Grief, Loss, and the Human Cost of Change
In humanitarian work, change is constant. New crises emerge, priorities shift, and structures reorganize. We adapt because we have to.
But adaptation doesn’t mean the changes don’t affect us. Beneath the surface of every major shift lies a human cost, one that’s too often overlooked.
The Invisible Weight of Change
When organizations restructure or pivot, the public narrative focuses on strategy and outcomes. Rarely do we hear about the quieter stories:
The colleague who lost their role and their sense of purpose.
The team that was split up after years of working together.
The leader who feels guilt for decisions they didn’t want to make.
Each of these is a kind of loss. And each carries a ripple effect.
Loss in a Mission-Driven Context
For those in humanitarian work, our professional lives are often deeply tied to our identity and values. Losing a role, a team, or even the way we work can feel like a fracture in the mission itself.
This makes grief in our sector uniquely complex, it’s not just about work, it’s about meaning.
The Cost of Not Naming It
When organizations don’t acknowledge these losses, people are left to process them alone. This isolation can deepen burnout, erode trust, and slow recovery. It can also make it harder for teams to embrace new directions.
Acknowledging grief doesn’t make change harder. It makes healing possible.
Human-Centered Change Practices
Leaders and teams can lessen the human cost of change by:
Naming the loss as part of the process.
Making space for conversation, even when answers are incomplete.
Ritualizing closure, whether through farewells, reflections, or shared acknowledgments.
Reconnecting people to purpose, so the new chapter feels anchored in meaning.
Grief as a Bridge to Renewal
When we acknowledge what’s been lost, we also create space for what’s to come. Grief, when supported, can be a bridge…helping people carry forward what matters while making room for new growth.
Holding space with care and solidarity — here’s to staying whole, together,
~ Kate
Thanks for reading The Olive Pages: Fieldnotes on care, clarity, and staying whole
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KRC provides coaching, psychosocial support, and organizational consulting to humanitarian professionals and mission-driven organizations worldwide. Based in lived experience and trauma-aware care, our work helps clients navigate burnout, moral injury, organizational change, and career transitions — while staying human in the process.