Human Rights Defender Advocacy Programme

The 2025 edition call for application is now open. Apply here!

The Human Rights Defender Advocacy Programme (HRDAP) is an intensive programme created by and for human rights defenders. Each year, we bring together committed activists who are looking to build their international advocacy skills and networks and leverage them to achieve change in their respective communities.

The programme supports defenders who work on many key human rights issues, including advancing women’s rights; defending the rights of LGBTQI+ persons; combatting racism; bringing about change in highly restrictive environments and creating solutions for business and environmental issues and their impact on indigenous communities.

Through ISHR’s flagship learning programme, defenders get a chance to:

• gain new knowledge and tools to ensure their voice is central in international human rights decision-making
• explore and compare the benefits of engagement with the UN Human Rights Council, the Special Procedures, the OHCHR, the UPR and the Treaty Bodies, and examine how they can use them to bolster their work at the national level
• develop strategies and lobbying techniques to increase the potential of their national and regional advocacy work and contribute to human rights change on the ground

Our HRDAP hybrid model combines 2 months of interactive online learning completed by an intensive 10-days training in Geneva. It consists of the following elements:

1. A private distance learning course hosted on the tailor-made HRDAP Platform on the ISHR Academy, which provides access to interactive learning materials and e-learning courses on each key UN human rights mechanism and body, as well as advocacy and lobbying strategies
2. A chance to meet human rights experts and advocates in order to hear first-hand about the strategies used to push issues through the UN
3. The opportunity to build networks around the world, and learn from peers from a range of regions working on different human rights issues, through the online HRDAP Community Space and in-person
4. Advocacy support and coaching in order to develop concrete advocacy objectives to make strategic use of the international human rights system
5. Support and advocacy accompaniment to conduct advocacy (remotely or in-person) during Human Rights Council sessions and other relevant meetings.