Call for Papers: World Human Rights Cities Forum - The Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law

Human Rights Cities and Sustainable Development: Historical Developments and Current Challenges in building Inclusive, Sustainable and Climate-Resilient Cities for the Future

The City of Gwangju in South Korea is hosting the 10th World Human Rights Cities Forum in collaboration with the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Raoul Wallenberg Institute and UNESCO. Since it was first held in 2011, World Human Rights Cities Forum (WHRCF) has solidified its place as an international forum to learn, share and maximize the capacity of expertise and experience in the human rights arena, especially among the human rights cities. In WHRCF 2020, the theme of “The Future of Human Rights Cities – Local Memories and Global Sharing” will be discussed in different thematic sessions and events.

Cities are rising. More than half of the world’s population currently lives in urban areas, a figure that is expected to increase to two-thirds by 2050. In order to meet this challenge, cities are claiming new roles in governance – administering local programs with greater independence from the state and, increasingly, asserting their presence in the international sphere.

As their governance role increases, cities are called upon to address all of today’s risks, such as technological breakthroughs, urbanization, gentrification, migration, social inclusion, climate change and globalization, etc. They increasingly claim this role by positioning themselves as Human Rights Cities, Cities of Refuge, Climate-friendly cities, or cities that work towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Call for Papers

WHRCF 2020 is inviting researchers, practitioners, and graduate students to present papers on human rights under the theme “Human Rights Cities and Sustainable Development: Historical Developments and Current Challenges in Building Inclusive, Sustainable and Climate-Resilient Cities for the Future.”

Accepted papers will be presented in two different sessions:
– Senior Session for senior scholars, experienced human rights practitioners, and PhD holders; and
– Junior Session for young researchers, human rights activists, and graduate students.

*Note that you can apply only for one of the sessions.