Toxic Leadership in Humanitarian Spaces
Humanitarian work is built on values of compassion, dignity, and justice. But the reality is, even in mission-driven organizations, leadership can sometimes become toxic…eroding trust, harming staff, and undermining the mission itself.
And when it happens in our sector, the damage cuts especially deep.
What Toxic Leadership Looks Like
Toxic leadership isn’t always loud or obvious. Sometimes it’s a single harmful pattern repeated over time; other times, it’s a culture shaped by fear and control.
It can look like:
Micromanagement that strips autonomy and trust.
Favoritism that undermines fairness and morale.
Retaliation against those who raise concerns.
Gaslighting that causes staff to question their own reality.
Withholding critical information to maintain control.
These behaviors may be excused under the pressure of humanitarian work, but the truth is — urgency doesn’t justify harm.
Why It’s So Damaging in Humanitarian Contexts
In our sector, work is tied to purpose and values. When leaders harm their teams, it’s not just a bad workplace experience - it’s a betrayal of the very principles we stand for. This betrayal can cause:
Moral injury, when actions contradict core ethics.
High turnover, losing skilled staff at critical moments.
Burnout and stress-related illness, reducing team capacity.
Loss of trust, both internally and with communities served.
The Systemic Nature of Toxicity
Toxic leadership rarely happens in isolation. It’s often enabled by:
Weak accountability systems.
A culture that rewards results over relationships.
Silence from peers who fear retaliation.
Lack of training or support for ethical leadership.
Addressing it means tackling the structures and norms that allow harm to continue unchecked.
What Healthy Leadership Looks Like
Countering toxicity requires leaders who:
Listen with humility, even to uncomfortable truths.
Share power, enabling others to make decisions.
Model transparency, especially during crisis.
Prioritize staff well-being as part of operational success.
And it requires organizations willing to hold leaders accountable, even when they deliver results.
Breaking the Cycle
Creating healthy humanitarian spaces isn’t about expecting perfect leaders. It’s about ensuring leaders are supported to grow, held to ethical standards, and replaced when they can’t or won’t lead with integrity.
Because in humanitarian work, how we lead is inseparable from why we lead.
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.