The sound of silence? Listening to localisation at the World Humanitarian Summit

Based on research with key stakeholders, this paper draws on theories of organisational and political listening to analyse the critical emergence of ‘localisation’ during the 2016 World Humanitarian Summit. The central focus is the two year pre‐summit consultation process engaging 23,000+ people, mainly from the global south, facilitated specifically to bring different views and experiences to the task of reforming the global humanitarian agenda. Interviews explore ‘voice and listening’ during consultations, asking how these were framed by, and framed, power differentials within the humanitarian system. The WHS consultations were a unique event, evoking optimism among participants that change might be possible. However, the space to speak, and listening that occurred struggled to breach the political sphere. The Grand Bargain, some interviewees claim, amounted to a re‐silencing. The paper finds critical mass in the localisation debate occurred when the largely coherent message from the Global South and allies emerged, making unmet but heard claims on powerful actors.