The Value of the Programme

Our course programme, tailored by experienced conflict reporter Vudi Xhymshiti will help you understand, prepare and be aware of how to effectively report from the countries in the crisis of war.

Our course will help you improve your social skills as well as bolster your self-esteem. Throughout our group of five one-to-one sessions, we will make you a better leader by enabling you to relate to different kinds of people. The sessions are designed to help you develop strong and confident communication skills so that you can handle any situation.

In addition, our instructor will be your career counsellor, helping you to brainstorm career possibilities, define career goals and establish action plans to reach conflict reporting goals safely. We will also be a great source of networking opportunities for you.

This programme is a powerful development tool that will help you achieve your personal and professional goals. It will successfully help you improve the following skills and capabilities:

• Improve communication and personal skills.
• Develop leadership and management qualities.
• Reinforce your own study skills and knowledge of your subject(s).
• Increase your confidence and motivation.
• Engage in a volunteering opportunity, valued by employers.

Our instructors will support and encourage you to manage your own learning so you can maximise your potential, develop your skills, improve your performance and become the conflict reporter you want to be.

The first week will be 5+ hours either one-to-one or in a group of up to 5 people via Zoom with our founder and experienced conflict reporter Vudi Xhymshiti. This week will include editorial preparation, hands-on practicalities of conflict reporting, research, insurance, communications planning, proof of life document, travel security and risk assessment, itinerary/schedule and communication with editors.

The second week will be a 3-4 day physical attendance (depending on whether you’re alone or with a group of 5) at the training facilities of our Conflict Reporting Guide partner “Hostile Environment Training” in Andover, England, United Kingdom.

This week of the course will include First Aid Training, which is designed to be at the highest level of Hostile Environment Training available. You will also learn about Vehicle Safety and Security, Threat Risk and Mitigation, Radio and Voice Comms, Kidnap and Hostage, Landmines and IED’s, Conflict Management, Navigation Techniques and hands-on Weapon Familiarisation.

This Conflict Reporting Course has been designed to teach you all of the following:

• FIRST AID TRAINING
• VEHICLE SAFETY AND SECURITY
• THREAT AND RISK MITIGATION
• RADIO AND VOICE COMMS
• KIDNAP AND HOSTAGE
• LANDMINES AND IED’S
• CONFLICT MANAGEMENT
• NAVIGATION TECHNIQUES
• WEAPON FAMILIARISATION

FIRST AID TRAINING

The 4-day First Aid Training course has been designed to be at the highest level of Hostile Environment Training available. Combining the skills taught on our 3 Day HEAT course with the advanced medical training covered on our 2 Day HETC course, we provide the skills needed for preparedness.

VEHICLE SAFETY AND SECURITY

Driving from your home to the office in the UK can sometimes involve a hostile environment, however vehicle checkpoints, whether they be legitimate or otherwise, fortunately, remains a rarity. Even the shortest of trips in a volatile area, however, can be a completely different story. Driving standards too may be a little infuriating on the M1 or M25, with speeding, tailgating and centre lane hogging making your blood boil.

THREAT AND RISK MITIGATION

A trip to your local shops doesn’t take too much (if any) planning at all. All you have to decide is where you are going and which shoes to wear. Stopping on your way to get a quick latte or cappuccino is trouble-free. Who would have ever thought that a walk in the street would involve developing and adhering to a plan?

RADIO AND VOICE COMMS

Talking and communicating on our mobile phones is something we all do very well and take for granted. However, being understood on a two-way radio communication device, even in any normal minimal stress situation, is a different matter.

KIDNAP AND HOSTAGE

Learn the skills you need to save your life. Hostile Environment Training’s Kidnap and Hostage training course has been designed around three key areas:

• Reduce the risk of being taken, hostage.
• Deal with the initial shock of kidnap and the subsequent hostage situation that ensues.
• Exploit opportunity and maximise your survival probability from a kidnap and hostage situation.

Insurance underwriters and brokers, offer to provide a lower premium on Hostage and Kidnap Insurance for individuals who have received HEAT training from Hostile Environment Training.

LANDMINES AND IED’s

Every year approximately 200,000 new landmines are laid. Many minefields are either not marked or have been marked by the local population using a local technique. IED’s are increasingly the primary threat in countries with a risk of terrorism and conflict, many IED’s are not initiated by an individual leading to them being as indiscriminate as landmines.

CONFLICT MANAGEMENT

Conflict Management Training from Hostile Environment Training is designed to provide individuals with the knowledge and awareness to make informed decisions in a hostile region.

NAVIGATION TECHNIQUES

Navigation is key to success in any environment. Moving to and from a place of work to a place of rest requires the ability to navigate. When local knowledge and guides cannot be used, it’s down to the individual or group to be able to effectively move through their surroundings with purpose and direction. The direction is achieved through training.

The ability to use a GPS can have limited success in any environment as calibration errors, antenna malfunction or battery failure can quickly lead to disorientation. Using navigation techniques and methods, such as using a map and compass, are somewhat more reliable so long as the user has the knowledge to use them.

WEAPON FAMILIARISATION

HEAT Weapon Familiarisation Course provides a hands-on opportunity to identify the dangers associated with handguns, assault rifles, grenades and other weapons which you or your staff may encounter in a high-risk location.

Upon completion of my HEFAT (Hostile Environment Awareness First Aid Training) course, I and HET Limited agreed to a noble purpose of combining and sharing our wartime experience knowledge for aspiring conflict reporters. Our aim is: for reporters and journalists to live and safely tell the stories that need to be told.

Hostile Environment Training provides training applicable to many sectors, from media to the pharmaceutical industry. The training is designed to help prepare for and mitigate risks and challenges inherent in operating in unfamiliar and often hostile environments. On completion of the Conflict Reporting Guide Course, which includes the Hostile Environment Awareness course, you will be better prepared and equipped to manage the threats surrounding you before, during and after the conflict reporting projects.

Apart from practical survival skills and knowledge in how to cope with a stressful hostage or a disaster situation, you will also learn the importance of information security. The training combines both theoretical and practical elements and is delivered to you by highly experienced professionals.