Opinions & Features

A Grim Year for Democracy and Civic Freedoms – but in Gen Z There Is Hope

Opinions & Features
By Mandeep Tiwana, CIVICUS Secretary General 2025 has been a terrible year for democracy.
Featured

2025: A Year of Resistance and Solidarity

Opinions & Features
A message from CIVICUS Secretary General, Mandeep S.

Shrinking Space for Civil Society at the UN

Opinions & Features
By Sigrid Lipott, UN Advisor (Geneva) and Jesaselina Rana, UN Advisor (New York) This piece explores the increasing restrictions facing civil society within UN spaces, highlighting access barriers, shrinking participation, and the urgent need for stronger protection and inclusion of civil society actors in multilateral processes.

BURKINA FASO: Three Years of Broken Promises

Opinions & Features
By Inés M.
Featured

Killing Climate Lies That Kill

Opinions & Features
By Nipuna Kumbalathara, CIVICUS Communications Lead.

As UN Rights Council Probes Sudan Atrocities, It Should Take a Hard Look At Its Members

Opinions & Features
By Sigrid Lipott, CIVICUS UN Advisor As the Human Rights Council prepares to judge grave violations in Sudan, some of its own members – responsible for abuses themselves – are evading accountability, hurting the UN body’s credibility, writes Sigrid Lipott, UN adviser to CIVICUS.
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From New York to Nairobi: Strengthening Solidarity and Reimagining Democracy

Opinions & Features
A message from CIVICUS Secretary General, Mandeep Tiwana   Dear CIVICUS members, partners and allies I’m writing to you amid the busyness and final preparations for our International Civil Society Week in Bangkok from November 1-5.

One Piece: Activism’s Missing Piece?

Opinions & Features
Sailing for Justice: How did an Anime Pirate Flag Become a Protest Banner in Indonesia? By Vincy Mighulo Masaka and Takaedza Tafirei Ever wondered how fandoms shape different cultures? Think about it: in the music world, fandoms dictate the latest fashion trends, with K-Pop, EDM, and Rock fans wearing their leather jackets and devotion.

Mali’s Blocked Transition: Five Years of Deepening Authoritarianism

Opinions & Features
By Inés M.

UN Might Tolerate Netanyahu, and White House Might Welcome Him, But He’s Still Guilty of Genocide

Opinions & Features
By Mandeep Tiwana, CIVICUS Secretary General  Benjamin Netanyahu took the stage at the UN General Assembly just over a week after an independent UN Commission concluded that Israel has committed genocide — the worst crime under international law.

Multilateralism Minus the People: 80 Years of the UN’s Broken Promise

Opinions & Features
By Jesselina Rana, CIVICUS UN New York Adviser  Last week, the United Nations (UN) marked its 80th anniversary against the backdrop of an unprecedented global crisis.

UN at 80: Civil Society Must Have a Say in the Struggle for Renewal

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.

Outsourcing Cruelty: Trump’s Mass Deportation Machine

Opinions & Features
By Inés M.

Mamdani’s stand on genocide is more important than dynamics of arresting Netanyahu

Opinions & Features
By Mandeep Tiwana, Secretary General of CIVICUS  No leader responsible for mass atrocities enjoys greater impunity on the international stage than Benjamin Netanyahu.
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Without Free Speech, Democracy Dies

Opinions & Features
By Nipuna Kumbalathara, CIVICUS Communications Lead.

Ctrl + Alt + Resist: Reducing the Pixels of Silence

Opinions & Features
By Vincy Mighulo Masaka and Asma Darwish “Don’t shoot to kill, shoot the leg.

Charlie Kirk’s killing: Political violence, guns and the fight for cohesion in US

Opinions & Features
 By Mandeep Tiwana, CIVICUS Secretary General The assassination of well-known conservative commentator, Charlie Kirk on September 10 has exposed significant fault-lines in American public life.
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Latin America Needs More Than Just Going to the Polls

Opinions & Features
Only 5% of people in Latin America live in countries that fully guarantee their basic freedoms.

Togo’s Young Generation Challenges Six Decades of Dynastic Rule

Opinions & Features
By Inés M.

Overtourism: Civil Society Mobilising

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.

When digital democracy disappears, so does the power of the people

Opinions & Features
By Muhammed Bello Buhari, Programme Intern - Learning & Communications at CIVICUS  Democracy today is shaped as much online as it is offline.
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Advancing Civic Action in Challenging Times: A message from CIVICUS Secretary General

Opinions & Features
A message from CIVICUS Secretary General, Mandeep Tiwana   Dear CIVICUS members, partners and allies As we navigate through the second half of 2025, we find ourselves both energized and challenged.

How Trump’s Second Term Is Isolating the US on Human Rights

Opinions & Features
By Mandeep Tiwana, secretary-general of CIVICUS and Mariya Parodi, media adviser to CIVICUS.

