Submitting a Travel Notification Form

Travel notification guidelines

ACLED asks all of their staff members to notify the organization when traveling internationally both for personal reasons or on behalf of ACLED. All team members have varying levels of access to ACLED information and systems, and it is important for the organization to be aware of team members’ travel so we can support travelers with digital/information security best practices and instructions where needed. A number of countries also restrict access to some ACLED sources, so it is important to plan ahead in case the traveler is going to one of those countries and cannot complete their normal assignments. Make sure to notify ACLED of your personal and work travel for your own safety and the safety of the organization.

When to Submit a Travel Notification?

International travel: Travel Notifications should be submitted for all international travel (i.e. crossing of international borders).

Domestic travel: No travel notifications need to be submitted for domestic travel unless the traveler believes that extra security measures should be taken for the trip or if they are traveling to a conflict zone.

Travel notifications should ideally be submitted 2-3 weeks before departure or as soon as you have the details of your travel. This gives the Operations team enough time to review the information submitted through RiskPal to determine whether any additional steps need to be taken, such as briefing the traveler on digital security measures. These measures help mitigate risks to themselves, fellow ACLEDers, and/ or ACLED’s information. Once you submit the travel notification, you will receive instructions on digital security while traveling and/or any specific restrictions to keep in mind.

How to Submit a Travel Notification?

The RiskPal platform is officially launched, so please submit your travel notifications on the RiskPal as the Asana form will no longer be used. Below you can find a detailed guide on how to use RiskPal to submit your travel form.

Note: This travel notification does not go to your supervisor, and is not a replacement for requesting time off through Bamboo. Before submitting a travel notification, contractors/staff should inform their supervisor about the upcoming travel. See further here: What should I do if I need time off or can’t make a deadline?

To notify the Operations team of an upcoming trip on RiskPal, here are the steps to follow:

1. Navigate to www.riskpal.co.uk/secure/dashboard

2. Click the 'My Risk Assessments' icon:

3. Click on ''Create New Risk Assessement''

4. Click ''Select'' next to the travel notification form.

5. Fill out the Project Name. Please use the format: Destination Country - Full Name (e.g. Brazil - Michelle Stone)

6. Fill in the From and To fields to specify the dates of travel. If you are unsure of your return date, please either select the closest date to the best of your knowledge or a date at least a year from your start date to indicate that this trip is open ended and you are planning to stay longer in your destination country. All trips lasting longer than 2 months will require another Travel Notification Form to be submitted upon return.

7. Select your department from the drop down menu.

8. Ensure your name is in the Author field.

9. Select the country(ies) you plan to travel to. Please include all layover countries as well. But only include your final destination country in the Project Name.

10. Ensure you are listed in the Project Members field. Please select the Associate Admin Officer, Lorenzo Guerra, as the Approving Manager. If the Associate Admin Officer is Out of Office, then please select the Associate Coordinator of Operations. Please select your direct supervisor in the Other Managers/Contributors field.

11. Fill out all of the Essential Information in the provided fields, including destination city and any other information as required.

12. Click "Create Risk Assessment"

13. Review the Country Profile information, with a particular attention to the ACLED Information tab. Then click "Save & Continue"

14. Please leave the Other Details tab blank. The Operations team will use this tab to provide you with a travel protocol if necessary. Click "Submit"

15. Ensure you, your direct supervisor, and the approving manager (the IT Security & Projects Coordinator) are all selected to receive notifications. Please add any additional comments here you would like to share with the Operations team. Click "Submit"

16. You are all set! Once your Travel Form has been approved, you will receive a notification email. You can view the Travel Protocol by either logging into RiskPal or opening the attached PDF.

17. To find the Travel Protocol, scroll down beyond the essential information fields to the FOR OPS USE ONLY section. If a protocol should be followed, it will appear here.