Institute of Commonwealth Studies

A Human Rights-Based Approach to Decriminalizing Conduct Associated with Poverty and Status The ICwS and partners presented at a recent side event at the 61st session of the Human Rights Council.

On 3 March 2026, the #Commonwealth Secretariat, #ICJ and #ICwS held a side event at the #UN #HumanRights Council to showcase their Practitioners’ Guide on a human rights-based approach to #criminallaw.

commonwealth.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

#Poverty #Homelessness

@sas-news.bsky.social

The ICwS would like to extend our congratulations to former Senior Fellow Sir Ronald Sanders on his appointment as Chancellor of the University of Guyana.

www.uog.edu.gy/university-g...

HYBRID side-event TOMORROW on the margins of the 61st session of the #HumanRightsCouncil: Decriminalizing homelessness and poverty as a #humanrights response, 3 March 2026, from 13:00-14:00, ONLINE and Palais des Nations, Room XI

Join online: ungeneva-vc.webex.com/ungeneva-vc/...

#Commonwealth #UN

Selective Justice is Not a Flaw of International Law. It’s the Feature. International law was built to constrain the weak more than the powerful, and today vulnerable states are using tools like ecocide law to push back against that imbalance.

'Selective Justice is Not a Flaw of International Law. It’s the Feature.'

Read this new piece by Prof Damien Short in International Policy Digest where he argues that #ecocidelaw is not a utopian plea for moral awakening.

intpolicydigest.org/selective-ju...

#InternationalLaw #Justice #Ecocide

Alumni Spotlight - Shahindha Ismail Shahindha Ismail has advocated for hundreds of protesters arbitrarily detained and tortured during the movement for democracy in the Maldives from 2004.

Alumni Spotlight 🎓 🔦 3️⃣ 0️⃣

As part of the 30th Anniversary of #HumanRights Education at the #ICwS, we will be profiling alumni from our MA/PhD programmes to highlight their contributions to securing human rights.

⭐ This month's alum is Shahindha Ismail ⭐

commonwealth.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

Heiresses: Marriage, Inheritance and Caribbean Slavery - Miranda Kaufmann in conversation with Tony Warner

Heiresses: Marriage, Inheritance and Caribbean Slavery - Miranda Kaufmann in conversation with Tony Warner

19 March 2026, 6pm-8:30pm, Woburn Suite, Senate House and ONLINE via Zoom

Register here:
commonwealth.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

#Slavery #Caribbean #Commonwealth

MA Human Rights Designed and run by activist scholars based at the Human Rights Consortium, this practice-based online Master's will develop you as a human rights practitioner.

Applications are now open for the MA Human Rights at the University of London!

Apply by 5 August for a September 2026 start: www.london.ac.uk/study/course...

Join this practice-focused human rights MA to learn from human rights activists from around the world.

#HumanRights #PostgraduateStudy

Please note the list of this year's eligible countries here: www.london.ac.uk/study/fees-f...

Commonwealth Scholarships Commonwealth Distance Learning Scholarships offer full fee waivers for residents of developing Commonwealth nations studying the MA Human Rights programme

Apply NOW for a full scholarship to the MA Human Rights by distance learning! Apply by 31 March for the September 2026 intake. PGCert and PGDip also available.

www.london.ac.uk/study/fees-f...

#Commonwealth #Scholarships #HumanRights #HumanRightsLaw #PostgraduateStudy

Commonwealth Law Ministers urged to disseminate Practitioners’ Guide on a Human Rights-based Approach to Criminal Law 👇 👇 👇

Read more here:

commonwealth.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

#Commonwealth #CriminalLaw #DecriminalisationofPoverty #HumanRights

@sas-news.bsky.social

Heiresses: Marriage, Inheritance and Caribbean Slavery - Miranda Kaufmann in conversation with Tony Warner

19 March 2026, 6pm-8:30pm, Woburn Suite, Senate House and ONLINE via Zoom

Register here:
commonwealth.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

#Slavery #Caribbean #Commonwealth

Scottish Parliament to advance the Ecocide (Scotland) Bill The Scottish Parliament will advance the Ecocide (Scotland) Bill, placing Scotland on track to become the first nation in the UK to criminalise severe environmental destruction.

🌍 Landmark vote on #ecocide in Scotland 🌍

The ICwS welcomes yesterday’s historic vote by the Scottish Parliament to advance the Ecocide (Scotland) Bill, placing Scotland on track to become the first UK nation to criminalise severe environmental destruction.

commonwealth.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

NEW CONFERENCE REPORT ONLINE 👇 👇👇
'Cultures of Democracy: Commonwealth leadership, grassroots activism and people empowerment in times of crisis'

Read more here:

commonwealth.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

#Commonwealth #Democracy #Activism #Conference

🎓 Congratulations to all of our students graduating today at Senate House! 🎓

@sas-news.bsky.social

#Graduation #HumanRights #SASGraduation

Legacies Donations made in Wills have a special role in the progress we make at the University of London. They are always deeply personal, each with its own unique story of a life changed through study.

