Backsliding on civic space in democracies
Opinions & Features
By Mandeep Tiwana
It’s no secret that democracy is facing a global stress test.
Opinions & Features
Can Democracy Stand Up to the Cult of the Strongman Leader?
Opinions & Features
By Mandeep Tiwana and Andrew Firmin
Donald Trump’s presidency, recent protests in Russia and South Africa and the referendum to consolidate presidential power in Turkey have reignited debate about an emerging form of macho conservative politics called ‘Putinism’.
Gender and inclusion in civic space
Opinions & Features
Just after International Women’s Day this year, Amal Clooney, accomplished international human rights lawyer, addressed the UN.
Global assault on our basic freedoms signposts a dangerous return to the past
Opinions & Features
By Danny Sriskandarajah
Ask yourself these four questions.
A Day Without Women Minorities
Opinions & Features
After Trump took office and the world was reeling in shock, it was women* who organized a worldwide women’s march to come together in solidarity.
A Day Without a Woman in the USA
Opinions & Features
The theme of this year’s International Women’s Day seems to match the current sentiment around much of the globe.
A Day Without a Woman in Tunisia
Opinions & Features
Before the Tunisian Revolution, International Women’s Day centered around a major state-sponsored festival in which artists and government officials celebrated the progressive Code of Personal Status (CPS) promulgated in 1957 under President Habib Bourguiba.
A Day Without a Woman in South Africa
Opinions & Features
Wathint’ abafazi,wathint’ imbokodo – When you strike a woman, you strike a rock – was the battle cry of women who marched to the Union Buildings in South Africa in 1956, and it has echoed through the ages and continues to ring true today.
Women’s bodies are the battleground for civil liberties
Opinions & Features
By Teldah Mawarire and Sara Brandt
Around the world, civic spaces are shrinking.
Featured
Solidarity across frontlines: why CIVICUS is supporting the International Women’s Strike
Opinions & Features
At a time when right wing ultra nationalism threatens to usher in a new era of regressive patriarchal politics, the International Women’s Strike reminds us of the power of civil societies to resist.
Don't lecture the Americans about our values. Demonstrate them.
Opinions & Features
By Danny Sriskandarajah and Julia Sanchez
There has never been a better time for Canada to show progressive leadership globally in support of inclusive and open societies that respect human rights.
Against all odds: Civil society under fire
Opinions & Features
By Danny Sriskandarajah
Civil society is under fire—sometimes literally—in many countries and in all regions of the world.
In a time of exclusion, making space for Faith Based Organizations
Opinions & Features
By Amjad Mohamed Saleem
For many people around the world, faith is embedded in cultures, practices and communities.
Sustainable development for all ages
Opinions & Features
By Danny Sriskandarajah
It’s a global phenomenon, already exerting a profound social and economic impact in both rich and poor countries.
Leave no person with disabilities behind
Opinions & Features
By Leave No One Behind Partneship and ADD International
Pushpa Rani had pneumonia when she was eight years old, which left her extremely weak.
OGP must protect space for people power - before it is too late
Opinions & Features
By Cathal Gilbert
In some Open Government Partnership (OGP) member countries, the threats to peaceful dissent and activism are extremely grave.
We need a new social movement against inequality
Opinions & Features
By Danny Sriskandarajah
Oxfam’s latest estimate that just eight super-rich people – down from 62 last year and 388 just six years ago – own more wealth than the poorest half of the world population is a clarion call to change the way we think about and try to tackle inequality.
The business case for civic space
Opinions & Features
By Danny Sriskandarajah
The long-term health of all societies depends on the ability of individuals to come together to share new ideas, promote social cohesion and advance shared interests for mutual benefit.
Reasons to be hopeful: Five moments that inspired us in 2016
Opinions & Features
The year 2016 was a difficult year in so many ways for those who believe in democratic values, fundamental human rights and social justice.
Importance of protest in a Trump United States
Opinions & Features
By Elizabeth Stephens
In a speech shortly after the November election, President Barack Obama urged anti-Trump protesters not to be silent.
Under threat: five countries in which civic space is rapidly closing
Opinions & Features
By Danny Sriskandarajah
The closing of civic space is not just about people’s right to organize or protest in individual countries.
Why Trump, Brexit and populism could be an opportunity
Opinions & Features
By Danny Sriskandarajah
Many of the business and political leaders gathering in Davos this week will be focused on how to protect the global economic order - and their interests - after a year of major political and social upheavals.
The death of Baek Nam-gi: tragic local story connects to troubling global trend
Opinions & Features
By Gayoon Baek
On the 25th of September 2016, a 70-year old farmer died in South Korea of a brain haemorrhage after 317 days unconscious.
Monitoring, first step to halt shrinking civic space
Opinions & Features
By Bihter Moschini
In 2015, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Tunisian civil society.
