CIVICUS is joining fellow civil society organisations to urge G20 leaders to put human rights norms and principles at the centre of their decision-making on financial regulation and climate change during their upcoming Summit in Cannes, France.

Opening Plenary: The Global Context for Civil Society by Ingrid Srinath Where do we, civil society, find ourselves as we near the end of 2011? The heady optimism of the 1990s following the fall of the Berlin wall and its promise of a global wave of democracy and freedom, and the growing power of citizen action symbolized by the protests at the WTO in Seattle were quickly followed by a decade of the “war on terror” used as an excuse by many governments around the world to restrict freedoms of information, expression, and assembly.

Uganda was reviewed recently by the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) as part of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process.

People power for aid effectiveness CIVICUS Secretary General at Commonwealth People's Forum Joint Open Letter on Bahrain Cuba 'Ladies in White' founder Laura Pollan dies Bahrain: Repression against workers and attacks against Trade Union Rights are still going on G20 finance ministers face growing public anger for failing to reform financial system Civil Society at a Crossroads? Read this issue online now.