Dr Bianca Fadel is a Research Fellow at the Centre for Global Development at Northumbria University, UK, with extensive experience in humanitarian diplomacy and development work in Latin America and East Africa, including policy-oriented research and stakeholder engagement. She has a PhD on volunteering in protracted crises, focused on Burundi, and has completed various collaborative research projects on volunteering in relation to humanitarian and development systems and livelihood strategies, including among displaced communities, and on how volunteers can work together to improve development outcomes. As a practitioner, her professional experience includes project management, planning and follow-up in the areas of emergency aid, food security and nutrition, poverty eradication and rural inclusion. Bianca has previously worked in the General Coordination of Humanitarian Cooperation and Action against Hunger at the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and her experience also comprises the implementation of local youth engagement volunteering projects with the Brazilian Red Cross. Bianca is one of the co-organisers of the IVCO 2024 Conference and a strong believer in the power of building bridges across sectors, languages, and geographies to facilitate convivial learning.