Natural resource activists are paying a heavy price
Opinions & Features
By Danny Sriskandarajah and Elisa Peter
Today, natural resource campaigners are facing increasingly virulent push-back from political leaders and powerful corporations intent on defending vested interests.
Sioux protests and the protection of human rights in the United States
Opinions & Features
Español
By Tor Hodenfield
Tribal leaders’ protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline in North Dakota have been showing how both environmental and human rights are so difficult to defend in the US.
As much as it is a time of struggle and shrinking space, it is also a time for hope and revolution
Opinions & Features
30 members of the Affinity Group of National Associations (AGNA) gathered in Johannesburg, South Africa for a peer learning exchange.
We need to safeguard civic space
Opinions & Features
By Danny Sriskandarajah
For those of us interested in social justice, democracy and human rights around the world, this Human Rights Day comes at the end of an annus horribilis.
Global gender goals: achieving local impact
Opinions & Features
By Davis Adieno
Demand is growing for gender data and targeted solutions for challenges unique to women, men, girls or boys.
About grantmaking and effective interventions
Opinions & Features
By Ine Van Severen
Imagine the following scenario: as a donor you come across an informal community group with a great idea that would substantially benefit the community.
Five trends in civil society
Opinions & Features
By Danny Sriskandarajah
Around the world, the freedom of citizens to protest, to mobilise and to speak out is being contested and restricted.
Civil society resourcing: “Revolutions do not occur because of good project proposals”
Opinions & Features
By Ine Van Severen
It’s undeniable: the space for civil society organisations (CSOs) and philanthropy is shrinking.
Fiji’s role in leaving no-one behind in sustainable development
Opinions & Features
By Danny Sriskandarajah
It is now confirmed that Fiji will be chairing the next United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP 23) in Bonn, Germany.
Movement builds to stop Congo’s president from postponing election
Opinions & Features
By David Kode
The Democratic Republic of Congo, or DRC, is grappling with a political crisis, following a move by the Constitutional Court affirming the electoral commission’s decision to postpone the date for the next presidential elections by 16 months.
Extractive Resources – An Alternative Source of Funding?
Opinions & Features
By Aimi Zhou
The open session during the second day of the Global Summit on Community Philanthropy centred on a rarely discussed, but frequently controversial topic: communities receiving funding from extractive companies.
“Dead Men Don’t Vote” in Gambia
Opinions & Features
By David Kode
“Dead men don’t vote,” said a Gambian political activist known as Mama Africa.
Why Global Efforts To Tackle Climate Change And Sustainable Development Must ‘Leave No One Behind’
Opinions & Features
By Danny Sriskandarajah
Two weeks after the Paris Climate Change Agreement officially came into force - marking the first time that governments have agreed legally binding limits to global temperature rises - the leaders of 195 countries are meeting in Marrakech for a critical climate change conference.
Political crisis in the DRC: the AU must be proactive and learn from the past
Opinions & Features
By David Kode
On Saturday 5th October, police in Democratic Republic of Congo reportedly used tear gas and armoured vehicles to break up a demonstration organised by members of the opposition, who were gathering in spite of an official ban on protest in place since 22 September.
The Mythology of Freedom and Democracy
Opinions & Features
Many US citizens may instinctively believe they still live in the land of the free, but a new global rights rating system shows the country is far less tolerant than they may think.
The CIVICUS monitor – Informing the fightback against closing civic space
Opinions & Features
After two years of deep thinking and hard work, the global civil society alliance CIVICUS has launched the beta version of the CIVICUS Monitor – the first ever online tool specifically designed to track and rate respect for civic space, in as close to real-time as possible.
Stand up for the girl child! - Nyaradzo Mashayamombe (TaLi)
Opinions & Features
World over, girls are faced with enormous challenges, and each continent has its specific issues which perpetuate these vulnerabilities.
Norway must stand firm on its commitment to sustainable development
Opinions & Features
Prime Minister Solberg is becoming an international development superstar.
Cherish Not Vilify Indian Civil Society
Opinions & Features
Civil society has been described as the oxygen of democracy by no less than UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon.
Australia must forge a new path through a rapidly shifting international development landscape
Opinions & Features
For the last three years, Australia’s foreign aid budget has been in free-fall.
Global migration summits are high-stakes and high-risk
Opinions & Features
Last year, it was estimated that there were 20 million refugees and 244 million migrants around the world.
Protecting and expanding civil society space nationally and internationally
Opinions & Features
In many ways 2015 marked a watershed for civil society.
The protection of refugees needs a strong civil society
Opinions & Features
In 2015, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), counted 65 million people around the world forced to leave their homes.
People should have a say in electing the new UN head
Opinions & Features
We are about to elect a new secretary-general for the United Nations.
Humanitarian Future
Opinions & Features
The first World Humanitarian Summit has come and gone.
