Eleanor Davey writes about histories of aid and activism, and how historical perspectives can inform current understandings. Her book Idealism beyond Borders examined how ideas about responsibility for the suffering of others shaped political and humanitarian engagements in France, including the creation of Médecins Sans Frontières. She has published on power dynamics and debates within and among humanitarian organisations and their interlocutors, including histories of international humanitarian law and other concepts of intervention, humanitarian engagements with anti-colonial armed groups, and aid in situations of displacement and confinement. In addition to her own research, she has supported a wide range of academic and practitioner-oriented research projects, through various roles at the Overseas Development Institute (London), Humanitarian and Conflict Response Institute (University of Manchester), and Humanitarian Advisory Group (Melbourne).