Are you a women’s human rights defender? Do you want to increase your understanding of women’s human rights, and learn how to use the UN Human Rights system to support your activism?

Join other international activists, scholars, community workers, NGO representatives, lawyers and educators in learning about women’s human rights education and activism at the Women’s Human Rights Education Institute (WHRI) at the Centre for Women’s Studies in Education, University of Toronto, in collaboration with the Fundación Justicia y Género in Costa Rica.

We are now accepting applications for our Six-Week Women’s Human Rights Education Institute held in Toronto from May 22 – June 28, 2013. Maximum enrolment is twenty, so apply early! We are also taking applications for the “CEDAW for Change” One-Week Women’s Human Rights Education Institute, which will run this June 3 – 7, 2013.

(Note: the CEDAW for Change is also included in the 6-week WHRI—it can be taken alone or as part of the longer institute).

Experience the Women’s Human Rights Education Institute co-founded and led by WHRI Academic Director Alda Facio, Costa Rican feminist jurist and activist, along with a diverse set of additional faculty. Don’t miss this incredible chance to learn about the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and how to integrate it into your work and activism.

Details below. Visit our website at www.learnwhr.org for more information.

NOTE: A limited number of partial and full scholarships are available for applicants from the Global South in financial need—see the website for full details.
www.learnwhr.org

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2013 Six-Week WOMEN’S HUMAN RIGHTS EDUCATION INSTITUTE (WHRI): BUILDING A PEACEFUL WORLD IN AN ERA OF GLOBALIZATION

May 22 – June 28, 2013

Directed by: Alda Facio, LLP with Angela Lytle, MEd; Angela Miles, PhD; Martha Morgan, JD, Mary Eberts, Debby Danard, PhD; Sujata Thapa, MA; Denisse Temin, MA. Centre for Women’s Studies in Education (CWSE), Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto (OISE/UT)

Offered in Association with Fundación Justicia y Género, Costa Rica

And

ONE WEEK INSTITUTE: CEDAW for Change: Women’s Rights are Human Rights

June 3 – 7, 2013

Directed by Alda Facio, LLP and Martha Morgan, JD, with Angela Lytle, MEd
Centre for Women’s Studies in Education (CWSE), Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto (OISE/UT)
Synopsis follows—for full information and the online application form, see our website at:www.learnwhr.org
For inquiries, contact WHRI Executive Director Angela Lytle at info@learnwhr.org

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Women’s Human Rights: Building a Peaceful World in an Era of Globalization
May 22 – June 28, 2013

This unique educational institute brings feminist perspectives and an activist orientation to the inextricably related issues of peace, human rights and life-sustaining development. Participants will develop a practical understanding of the UN Human Rights system and how to apply a women’s human rights framework to a multiplicity of issues. The six-week WHRI brings together a balance of academic/theoretical inquiry and engaged, activist praxis. Human rights, peace, and emerging alternatives to globalization are examined both as interconnected elements of a socially just and sustainable world and as alternative ways of knowing, acting, being, and interacting. Women’s human rights are both the subject and the guiding framework of the institute. This is reflected in the teaching principles and methodology. The WHRI aims to create a safe, supportive, and celebratory space that allows for collective sharing and knowledge-building alongside skills training. Classes are participatory, incorporate a broad variety of readings, videos, and activities, and in an effort to promote integration and well-being, participants are offered gentle yoga classes twice a week.

All instructors have extensive activist experience at local, national and international levels and are known for their theoretical, academic and policy contributions in these areas. To maximize each individual’s learning opportunity, participants are limited to TWENTY and come from all regions of the world, many with a great deal of experience in the field of women’s human rights.

Limited to TWENTY Canadian and international participants, so please apply early to ensure consideration. Please note that the final application deadline for this 6-week institute for international applicants is March 31, 2013. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis until the institute is full, however applications received after February 15th will not be considered for a scholarship

Scholarships for the 2013 Six-Week WHRI

The WHRI is pleased to offer, with the support of our ongoing funders– the Channel Foundation, CUPE, and the Global Fund for Women, to offer approximately six full and partial tuition scholarships available to applicants from the Global South. Scholarships will be awarded to cover tuition costs only—they will not cover travel, visa, or accommodation costs, which must be raised by the applicant or the applicant’s organization.

Those wishing to apply for a scholarship must submit, with the regular application materials, a cover letter outlining their future plans, need for scholarship (financial and otherwise) as well as any other reasons they should be considered. Applicants must also include two letters of reference, along with the post-institute plan required for the general application. The deadline for scholarship applications is February 15th, 2013.

For local applicants in financial need, or those from countries outside of the Global South, contact us directly to discuss a limited number of discount, payment plan, or work exchange options.

Full information on tuition costs, application deadlines and other details are available on the website: www.learnwhr.org

WOMEN’S RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS!
CEDAW for Change One Week Institute

June 3 – 7, 2013

The CEDAW for Change one-week institute is designed to cultivate a better understanding of the principles of non discrimination and equality as enshrined in CEDAW (Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women) and each State’s obligation to respect, protect and fulfill women’s human rights. Participants will be helped to frame whatever issues they are working on within a human rights framework from a gender perspective.

This session stresses the multiplicity of forms of discrimination women from diverse situations experience. During the week we will learn through activities focused around identity and interconnectedness, the complex nature of discrimination, the impact of culture and religion on women’s rights, and activism against discrimination. We will examine case studies that have come before the CEDAW committee and will explore ways in which CEDAW can be used to support local and national level activism through the submission of Shadow Reports by NGOs and through the CEDAW Optional Protocol.

For full details, including costs and application deadlines, and the online application form, see our website at: www.learnwhr.org

For inquiries, contact WHRI Executive Director Angela Lytle or WHRI Communications Officer Hala Zabaneh at info@learnwhr.org