We are deeply moved by Senior Research Fellow Dr Carl Wright's thoughtful and generous decision to support us with a legacy.

The University learned more about his motivation in supporting the us in the interview below:

stories.london.ac.uk/teog-2024-20...

#Legacy #Commonwealth #UniversityofLondon

📣 We are pleased to announce that we are now accepting applications for the 2026 Global Minority Rights Summer School! 📣 Deadline: 9 March 2026.

Jointly organised with the Tom Lantos Institute, the Ludovika University of Public Service, the Human Rights Consortium and the UNPO.

shorturl.at/Uudqi

Dr Bronwen Manby will be speaking at an online webinar on ‘human rights and nationality in perspective’, hosted by Lisbon University Faculty of Law tomorrow on 28 January 2026.

For more details and to register:

lisbonpubliclaw.pt/en/eventos/o...

#Statelessness #Discrimination #InternationalLaw

Alumni Spotlight - Ellie McDonald Ellie McDonald campaigns for the development, use and governance of digital technologies in a way that defends and extends human rights.

Alumni Spotlight 🔦 🎓 3️⃣ 0️⃣

As part of the 30th Anniversary of Human Rights Education at the #ICwS, we're profiling alumni and their contributions to securing human rights.

⭐ This month's alum is Ellie McDonald ⭐

commonwealth.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

#AlumniSpotlight #HumanRights

EVENT NEXT WEEK from the University of London👇 👇 👇

Join one of the most dynamic young voices in climate justice today, Scarlett Westbrook, in conversation with Stewart Motha, Professor of Law, Birkbeck

28 January, 6:30pm, Senate House

shorturl.at/a2nQA

#ClimateChange #Ecocide #Policy

Championing multilateralism and the role of the Commonwealth and Francophonie Professor Kingsley Abbott, attended the fifth gathering of the Groupe des Ambassadeurs de la Francophonie at the Residence of the General Representative of Wallonia-Brussels.

This morning, Professor Kingsley Abbott attended the fifth gathering of the Groupe des Ambassadeurs de la Francophonie.
leading a discussion on multilateralism, power and international law - commonwealth.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

#Multilateralism #InternationalLaw #Commonwealth #UN

The deadline to apply for the MA Human Rights programme is TOMORROW:

www.london.ac.uk/study/course...

Read this new piece entitled 'From Policy to Practice: Operationalising Environmental Justice' co-authored by #ICwS Associate Research Fellows Maud Sarliève and Dr. Pauline Martini.

opiniojuris.org/2026/01/09/f...

#EnvironmentalJustice #InternationalLaw #ICC #ClimateJustice

Only a few days left to apply for the MA Human Rights at the University of London!

Apply by 13 January for a February 2026 start:

www.london.ac.uk/study/course...

#HumanRights #EnvironmentalJustice #Genocide #WomensRights #IndigenousPeoples #PostgraduateStudy #DistanceLearning

We’re delighted to announce a new module on our MA Human Rights programme starting in spring 2026 entitled Women’s Human Rights. The module will be convened by Dr Noemi Perez Vasquez.

Learn more here: commonwealth.sas.ac.uk/people/dr-no...

#WomensHumanRights #PostgraduateStudy

Read the latest #ICwS newsletter 👇 👇👇

mailchi.mp/sas/icws-new...

This edition includes Institute highlights, event recordings, Fellow updates, programme info, new scholarship student profiles and more!

Subscribe here: shorturl.at/el2FJ

#Commonwealth #RuleofLaw #HumanRights #Ecocide

NEW EVENT RECORDING AVAILABLE 📹 👇 🌟

The recording of 'The Coming Enlightenment: Reparations Now for Tomorrow' event with Sir Hilary Beckles is now available on our website:

commonwealth.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

#SirHilaryBeckles #Africa #Caribbean #ReparatoryJustice #CARICOM #Commonwealth

🎉Congratulations to Professor Damien Short, Professor of Human Rights and Environmental Justice and co director of the Human Rights Consortium at the @icws-sas.bsky.social whose Ecocide Research Network proposal has received funding from the Danish Research Council (Danmarks Frie Forskningsfond).

🌟 New Blog Post 🌟

In honour of #HumanRightsDay, we've published a new blog post entitled 'From human rights defenders in exile to human rights defenders everywhere - Voices in Exile: A Guide for Human Rights Defenders'.

commonwealth.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

#HumanRightsDefenders #HumanRights

Today is UN Human Rights Day! It marks the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on 10 December 1948.

“Our rights, our future, right now”

www.un.org/en/observanc...

#UN #HumanRightsDay

Alumni Spotlight - Deekshya Illangasinghe Deekshya Illangasinghe has over 15 years of experience working for human rights, peace and democracy at the national, regional and international level.

Alumni Spotlight 🔦 🎓 3️⃣ 0️⃣

As part of the 30th Anniversary of Human Rights Education at the #ICwS, we are profiling alumni on our MA and PhD programmes.

⭐ This month's alum is Deekshya Illangasinghe ⭐

commonwealth.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

#AlumniSpotlight #HumanRights #UniversityofLondon