Freedom in Disasters has launched a 15-week initiative in Nepal to support local counter-human trafficking efforts, monitor emerging exploitation risks and help strengthen safeguards across relief and reconstruction activities following the catastrophic 2026 Nepal Debris Avalanche and Flash Flood.
The initiative will run from 1 September to 15 December 2026, with a particular focus on strengthening local capacity before the Nepalese winter makes access and field operations more difficult.
On 26 August, a catastrophic debris flow and flood struck northern Nepal following rapid slope failure involving a glacier in Langtang National Park near the border with China. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the resulting debris flow and flooding travelled nearly 100 kilometres, affecting populated areas along the Lende Khola and Trishuli Khola river systems and damaging or destroying buildings and critical infrastructure.
The Red Cross estimates over 90,000 people have been affected. Nepal's hydropower sector, critical for addressing domestic power needs and boosting exports to India, has grown rapidly, relying heavily on tunnel infrastructure vulnerable to such disasters.
For Freedom in Disasters, the immediate concern extends beyond the emergency itself.
Disasters can create conditions that traffickers and exploiters may seek to take advantage of.
Displacement, loss of livelihoods, family separation, financial hardship, disrupted services and weakened protection systems can leave people more vulnerable to exploitation. As relief operations transition into reconstruction, new risks can also emerge around labour recruitment, migration, accommodation, transport and access to employment.
Freedom in Disasters is therefore working with trusted Nepalese counter-human trafficking organisations, reconstruction organisations and logistical partners to identify where support is most urgently needed.
A locally guided 15-week response
The exact scope of the initiative is still being assessed because the disaster and its consequences continue to unfold. Rather than imposing a predetermined program, Freedom in Disasters is working with local trusted partners to understand their capability, resource and operational requests, and to determine where international support can add the greatest value.
The initiative will focus on three interconnected areas: protecting vulnerable people, monitoring emerging trafficking risks, and strengthening safeguards within relief and reconstruction.
Funds raised will support critical counter-human trafficking and protection initiatives identified in consultation with local partners. Depending on identified needs, this could include community awareness and prevention activities, organisational capacity, identification and referral mechanisms, monitoring of emerging risks and practical support to organisations working directly with affected communities.
The initiative will also actively monitor the counter-human trafficking environment in Nepal to identify trends, practices or emerging vulnerabilities that could place affected people at increased risk. Where relevant intelligence emerges, Freedom in Disasters will work with appropriate partners so that organisations in a position to respond can act on emerging risks.
Supporting relief and reconstruction
The organisation is also engaging with humanitarian best-practice organisations to explore opportunities to support the deployment of counter-human trafficking expertise and safeguards within relief and reconstruction programs. As reconstruction begins, large-scale movements of people, labour recruitment, transport, accommodation and employment can become significant features of the response.
“These activities are essential to rebuilding communities, but they can also create opportunities for exploitation if appropriate safeguards are not incorporated from the beginning,” said Matt Dorfstaetter of Freedom in Disasters. “Our objective is to work with local organisations and humanitarian partners so that protection from human trafficking is considered alongside the wider recovery effort.”
The 15-week initiative will culminate in on-site presence and implementation audits in early December 2026.
Before then, the organisation will work to empower local stakeholders with the resources, expertise, connections and practical support they identify as necessary.
The timing is deliberate: the initiative aims to strengthen systems and address identified gaps before the Nepalese winter creates additional constraints on access and field operations.
Putting the International Standard into practice
The Nepal initiative will also provide an opportunity to advance implementation of the International Standard for Counter Human Trafficking Programming in Disasters. The International Standard provides a framework for governments, humanitarian organisations and practitioners to recognise and address human trafficking risks within disaster settings.
Freedom in Disasters is now working to engage international humanitarian organisations operating in or supporting Nepal to recognise the Standard and, where applicable, adapt relevant policies, practices and operational approaches.
The organisation is also exploring ways to provide humanitarian organisations with near-real-time human trafficking intelligence, where relevant and appropriate. The objective is to ensure that frontline humanitarian personnel are not only aware that trafficking risks exist, but have practical information that can help them recognise indicators of exploitation within the communities and environments where they work.
This approach is intended to connect international standards with local knowledge and emerging intelligence — helping frontline organisations actively monitor for trafficking risks while delivering relief and reconstruction assistance.
A response built around local capability
Freedom in Disasters emphasises that the initiative will evolve according to conditions on the ground. The organisation is seeking to work alongside Nepalese counter-human trafficking organisations, reconstruction actors, logistical partners and international humanitarian organisations rather than duplicate existing response structures.
The goal is to strengthen what is already working, address identified gaps and help local actors access additional resources and expertise where these are needed.
“We do not yet know the full scope of the protection challenges that will emerge from this disaster,” said Matt Dorfstaetter. “That is precisely why we believe the response needs to be connected to trusted local organisations, continuously informed by what is happening on the ground and capable of adapting as new risks emerge.”
Get involved
Freedom in Disasters is inviting organisations and individuals with relevant expertise, resources, networks or an interest in supporting the initiative to make contact. Organisations working in counter-human trafficking, humanitarian response, reconstruction, logistics, safeguarding, community protection and related fields are particularly encouraged to get in touch.
Individuals and organisations who are able to contribute financially are also encouraged to donate to support critical initiatives protecting vulnerable communities and preventing human trafficking following the disaster.
To discuss collaboration or support the Nepal response, contact Freedom in Disasters at contact@freedomid.org.
More information about the initiative and the 15-week response