource-poor, climate-affected areas are actually asking for, and whether current innovations match their needs.

We kicked off the first national dialogue session on the future of research and innovation in humanitarian action in Al-Azraq. The session was organized by the Response Innovation Lab in partnership with Al-Azraq Alive, and we were honored to have the Mayor of Al-Azraq join us, this gathering came as part of the Jordan Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) activities.

#PostRILx25 brings highlights and resources from the discussions, speakers, and partners. Today’s piece is brought to you by Disya Marianty, Pujiono Centre - Co-Coordinator of the Indonesia Localisation Lab, under the Indonesia Development-Humanitarian Alliance (ID-HA) , an interim secretariat of the Indonesian Humanitarian Coordination Platform (IHCP) .

An inspiring story of Navjot and The Washing Machine Project, and his messages to the next-gen innovators and the broader humanitarian innovation ecosystem.

Response Innovation Lab hosted a session on “The Missing Link: Connecting Community-Led Innovation Initiatives with National and Global Social Innovation Ecosystems in Humanitarian Settings“ in Geneva, on March 26.

Recognising the challenge brought by food insecurity, the Syria Response Innovation Lab (RIL), in collaboration with Field Ready Middle East, World Vision Syria Response (WVSR), and the Food Security Cluster (FS Cluster), organized two back-to-back workshops—one in Gaziantep, Türkiye, and another in Northwest Syria at the RIL. These workshops provided a platform for frontline responders to voice challenges, exchange insights, and collaboratively design solutions, fostering local ownership.

As a partnership with Elrha and with the support from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and Norad - Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation, the Humanitarian Innovation Forum brought together a diverse group of actors to discuss the challenges facing humanitarian innovations and and to envision how the ecosystem could better support the communities.

Inspired by the term “Ddokolo,” a slang word symbolizing resilience and cultural identity from Northern Uganda, the enterprise has grown under the stewardship of Ms. Winfred Nanungi. Today, Ddokolo is a guiding light of hope, blending innovation, community development, and social impact into its core operations.