The Humanitarian Leader is evolving
The Humanitarian Leader is changing shape. We are now accepting new kinds of contributions and submissions, including commentary, analysis pieces, opinion essays, stories and reflections, and book reviews. These formats are designed to bring a wider range of voices, experiences and perspectives into our pages.
Our academic papers remain at the heart of the journal (and will always be free to read and to author) and we encourage everyone interested in humanitarian leadership and systems change to consider submitting their research or ideas in this comprehensively reviewed and professionally edited format. These papers attract tens of thousands of readers every year, from across the globe, and provide insight into the humanitarian system in a way that no other journal can.
Across all formats, our editorial approach is guided by the following commitments:
Centring local and global perspectives. Hearing from the same people in power all the time doesn’t progress much at all. We need voices from everywhere in the Humanitarian Leader, so that together we can challenge the narratives and assumptions that have long shaped humanitarian discourse.
Interrogating the system. We welcome contributions that question received wisdom about crisis, fragility and the humanitarian system itself, especially the structures and incentives that sustain them.
Acknowledging history. We recognise that historical and contemporary systems of political and economic power continue to shape vulnerability, and we encourage contributors to engage critically with these legacies.
Submissions
The Humanitarian Leader, a diamond open access journal, is an independent voice for the humanitarian sector. We tell stories that challenge our collective assumptions and present concepts that help make humanitarian aid more just, equitable and effective.
View the Submission Guidelines.
Humanitarian Leader authors include researchers, activists, volunteers and operational practitioners. It provides a platform for non-peer-reviewed academic articles, commentary, analysis, opinion, reflections and book reviews and allows authors to test ideas and insights in an accessible academic setting. All papers are published by Open Journals at Deakin.
Papers and articles should broadly engage with issues of humanitarian leadership, and/or transforming systems of support for humanitarian crises.
Launched in August 2019, the journal will traditionally publish 10 papers online each year, with an annual print and online edition released in December. In 2025, the Humanitarian Leader recorded more than 59,000 downloads and abstract reviews.
The Humanitarian Leader is a Diamond Open Access journal – we do not charge fees to authors or readers.
Please note, the Leader Humanitaire (francophone journal) is on hold for 2026. You can still view the French-language editions on our website.
Editor and Editorial Board
The journal is edited by Associate Professor Max Kelly, with the support of an Editorial Board consisting of Deakin University academics and CHL staff.
The Humanitarian Leader Annual Editions
- Download the Humanitarian Leader 2025 Edition (PDF)
- Download the Humanitarian Leader 2024 Edition (PDF)
- Download the Humanitarian Leader 2023 Edition (PDF).
- Download the Humanitarian Leader 2022 Edition (PDF)
- Download the Humanitarian Leader 2021 Edition (PDF).
- Download the Humanitarian Leader 2020 Edition (PDF).