The Constitution Isn’t Optional: Why USA Belongs on the CIVICUS Monitor Watchlist

Opinions & Features
By Mandeep Tiwana, Secretary General of CIVICUS Successive United States governments have prided themselves on being governed by the Constitution of 1788.

Why Locally Led Development Works and How Funders Can Get It Right

Opinions & Features
By Naomi Ayot Oyaro, Executive Director of CAPAIDS Uganda and Tais Siqueira, Local Leadership Lab Coordinator at CIVICUS In Uganda, local communities are routinely sidelined in development processes, despite knowing most about their own needs.

Imprisoned activist MPs in Eswatini highlight a growing crisis of civic freedoms across Africa

Opinions & Features
By Kgalalelo Gaebee, CIVICUS' Communications Officer and Paul Mulindwa,  CIVICUS' Advocacy and Campaigns Regional Lead for Africa  Mduduzi Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube’s ongoing imprisonment is more than a national tragedy.

Intersectional Feminist Leadership Needed to Realise Global Goals

Opinions & Features
By Jesselina Rana, UN advisor at CIVICUS In its 80-year history the UN has never once been led by a woman.

Repressive Laws Are Increasingly Being Used to Silence Activists Across Asia

Opinions & Features
  By Josef Benedict, Asia Pacific researcher and Rajavelu Karunanithi, Asia advocacy and campaigns lead for CIVICUS From Hong Kong to India, governments are passing and weaponizing new laws to pursue and jail whoever speaks up for human rights.

Ahead of COP30, environmentalists risk freedom to defend nature

Opinions & Features
Ana María Palacios Briceño and Eduardo Marenco Ana María Palacios Briceño leads civic space research for the Americas at the CIVICUS Monitor.

Redefining funding mindsets through solidarity

Opinions & Features
By Taís Siqueira, Local Leadership Lab Coordinator Recent funding cuts made many admit something they’d deep down always known: the development community is in desperate need of a reset.

The Silencing of Hong Kong

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin,  CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.

Mexico’s Judicial Elections: A Democratic Mirage

Opinions & Features
By Ines Pousadela, CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.

Poland’s Democratic Deadlock

Opinions & Features
Ines Pousadela, CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.

South Korea‘s Democracy Renewed

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.

Civil Society Is Holding the Line. Will Washington Notice?

Opinions & Features
This piece is written by Mandeep Tiwana, Secretary General of CIVICUS.

El Salvador: Bukele’s Authoritarianism Goes Global

Opinions & Features
By Inés M.

Portugal: No Longer an Exception to Europe’s Far-right Rise

Opinions & Features
By Inés M.

Romania’s Electoral Crisis: A Warning Shot for Democracy in the Digital Age

Opinions & Features
By Inés M.
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From Crisis to Collective Action: A Message from CIVICUS Co-Secretary Generals

Opinions & Features
A message from Interim Co-Secretary Generals, Claire Nylander and Mandeep Tiwana    Dear CIVICUS members, partners and allies A lot has transpired in the first few months of 2025.

A New Pope at a Pivotal Moment: Civil Society’s Hopes for Leo XIV

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.

From Grief to Action: Demands for Democratic Renewal in the Balkans

Opinions & Features
By  Inés M.

Rights with No Age Limit: Hopes for a Convention on the Rights of Older People

Opinions & Features
By Samuel King, a researcher with the Horizon Europe-funded research project ENSURED: Shaping Cooperation for a World in Transition and Inés M.

A Feminist Future for the UN: Why the Next Secretary-General Must Champion Civil Society

Opinions & Features
By Jesselina Rana, the UN Advisor at CIVICUS’s New York office and Mandeep S.

Standing Firm: Civil Society at the Forefront of the Climate Resistance

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin, CIVICUS Editor-in-Chief, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.
Featured

Civil Society’s Reform Vision Gains Urgency as the USA Abandons UN Institutions

Opinions & Features
Today’s multiple and connected crises – including conflicts, climate breakdown and democratic regression – are overwhelming the capabilities of the international institutions designed to address problems states can’t or won’t solve.
Featured

Turkey’s Democratic Uprising: A Generation Takes a Stand

Opinions & Features
In the heart of Istanbul, a remarkable transformation is underway.
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Digital Democracy at a Crossroads. Key Takeaways from RigthsCon2025

Opinions & Features
In an increasingly digital world, democratic practices are evolving to encompass new forms of participation.

Civil Society’s Reform Vision Gains Urgency as the USA Abandons UN Institutions

Opinions & Features
By Andrew Firmin,  Today’s multiple and connected crises – including conflicts, climate breakdown and democratic regression – are overwhelming the capabilities of the international institutions designed to address problems states can’t or won’t solve.
Featured

How to Turn the Tide: Resisting the Global Assault on Gender Rights

Opinions & Features
By Ines Pousadela, CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.
Featured

A Test of Humanity: Migrants’ Rights in a World Turning Inward

Opinions & Features
By Ines Pousadela, CIVICUS Senior Research Specialist, co-director and writer for CIVICUS Lens and co-author of the State of Civil Society Report.

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