Global Campus Open Knowledge Repository
Our Open Knowledge Repository is a digital service that collects, preserves, and distributes all digital materials resulting from the rich and varied production of the Global Campus of Human Rights. It is an ever growing collection which aims to give visibility to our research outputs, educational content, and multimedia materials; sustain open access for knowledge transfer; and foster communication within and beyond academia.
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- The Global Campus Human Rights Journal is a peer-reviewed bi-annual publication that serves as a forum for rigorous scholarly analysis, critical commentaries, and reports on recent developments pertaining to human rights and democratisation globally.
- Publications series about various projects developed by Global Campus of Human Rights.
- A selection of the best master theses of each regional programme (annual award) as well as the full collection of all dissertations.
- This collection includes the Global Campus of Human Rights Annual Report and specific activities reporting.
- The Global Campus of Human Rights Magazine is a quarterly promotional publication on the network activities. It is published both in English and Italian.
Recent Submissions
The State of Democracy in Africa
(2025) ; Murden, Davina
"The State of Democracy in Africa" offers an in-depth, Global Campus alumni-driven analysis of democratic trends across 30+ African countries. Shifting from broad narratives to lived experiences, the volume examines democracy's third-wave promises against realities of backsliding, hybrid regimes and resilience.
The introduction frames Africa's democratic journey—from post-colonial optimism through 1990s multi-party transitions to today's challenges like executive overreach, term-limit evasions, and shrinking civic space. Key discussion points include:
Democratic backsliding patterns: Judicial manipulation (Zimbabwe), media suppression (Mali, Mauritania), and indefinite rule costs (Djibouti, DRC).
Hybrid regimes prevalence: Africa's high share of flawed/anocratic systems amid weak institutions and economic pressures.
Resilience stories: Senegal's 2024 elections, Kenya's digital activism, Gambia's transition, and civic pushback via protests/Afrobarometer demand (66% support democracy).
Reconceptualising Exile through the Lived Experience of Human Rights Defenders
(Global Campus of Human Rights, 2025) Sheykhali, Sara; Fouad, Mostafa
This study examines how exile reshapes the identities, practices, and protection needs of human rights defenders (HRDs). Drawing on 18 life-history interviews with exiled HRDs and three expert consultations, the research explores exile not merely as a condition of dis-placement but as a dynamic space of reconfiguration, where activism, belonging, and safety are continuously negotiated. Using a qualitative, intersectional approach, the study identifies patterns of continuity and rupture in HRDs’ activism across geographies, with at-tention to gender, sexuality, ethnicity, and socio-political context.
Findings reveal that exile transforms both the risks and modalities of human rights work: HRDs often experience renewed agency through transnational advocacy and digital mobi-lisation, yet face profound challenges related to legal precarity, socio-economic marginali-sation, and emotional exhaustion. Institutional protection mechanisms, while vital, remain largely reactive and unevenly accessible, particularly for grassroots and intersectional ac-tivists. The analysis argues for a reconceptualisation of exile from a protection-centric framework to one recognising exiled HRDs as political actors whose exile produces new forms of civic engagement, solidarity, and resistance.
Ultimately, the report calls for policy and institutional responses that move beyond tempo-rary safety to enable sustainable, dignified, and participatory forms of exile, acknowledging the exiled defender not as a passive beneficiary of protection but as an active agent in the global human rights ecosystem.
How US-Israel attack on Iran is impacting Africa
(Global Campus of Human Rights, 2026-03-12) Mayamba, Johnson
The war between the United States, Israel and Iran may appear geographically distant from Africa. Yet its consequences are being felt across the continent. For millions of Africans from the Horn of Africa to Uganda, Sudan, the Gulf of Guinea and South Africa, among others, the conflict is not simply a geopolitical crisis. It is rapidly becoming a human rights crisis driven by inflation, food insecurity, disrupted trade, and heightened regional instability.
Global Campus of Human Rights. Annual Report 2025
(Global Campus of Human Rights, 2026) Global Campus of Human Rights
The Global Campus 2025 Annual Report: "Navigating the Future Through a Human Rights Lens" is an inspiring 64-page journey through transformative education amid a crumbling post-WWII rules-based order—where autocratic wars fueled by oligarchs and AI weaponry, denied planetary crises, shattering inequalities and crushed civic spaces demand urgent response.
This comprehensive edition chronicles the network's unshakable commitment across eight regional master's programmes – from Europe and South East Europe to Africa, Asia-Pacific, the Arab World, Caucasus, Central Asia and Latin America/Caribbean – highlighting over 2,500 training participants from 115 nationalities, innovative curricula tackling business and human rights, AI ethics, climate justice and child rights, and alumni leading change in policy, civil society and academia.
From GC Africa anti-corruption lectures to GC South East Europe 25th anniversary celebrations and GC Arab World resilience amid regional conflict, the report showcases how 100+ partner universities worldwide are equipping human rights defenders for today’s and tomorrow's challenges. Rich in testimonials, data visualisations and multi-regional research synergies, this document reveals education's power to bridge divides, empower exiled activists and build sustainable futures where dignity, democracy and justice face existential threats.
Key highlights include partnerships like the renewed MoU with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, collaboration with Right Livelihood Laureates, and landmark events such as the World Congress on Justice with Children in Madrid, the Global Classroom on Business & Human Rights in Bangkok and the Budapest Youth Forum on Human Rights Education.
Global Campus Alumni Stories – Many Paths, One Commitment to Human Rights
(Global Campus of Human Rights, 2026-03) Global Campus Alumni
This publication brings together personal reflections and professional journeys of graduates from the Global Campus of Human Rights eight regional master’s programmes. Through interviews and short profiles, it highlights how alumni apply their training in diverse fields including international organisations, civil society, academia and public institutions.
The stories illustrate the wide range of trajectories taken by GC graduates as they engage with issues such as democratic governance, refugee protection, civic education, environmental justice and access to justice. They also show how the interdisciplinary and international learning environment of the Global Campus continues to shape alumni’s approaches to human rights work long after graduation.
Rather than offering a comprehensive overview, the publication provides a glimpse into the diversity of experiences within a global network of more than 4,600 alumni. Together, these narratives demonstrate the lasting impact of human rights education and the ongoing contribution of Global Campus graduates to advancing dignity, equality and democratic values worldwide.