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University Network
for Human Rights

 

The University Network for Human Rights trains the next generation of advocates by engaging undergraduate and graduate students in supervised human rights fact-finding, documentation, and advocacy. We defend human rights in their broadest sense and pursue movement-based advocacy that centers the voices of directly affected communities. Learn more about our mission here.

We believe in the fundamental dignity of all human beings. We believe that human rights are interrelated and interdependent. We defend and promote economic and social rights, including the right to be free from poverty and the right to a sustainable environment, as vigorously as civil and political rights. We believe that the individuals, groups, and communities affected by actual or threatened rights abuse must be at the center of any and all advocacy efforts. The role of those not directly affected is necessarily derivative and subsidiary. We believe that social change happens when people’s movements succeed in shifting power. Legal victories can assist social movements but should neither replace them nor seize their agency. We believe that our role is to build the power of democratic movements led by directly affected people. We believe that we are most effective as human rights advocates when we target and/or leverage our own institutions, government bodies, and other home-based actors to achieve change. We believe that the human rights field is excessively legalized, that expertise from a range of disciplines is necessary to enhance the reach and effectiveness of human rights advocacy, and that young people do not need years of formal legal or academic training to be effective human rights advocates.

We believe in the fundamental dignity of all human beings. We believe that human rights are interrelated and interdependent. We defend and promote economic and social rights, including the right to be free from poverty and the right to a sustainable environment, as vigorously as civil and political rights. We believe that the individuals, groups, and communities affected by actual or threatened rights abuse must be at the center of any and all advocacy efforts. The role of those not directly affected is necessarily derivative and subsidiary. We believe that social change happens when people’s movements succeed in shifting power. Legal victories can assist social movements but should neither replace them nor seize their agency. We believe that our role is to build the power of democratic movements led by directly affected people. We believe that we are most effective as human rights advocates when we target and/or leverage our own institutions, government bodies, and other home-based actors to achieve change. We believe that the human rights field is excessively legalized, that expertise from a range of disciplines is necessary to enhance the reach and effectiveness of human rights advocacy, and that young people do not need years of formal legal or academic training to be effective human rights advocates.

 
 

If you are an undergraduate student:

The University Network will train you in human rights fact-finding, documentation, and advocacy and provide you with opportunities to engage in hard-hitting, high-impact human rights work.

To learn more about our undergraduate programs, see our Undergraduate Training page. You can also see what past students are saying about our training programs here.

If you are a university educator in the US:

The University Network will provide structured opportunities for students at your institution to channel their interest in human rights into practical, experiential learning with renowned experts.

If you are a university educator outside the US:

The University Network will work together with you to develop interdisciplinary experiential learning programs in human rights at your institution, facilitate opportunities for your students to engage in human rights advocacy, and learn from your expertise to jointly promote social justice.

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“I traveled to Cancer Alley, Louisiana along with thirteen other undergraduates. We worked closely with a community suffering the effects of environmental racism. The University Network gave me an unparalleled opportunity to do real human rights work.”

—Noam, University Network participant

 

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