Join us online at the WHRI Intensive Program this summer

Are you passionate about human rights and maternity care? Do you want to learn more about UN and EU human rights' mechanisms? This is an amazing online opportunity for you!

In 2021, Roda - Parents in Action is proud to be partnering with the Women’s Human Rights Institute to offer a unique capacity-building program fully online - with 25 full scholarships for participants. (a value of $1500 USD per participant). This edition of the program will have a special emphasis on rights in maternity care for women in the Central and Eastern European Region. The program will run from 9 May to 20 July 2021.

The Women’s Human Rights Education Institute has been offering its flagship WHRI Intensive Institute in international settings since 2004. The WHRI Intensive is a capacity-building program for women’s human rights defenders that explores international women’s human rights theory and practice, bringing a feminist activist orientation to the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, CEDAW.

About WHRI Intensive Institute

Founded by Costa Rican feminist jurist Alda Facio, the flagship WHRI Intensive Institute has been offered in a wide array of international settings since 2004. The WHRI Intensive is a capacity-building program for women’s human rights defenders that explores international women’s human rights theory and practice, bringing a feminist activist orientation to the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, CEDAW.

The program will focus on:

Understanding CEDAW and international women's human rights as a living, feminist framework
UN women's human rights mechanisms, including CEDAW and the UN Special Procedures
Becoming WHR Defenders, and women's human rights advocacy
Women's human rights and respectful maternity care

About the course

The 2-month / 10 week WHRI Intensive Virtual Program is an opportunity to explore ways to use CEDAW and other international human rights mechanisms to strengthen human rights advocacy work, to promote intersectional feminist women’s human rights analysis and visioning, and to develop action-plans for implementing your learning, enhancing the impact of your feminist social justice work. Program participants benefit from a diverse array of moderators and presenters with expertise in the field, as well as through horizontal learning amongst participants bringing their own experience and knowledge from their own contexts.

Through live webinars, online forums, video and readings, self-care practices, arts-based inquiry, online panels, and independent work, the WHRI Intensive Virtual Program creates a space for women’s human rights advocates to reflect on and analyze their work, to enhance their organizing and advocacy skills as well as to build solidarity with movements and activists around the world.

Course Objectives

To enhance the theoretical and practical understanding of CEDAW & WHR as a feminist framework and living document
To gain a deeper understanding of the form and function of the CEDAW review process
To explore ways to use CEDAW as well as other human rights mechanisms important for feminist advocacy and movement-building
To develop an identity as women’s human rights defender, part of an historical and ongoing international WHR movement
To develop a holistic, radical understanding of human rights and current global challenges
To gain exposure and understanding to alternative paradigms for global transformation

Format

This is a 10 week course with 3 hours of engagement per week. Each weekly module will include:

Readings and video content (presentations, films, short videos etc)
Independent work to be submitted & forum discussion with moderator feedback
Weekly journal, self-reflection and self-care practices
Live sessions – Webinar presentation, discussion, panels etc.

Note: to improve the course experience and support deeper learning, participants will be capped at no more than 25.

To take this course you must:

Be committed to gender equality, non-discrimination and intersectional approaches to social justice
Be comfortable reading, writing, listening and speaking in English
Have a good internet connection and a computer that enables access to the online course forum and to live events scheduled during most weeks of the program (recordings will also be made available)
Be able to commit to 3 hours/week for the 2 months/9 weeks of the program in order to successfully complete the program
Be active in promoting sexual and reproductive health and rights, especially in the field of maternity care
While we welcome applications from all over Europe, we will be specifically focusing on the Central and Eastern Europe region

Registration & Course Fees

The regular tuition fee for this program is 1500 USD. However, thanks to generous donors full scholarships will be provided for 25 selected participants.

Register now - Applications due 19 April 2021, 23:59 CET

IMPORTANT NOTE: Applications must be submitted online, but you cannot save the application form while you are completing it. We recommend you write your answers to longer questions offline, then paste into the form when finished. You can download a Word version of the application form here to assist you with this.

Your application will not be complete until you click SUBMIT at the bottom of the page. You will receive a message within 1 business day that your application has been received. If you are having trouble, contact us for help at edukacija@roda.hr.