The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (initially known as the League of Red Cross Societies) is a humanitarian institution that is part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement along with the ICRC and 187 distinct National Societies. Founded in 1919 and based in Geneva, Switzerland, it coordinates activities between the National Societies in order "to improve the lives of vulnerable people by mobilizing the power of humanity". On an international level, the Federation leads and organizes, in close cooperation with the National Societies, relief assistance missions responding to large-scale emergencies.

In 1919, representatives from the National Red Cross Societies of Britain, France, Italy, Japan, and the US came together in Paris to found the League of Red Cross Societies (LORCS) whose stated goal was "to strengthen and unite, for health activities, already-existing Red Cross Societies and to promote the creation of new Societies". The original idea was Henry Davison's, then president of the American Red Cross and he was assisted by the British general Sir David Henderson who became the Director-General. This move, led by the American Red Cross, expanded the international activities of the Red Cross Movement beyond the strict mission of the ICRC to include relief assistance in response to emergency situations which were not caused by armed conflict (such as man-made or natural disasters). The American Red Cross already had great disaster relief mission experience extending back to its foundation.

Dr. David Nabarro (born in London on August 26, 1949), studied at Oxford and London Universities and qualified as a physician in 1973. Dr. Nabarro worked as the Senior UN System Coordinator for Avian and Human Influenza at United Nations Headquarters in New York. He has been seconded to this position from the World Health Organization.

In September 2005, Dr. Nabarro joined the office of the UN Secretary General as Senior Coordinator for Avian and Pandemic Influenza.

In January 2009 he was given the additional responsibility of coordinating the UN system’s High Level Task Force on the Global Food Security and was appointed, in October, Special Representative of the UN Secretary General for Food Security and Nutrition.

Son of Sir Gerald David Nunes Nabarro, he attended Oundle School leaving in the summer of 1966. In a gap year between school and university, Nabarro was a Community Service Volunteer. He spent a year as the Organiser of Youth Action, York. A BBC television documentary was made about his volunteer work.