Accountability to affected populations: adaptation design note
For adopting organizations only. This kit was developed from public guidance and synthetic examples. No affected-community consultation occurred during creation of this repository. Do not claim otherwise in proposals or reports.
Purpose
Before your organization adapts, translates, or operationalizes this kit, involve people who represent communities your programmes affect. Classroom exercises cannot substitute for that engagement (Core Humanitarian Standard, Commitment 4 on communication and Commitment 5 on complaints and feedback).
Recommended steps before adaptation
| Step | Action | Output |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Scope | List which sessions, cases, or tools you will change | Adaptation brief |
| 2. Identify representatives | Include affected-community representatives, local partner staff, and frontline roles; pay compensation where appropriate | Participant list (internal) |
| 3. Review risks | Walk through cases and checklists; ask what harms or exclusions they see | Risk notes |
| 4. Review language and examples | Replace fictional place names or scenarios that do not fit your context | Revised case drafts |
| 5. Review governance prompts | Ask whether pilot charter fields match local approval paths | Charter template edits |
| 6. Close the loop | Tell reviewers what you changed and what you deferred | Summary shared back |
What to ask reviewers
- Which exercises feel realistic or unrealistic for your context?
- Which data types in the checklist are too narrow or too broad?
- What safeguarding or PSEA contacts should appear in your local handbook?
- Where would AI create exclusion for people with disabilities, language minorities, or documentation barriers?
- What feedback channel will exist after training (not only during design)?
What this kit already states
- Session 3 slides: classroom role play is not consultation with affected people.
- Pre/post assessment item 12: role play is not a substitute for real consultation.
- Curriculum overview: Indigenous data sovereignty and partner-led governance are named; classroom is not nation-specific consultation.
What adopters should not do
- Do not cite this design note as evidence that your organization consulted communities unless you actually did.
- Do not use training completion as an AAP metric by itself.
- Do not deploy AI pilots on operational data because staff passed a classroom charter exercise.
Primary sources
- Core Humanitarian Standard on Quality and Accountability (2024)
- IASC Operational Guidance on Data Responsibility (2023) (accountability to affected people and do-no-harm)
- ICRC Policy on Artificial Intelligence (2024) (partnership with affected communities)
This note is operational guidance for adaptation planning, not legal advice.