It was rewarding to receive the publication of key papers presented during the 2016 International Conference on Human Rights Education that was held on December 12-15, 2016, at the Faculty of Law of the University of Chile (Universidad de Chile).    

The 2016 IHREC was the first of these Conferences to be held in Latin America. It was organized by the Faculty of Law’s Center for Human Rights and its Office of Outreach, in cooperation with Western Sydney University. The Organizing Committee of the VII IHREC included representatives from both the University of Chile and Western Sydney University. From the University of Chile: Lea Newfarmer, Myrna Villegas, Alex Choquemamani, Paulina Pulido, Natalia Reyes, Lorena Pino, Camila Araneda, Claudia Cárdenas, Javier Godoy, Nicolas Bosbach, and Sebastián Candia. From Western Sydney University: Sev Ozdowski.

The Conference, which was bilingual, brought together academics, students, activists, government officials, members of NGOs, and experts to discuss the most pressing issues regarding human rights education (HRE). Over four days, the IHREC participants took part in thematic panels and poster presentations that dealt with eight issues: 1. Human rights education (HRE) in formal education systems. 2. HRE in professional training. 3. HRE for the general public. 4. Judiciary and HRE. 5. Transitional justice and HRE. 6. Multiculturalism and HRE. 7. Gender and HRE. 8. Social rights and HRE. This publication compiles a majority of the presentations given during the thematic panels, in the language in which they were presented and organized into thematic chapters that reflect the eight issues detailed above. Throughout the discussions, conference participants presented case studies and theoretical frameworks that should guide the promotion of best practices in human rights education. They identified major political, economic and cultural obstacles that hinder the full exercise of human rights and the ways that HRE can help confront those obstacles.

For the publication see :  VII IHREC Chile

The 8th International Conference on Human Rights Education, Bridging our Diversities, was held in Montreal, Canada, from November 30th to December 3rd, 2017. Concordia University provided the venue and graciously hosted the event. The 2017 Conference was co-organized by Dr Sev Ozdowski of Western Sydney University and Australian Council for Human Rights Education. This year’s Conference was the 8th in a series of annual conferences previously held in Australia, South Africa, Poland, Taiwan, USA, Netherlands and Chile.

More than 310 registered participants coming from over 50 countries in all regions of the world took part in this event. The main objective of the Conference was to work together to develop a dynamic articulation of the value of human rights education as well as to document a collection of innovative and effective strategies and practices to respond to current global challenges.

The conference spread over the 3.5 days and consisted of three major themes:
. Human rights education as a fundamental response to global challenges, for reconciliation with
indigenous peoples and in achieving gender equality
. HRE good practices for building equitable and inclusive communities
. HRE tools and tactics to ensure impact

All workshops and panel presentations followed a participatory approach which involved active engagement of participants.

More information and a full list of all plenary, workshop and panel sessions, including main speakers and organizations responsible for organizing workshops and panels, is provided in the attached Narrative Report, Conference Program, and Conference Declaration and Closing Remarks.

ICHRE 2017 Narrative Report   IHREC 2017 Declaration     IHREC 2017 Full Program

IHREC 2017 Closing Remarks (by Sev)

Please see the enclosed article suggesting what could be done to improve Australia’s Human Rights protection system.
See: http://theconversation.com/ten-things-australia- can-do- to-b…

I certainly would support the idea that we need to legislate for an Australian Bill of Rights along the lines proposed by Fr Frank Brennan after his extensive consultations across Australia on the issue.

See also:

Video: UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein on Human Rights Day 2017 and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. You. Me. Everyone. In our daily lives, our schools and work, in our political and community life, all of us can uphold that fundamental truth and build a better global community for us all.”

And:
OHCHR Website for Human Rights Day

Happy Human Rights Day – Stand Up for Human Rights