In 2014 I was introduced to the idea of teaching Hostile Environment
courses. Steve Cook from TYR Solutions had long been a supporter of
providing training to freelancers in the media. I had not long returned
from Gaza where I witnessed first hand the lack of support for freelancers
in the field. As a military veteran I felt my skills could be put to use
to help our community. I realised what a privilege it had been for me to
have a military background and how much I had taken my training for
granted. There are very few networks for freelancers to reach out to, most
agencies and news desks employ them without the same support they offer
their staff, with little care for their personal safety or medical care.

I was shocked that so many were putting themselves in exceptional risk to
do the work they believe in, with little or no protection. What was more
shocking were the amount of female journalists, photographers and
videographers who were also putting themselves in risky situations. When
the IWMF asked us to train the next round of grantees I was delighted to be
involved. The first course was a daunting experience – 17 women from
across the world who we needed to teach over 3 days with the hope they
leave more confident and better equipped to deal with challenging
environments.

In between the lessons were moments where the women bonded and shared their
experiences. Connections were made that gave a glimpse at the idea of a
peer support network, specifically for women. A truly humbling experience
and a moment to reflect on how important it is to be part of a movement to
support women in journalism to empower them and offer them the chance to
talk out about issues that effect them. To be given a unique space to open
up the subject of sexual assault by colleagues and the issue of self care
in the field was something that we often miss when we train and prepare
them for working in hostile environments. Sometimes the hostile situation
is created by those around us and not an armed conflict.

After the heavy subjects were covered it seemed that the session they
really enjoyed the most was the chance to practice their self defence
training on fellow instructor Steve! Who said girls can’t punch!

-Ali