Show Notes
NASA engineer Bryan Robles, a male survivor of sexual violence, speaks as our first survivor to feature in the "#NoExcuse Podcast" series. Recounting how he connected with WHO's work on supporting victims and survivors of sexual misconduct, Bryan explains his long journey filled with internal struggle, shame and self-blame. He shares why he chose to speak publicly about his experience. He delivers a powerful message of resilience, self-worth, and the importance of collective action in addressing sexual misconduct and supporting survivors – both female and male. Making links between NASA and WHO, Bryan advocates for not just lip service, but for meaningful survivor-centric culture within all our organizations.
More from #NoExcuse
Trust is the foundation of every healthy workplace, every effective health service, and every meaningful relationship between institutions and the people they serve. It allows individuals to seek support, share concerns, work collaboratively, and believe that they will be treated with dignity and respect. Yet trust is not automatic. It is built through consistent actions, meaningful accountability, and a willingness to confront harm when it occurs. In this episode of #NoExcuse, host Guni Dias is joined by Professor Rosalind Searle, an organisational psychologist at the University of Glasgow whose research focuses on trust, ethics, and institutional integrity, and Professor Louise Stone, a clinician, researcher, and advocate whose work examines sexual misconduct and the systems that enable or prevent it. Together, they explore how trust develops within professional and institutional settings, why abuses of power can remain hidden for so long, and what makes sexual misconduct particularly difficult to recognise, disclose, and address. Drawing on research, professional experience, and lived realities, they discuss how organizational cultures, hierarchies, and social norms can influence both the likelihood of harm and the willingness of individuals to come forward. The conversation also examines the vital connection between accountability and healing. While accountability is often viewed as a process of investigation and response, the speakers argue that it is also essential to restoring confidence, supporting those affected by harm, and creating environments where people feel safe, respected, and heard. They reflect on the role that leaders, colleagues, institutions, and communities all play in preventing misconduct and fostering cultures of trust. Ultimately, this episode is a conversation about our shared responsibility to create environments where trust can be given safely, where concerns can be raised without fear, and where justice, dignity, and healing are possible after harm occurs. Please note: this episode contains discussion of sexual assault, sexual misconduct, and abuse of power. Listener discretion is advised. #NoExcuse is produced by the World Health Organization. The views expressed are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the position of WHO.
2021 marked one of the most challenging chapters in WHO's history—one that struck at the heart of its values and its obligation to do no harm. The response demanded more than correction; it required transformation. What followed was a sustained and intentional effort to fundamentally change how the Organization understands, prevents and responds to sexual misconduct. With the conclusion of the three-year strategy, WHO now moves into a consolidation phase, supported by a restructured department and new leadership for this area of work. The question is no longer how to respond to a crisis. It is how to protect, sustain and deepen what was built, and what that requires of everyone, at a moment when the world has grown in complexity and instability. In this episode, two leaders sit down together: Dr. Gaya Gamhewage, who founded WHO's approach to the prevention and response to sexual misconduct and led the teams that built its foundations, now serving as Acting Director of Communications; and Dr. Alia El-Yassir, who now directs the Department for Gender, Rights, Equity and Sexual Misconduct Prevention, and is leading the work into its next phase. They speak honestly about what this period demands from WHO, from Member States, and from everyone who has a stake in this not going quiet.
In this episode, sociologists and practitioners Dr. Nof Nasser-Eddin and Dr. Nour Abu Assab unpack what it really means to take a decolonial approach in the aid sector and why this shift is essential for meaningful prevention of sexual misconduct. They challenge one of the sector's most entrenched assumptions: the belief that complete prevention is possible, calling it "the myth of prevention". Instead, they argue for approaches rooted in structural sensitivity, genuine community engagement, and transformative justice, drawing from lived experiences and frontline realities. Throughout the conversation, they bridge theory and practice, making complex concepts deeply accessible.
In this episode, a powerful conversation with two women in parts of the world vulnerable to a heightened risk of sexual misconduct within the aid system
Emily May is a founder, activist, and author dedicated to ending all forms of harassment. In this episode, she discusses the impacts of harassment on an individual.