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HRE USA is a project of the Center for Transformative Action.
Category: Take Action
Human Rights Essay Contest: $5000, $2500, $1250 Prizes
The Kemper Human Rights Education Foundation (khref.org) is offering prizes of $5000, $2500, and $1250 to high school students judged to have written the best answers to the question below. There are two contests and two sets of prizes: one for high school students who are citizens or residents of the U.S. and one for high school students who are citizens and residents of other countries.
QUESTION
When if ever do human rights violations by a country against its own citizens justify armed intervention by other countries?
CRITERIA
Essays will be judged according to how clearly and well they answer the question and the extent to which they are supported by research. They are due on or before December 10, 2026 (Human Rights Day) and should: 1. Be written in English. 2. Not including the footnotes and bibliography be 2500 words or less. 3. Be submitted as a Microsoft Word attachment to: kemperhumanrights@gmail.com or by regular mail to: KHREF, 184 Fillow Street, Norwalk, CT 06850, USA. 4. Via footnotes and a bibliography indicate the names, titles, year of publication, and page numbers for all references. 5. Include a cover page with: i. the title, ii. author’s name and grade level, iii. name and address of the author’s high school, iv. the following statement signed by a teacher at the author’s high school: “I [teacher’s name], a teacher of [subject] at [name of the essay author’s school] am aware of [author’s name] participation in the KHREF essay contest and to the best of my knowledge the essay [s/he] submitted represents [her/his] independent work, v. the following statements signed by the author: a. I did not use generative AI tools to brainstorm, outline, draft, rewrite, summarize sources, generate thesis statements, improve paragraphs, create citations, or in any other way to write my essay and I understand it will likely be checked to confirm that is the case. b. Prior to receiving a prize I agree to participate in a Zoom interview with members of KHREF’s board. c. “I give the Kemper Human Rights Education Foundation permission to publish this essay.”
AWARDS
Winners will be announced, and awards presented by the end of January 2027.
HRE USA is a project of the Center for Transformative Action.
Kennedy Human Rights Center Student Ambassador Program Application
The Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center (KHRC) is launching its inaugural Student Ambassador Program—and we’re looking for the next generation of human rights activists.
The Student Ambassador Program is looking for student content creators who are ready to use their social media platform to amplify human rights in the United States and abroad. As a KHRC Student Ambassador, you’ll create original content on your social media platform that brings human rights issues to life for your audience, all while being supported by the KHRC Communications team. The program will run from July 6, 2026 – August 17, 2026 and is fully remote.
Deadline to apply is 5pm ET, Friday, June 19th, 2026.
Learn more and apply to the role →
HRE USA is a project of the Center for Transformative Action.
Open call for submissions: Good practices for accelerating progress towards SDG 4
UNESCO is seeking good practices that are showing results in advancing the Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) — ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all.
This open call aims to identify and showcase transformative actions and success stories that can inspire cross-country learning and cooperation and accelerate progress toward SDG 4.
What does SDG 4 aim at?
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit in 2015, is a comprehensive “plan of action for people, planet and prosperity” aimed at ending poverty, protecting the planet, tackling inequalities and fostering global peace. The ambitious 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 targets adopted as part of this universal agenda are to stimulate action in areas of critical importance.
SDG 4 aims to transform lives through quality education, recognizing the critical role of education as the key catalyst for progress and enabler for achieving all SDGs. By equipping all people with the values, knowledge, skills and competencies needed to contribute to today’s rapidly changing world, education helps eradicate poverty; reduce inequalities; improve health and wellbeing; enhance productivity and decent employment; protect and promote cultural diversity; build peace and security; drive the green and digital transition and sustain the environment for current and future generations.
With a few years remaining 2030, the world is facing significant challenges to achieve SDG 4. Upscaled, collective and transformative actions are needed to accelerate progress by reaching the most vulnerable and marginalized and taking qualitative leaps in education and lifelong learning.
What is a good practice?
Governments and organizations have increasingly recognized the value of collecting and sharing good practices as a means of identifying and scaling effective policies and programmes, encouraging peer learning and driving social and economic progress. A ‘good practice’ is commonly defined as a technique or method that, through experience and research, has proven to reliably lead to a desired result.
In the context of education policy, programming and services, a practical definition of good practice is knowledge about what works in specific situations and contexts, without using excessive resources to achieve the desired results, and which can be used to develop and implement solutions adapted to similar education challenges in other situations and contexts.
>> Learn more
HRE USA is a project of the Center for Transformative Action.
Equitas: Call for Applications: Equitas International Human Rights Training Program (IHRTP) 2026
For the first time in over 40 years, the International Human Rights Training Program (IHRTP) will be held outside Canada, in Bangkok, Thailand, marking a significant milestone in the evolution of Equitas’ flagship international training program.
This edition reflects Equitas’ commitment to expanding access to human rights education and strengthening engagement with partners and movements across the Global South.
Program at a Glance
- Location: Bangkok, Thailand
- Online preparatory phase: 15 September – 23 October, 2026 (self-paced, approximately 12–15 hours over 6 weeks)
- In-person training: November 1 – 13, 2026 (11-day intensive training)
- Languages: English and French
- Participants: Approximately 100 human rights educators and defenders from around the world
- Participation fee: $9,180 CAD (Includes: training fees, accommodation and meals, educational materials, and medical insurance covering emergencies)
- International travel and visa costs are not included.
