A Heartfelt Farewell and Gratitude from Walter Cotte as IFRC Special Representative of the Secretary General

Dear IFRC Staff, Volunteers, Colleagues and Friends of our Humanitarian Journey,

With a heart full of mixed emotions, I address you today. After an incredible and beautiful journey of service spanning nearly 55 years, with the last 12 spent as a member of the leadership at the IFRC Secretariat, the time has come for me to embark on a new chapter. I am returning to my roots as a volunteer with the Colombian Red Cross, ready to serve the Americas region and our entire Red Cross Red Crescent network with renewed energy, dedication, and love.

I am filled with joy as I step into this new phase of service, feeling as though I have discovered a renewed sense of purpose. In this next chapter, I promise to invest my heart, knowledge, and skills in upholding our principles and advancing our global mission. Guided by the wisdom of my humanitarian mentors, who taught me that "Good does not make noise, nor does noise do good, but the echo of a good action resonates eternally", I am prepared to undergo personal transformation, drawing lessons from my past experiences to shape what lies ahead.

My journey has been multifaceted, encompassing roles as a volunteer, leader, and staff member responsible for various areas such as volunteering, principles (doctrine), Emergency Operations, Health, and Administration and Finance, including the raising of investment and income generation systems, Director General, and CEO of the Colombian Red Cross. In my last 12 years, I've had the very important opportunity to advance my career as a member of the Secretariat, spending three years in Geneva as Under Secretary General (USG) of Programs and Operations, five years as Americas Regional Director, and the last four years as the Special Representative of the Secretary General (SRSG). Within that last period, I also served for almost two years as Head of Delegation and Permanent Observer of the IFRC to the United Nations, and two years supporting as Sponsor of the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP). All this, accompanying my normal tasks as SRSG included aspects related to Change Management, Risk Management, Pandemics and Global Crises Management, Business Improvement and Development, Learning and Knowledge Management, and different special missions supporting complex situations.

Now, as I reach a point of maturity and “freedom” in my institutional and personal life, I recall with happiness that during my humanitarian career, I was able to learn from everyone, especially from people, leaders, and volunteers present in the last miles. I learned how to value the efforts and commitment of people with scarce resources, incredible imagination, and a big passion to help. I learned to see the lights hidden by the shadows, how listening exercises give us the opportunity to understand communities and local systems, their dreams, and concurred service with a sense of duty and usefulness, towards resilience. I learned how to include in my notes and reports the noble, simple, and humble way to do everything that we do, with the highest level of compassion, quality, and efficiency. Through feeling the suffering and smelling the odor of sadness, touching the real risk to reduce it, I understood that our global mission is needed more than ever, and our passion and love for humanitarian service are real solutions that require full activation and resources.

In summarizing my learnings and takeaways, I've come to deeply value:

1. Respect for Humanity, Change Management, and Compassionate Leadership: Embracing the humanity in every volunteer, staff member, and leader, and recognizing their invaluable contributions in times of peace, reconciliation, and resilience, despite limited resources and daunting challenges.
2. Continuous Learning and Knowledge Management: Striving for efficiency, quality, and transparency in our actions, ensuring that we constantly seek improvement and embrace learning as an ongoing journey.
3. Vision with Ambition and Resilience: Embracing crises and obstacles as opportunities for growth and transformation, and never wavering in our commitment to doing good, even in the face of adversity.
4. Risk Management: Going beyond the surface to understand and address the underlying risks and needs of communities, while respecting the dignity and strength of humanity.
5. Gratitude and Collaboration: Recognizing and appreciating the tireless efforts and contributions of colleagues, teams, and volunteers, and understanding that true progress is achieved through inclusive teamwork and a shared commitment to our mission, principles, and values.

I would like to conclude saying that behind every achievement, there's an "Impossible Mission Team" — a team of hard workers and VOLUNTEERS diligently operating, ensuring that what seemed impossible became possible. Many of our endeavors appeared daunting, yet through our collective dedication and unwavering commitment, we turned challenges into opportunities. We, you, all could be a light for others... let’s keep shining.

Thanks to the IFRC Impossible Mission team of my SRSG function, including its core staff, Risk Management, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), the colleagues that worked as COVID-19 team, New York Delegation, Office of the Secretary General, Global Leadership Team, Global Management Team, and, most importantly, my dear volunteers, for being part of this team. Also, thank you dear Secretary General, for your trust and support all these years. Your leadership and commitment have been key to the success and improvement of this organization. We all share the same dream: to have a transformed Federation focused on quality delivery in support of our humanitarian mission.

With my deepest appreciation and warm regards,

Walter Cotte

IFRC Special Representative of the Secretary General