- Bursaries: Limited full and partial bursaries may be available
Location: Bangkok, Thailand
When: Fall 2026
APPLICATION DEADLINE : Monday, June 8, 2026
Space is limited – early applications are encouraged.
>> Learn more
HRE USA is a project of the Center for Transformative Action.
Youth-Friendly Child Impact Statement Toolkit Now Available
The Toolkit—created by youth in partnership with UNICEF USA and Kids Impact Initiative—gives young people a practical way to analyze policies through a child rights lens and share recommendations with decision-makers. Piloted and tested with UNICEF clubs across the country, it’s designed to be used independently by youth leadership groups on local, state, and federal advocacy efforts. If you work with youth leaders, youth councils, or after school programs, we invite you to share this new resource and encourage youth feedback so it can continue to grow and improve.
Learn more about child impact statements here.
Download the toolkit here.
HRE USA is a project of the Center for Transformative Action.
HRE USA May Newsletter is out!
Visit this page to get up to date on the latest HRE USA news.
See past issues of the newsletter here.
HRE USA is a project of the Center for Transformative Action.
Free Summer Institutes for Teachers
We the People and Project Citizen program partners in states across the country will hold free, multi-day professional learning institutes this summer! Experience immersive professional learning with experienced educators and topical experts. Join the Center’s national network of civic education professionals. Receive materials that are ready to use with your students, along with ongoing mentorship support during the school year. Find out more and fill out an interest form at these links:
Literacy for We the People
(grades 3-8 teachers in Delaware)
Documents of Democracy
(grades 6-12 teachers in Florida, Tennessee, Texas and neighboring states such as Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, and Oklahoma)
Project Citizen: Integrated Civic Competencies
(grades 6-12 teachers in California, Delaware, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, and Tennessee).
HRE USA is a project of the Center for Transformative Action.
Teachers Unions Fight Fascism: A Conversation
Join Rethinking Schools for a conversation on how teacher unions are leading the fight against fascism and ICE in their communities and schools. In this webinar, we will learn, celebrate, and amplify the lessons of the people heroically fighting back against ICE occupation — from Chicago to Los Angeles to Minneapolis. From the classroom to the street, we need to defend our students and together learn the most effective ways to kick ICE out of our schools and communities.
Participants will need access to Zoom. Register for the Zoom link.
Date: Thursday, May 14, 2026
Time: 4 pm PT/6 pm CT/7 pm ET
The event is free. To make events like this available to more educators and activists, we would greatly appreciate your solidarity donation.
HRE USA is a project of the Center for Transformative Action.
Building a Truth Process in Minnesota: Virtual Event
Hosted by the Humphrey School of Public Affairs | Tuesday, April 28, 2026 | 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. CDT | (12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. EDT)| Virtual Register Here
We invite you to Building a Truth Process in Minnesota: The Minnesota Truth Council & Lessons from Global Practice, a free virtual convening on April 28, hosted by the Humphrey School’s Global Policy program and University partners.*
As federal enforcement actions reshape communities across Minnesota, a growing coalition of advocates, legal experts, and community organizations is asking a foundational question: how will the Minnesota Truth Council, established by Executive Order, document what is happening and ensure accountability? And what can we learn from experiences elsewhere around the world.
This event brings together international experts in truth commissions and transitional justice with Minnesota-based advocates and community leaders, including those affiliated with the MN Truth Council.
Together, they will examine how truth commissions are structured, what they can and cannot accomplish, and how testimony from affected communities can be collected and preserved to support long-term accountability.
Welcome: Eric Schwartz, Chair Global Policy, Humphrey School
Introductory Remarks by Samantha Power, former USAID Administrator and author of “A Problem from Hell: America and the Age of Genocide.”
Session One: Truth Commissions — Goals, Structure, and Outcomes
- Alexis-Clair Roehrich, Director of the Minnesota Truth Council, Policy Advisor, Office of Governor Tim Walz and Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan
- Fionnuala Ní Aoláin, Regents Professor and Robina Chair in Law, Public Policy, and Society, University of Minnesota Law School; and
- Michele Garnett McKensie, Executive Director, Advocates for Human Rights
- Moderator: Professor Christina Ewig, Director, Center on Women, Gender, and Public Policy Humphrey School of Public Affairs
Session Two: Collecting and Preserving Testimony for Accountability
- Edwin Torres Desantiago, Manager, Immigrant Defense Network
- Tricia Olsen, Professor and the Stassen Chair of World Peace at the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs and Department of Political Science;
- Deepinder Singh Mayell, Executive Director of ACLU of Minnesota,
- Other community representative to be announced
- Moderator: Dr. Carrie Booth Walling, Director, Human Rights Program, University of Minnesota
This event is free and open to the public. Registration is required.
*Co-sponsored by the University of Minnesota Law School’s James H. Binger Center for New Americans and Human Rights Center; the College of Liberal Arts’s Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, Human Rights Program, and Immigration History Research Center; Humphrey School Global Policy program, and the Center on Women, Gender and Public Policy at the Humphrey School.
For questions or accessibility requests, please contact hhhevent@umn.edu.
HRE USA is a project of the Center for Transformative Action.