RightsUp: Recent Episodes
The Oxford Human Rights Hub
The Oxford Human Rights Hub (OxHRH) aims to bring together academics, practitioners, and policy-makers from across the globe to advance the understanding and protection of human rights and equality. Through the vigorous exchange of ideas and resources, we strive to facilitate a better understanding of human rights principles, to develop new approaches to policy, and to influence the development of human rights law and practice.
International human rights law should protect and promote every individual’s human rights. But the reality is that international covenants on human rights appear remote and unattainable for the vast majority of ordinary people. This perception is supported by the structure of international human rights law, which is based on agreements between States and on the expectation that States will be true to their obligations in relation to the human rights of their own citizens. This podcast, however, recounts how international human rights can become a collaborative project, with individuals and civil society working from the grassroots upwards and from the international sphere downwards to develop and enforce human rights obligations on States.The subject matter of this journey is one of central importance: the care and education of the youngest amongst us. Our interviewees today have been a part of a process of advocating for and advancing the protection of early childhood education as a human right through collaborative ‘top-down’ and ‘bottom-up’ approaches. We will be speaking with project partners from a variety of organisations who share their experience of shaping human rights law interpretation and enforcement through practical advocacy, particularly on the right to ECCE.In the second episode of this series we speak to Ann Skelton, a South African jurist and children's rights activist, and former chairperson of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), Rajakumari Michaelsamy, programme manager at Right to Education Initiative (RTE) and Africa Early Childhood Network (AfECN) representatives Alicia Lutomia and Esther Nyamatini. RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.The Executive Producer is Meghan Campbell.This episode was produced, edited and hosted by me, Sophie Smith.Music for this series is by Rosemary Allmann.Subscribe to this podcast wherever you like to listen to your favourite podcasts.
International human rights law should protect and promote every individual’s human rights. But the reality is that international covenants on human rights appear remote and unattainable for the vast majority of ordinary people. This perception is supported by the structure of international human rights law, which is based on agreements between States and on the expectation that States will be true to their obligations in relation to the human rights of their own citizens. This podcast, however, recounts how international human rights can become a collaborative project, with individuals and civil society working from the grassroots upwards and from the international sphere downwards to develop and enforce human rights obligations on States.The subject matter of this journey is one of central importance: the care and education of the youngest amongst us. Our interviewees today have been a part of a process of advocating for and advancing the protection of early childhood education as a human right through collaborative ‘top-down’ and ‘bottom-up’ approaches. We will be speaking with project partners from a variety of organisations who share their experience of shaping human rights law interpretation and enforcement through practical advocacy, particularly on the right to ECCE.In the first episode of this series we speak to Professor Alan Stein, Senior Research Fellow in Global Health and Public Policy, who specialises in early childhood development, Olivier De Schuter, advisor to the UN special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights and Professor Sandy Fredman, Professor of Law at Oxford University and Director of the OHRH. RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.The Executive Producer is Meghan Campbell.This episode was produced, edited and hosted by me, Sophie Smith.Music for this series is by Rosemary Allmann.Subscribe to this podcast wherever you like to listen to your favourite podcasts.
‘Rights in Crisis’, is a new RightsUp series from the Oxford Human Rights Hub in collaboration with the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development.The series will feature topics on human rights and related issues in India with experts sharing their insights.In our third episode for this series we discuss cash transfer schemes, in particular, unconditional cash transfer schemes. While these schemes are often designed to enhance women’s financial inclusion and autonomy, they could also reshape women’s relationship with the state. In this episode, we will explore how these initiatives navigate the fine line between empowerment, dependence and the gendered expectations that shape public policy.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.This episode is in collaboration with the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development.Executive produced by Meghan Campbell.Hosted by Almas Shaikh and Aradhana Cherupara Vadekkethil.Produced and edited by Sophie Smith.Music for the series is by Rosemary Allman.
In the second episode of this two-part series, Justin Winchester speaks to Dame Laura Cox KC — a Justice of the England and Wales High Court between 2002 and 2016, and former Chairperson of the Bar Council Sex Discrimination Committee — about women's equality in the United Kingdom. Join us for a reflective discussion prompted by Baroness Harman’s 2025 Independent report on bullying, harassment, and sexual harassment at the Bar.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.Executive produced by Meghan Campbell.Hosted by Justin Winchester.Produced and edited by Sophie Smith.Music for the series is by Rosemary Allman.
In the first episode of this two-part series, Justin Winchester speaks to Dame Laura Cox KC — a Justice of the England and Wales High Court between 2002 and 2016, and former Chairperson of the Bar Council Sex Discrimination Committee — about women's equality in the United Kingdom. Join us for a reflective discussion prompted by Baroness Harman’s 2025 Independent report on bullying, harassment, and sexual harassment at the Bar.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.Executive produced by Meghan Campbell.Hosted by Justin Winchester.Produced and edited by Sophie Smith.Music for the series is by Rosemary Allman.
‘Rights in Crisis’, is a new RightsUp series from the Oxford Human Rights Hub in collaboration with the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development. The series will feature topics on human rights and related issues in India with experts sharing their insights.In our second episode for this series, Prof. Anup Surendranath and Prof. Jon Yorke, moderated by Dr Aradhana Cherupara Vadekkethil, critically assess the legal, moral and procedural dimensions of capital punishment and its broader human rights implications. At a time when judicial scrutiny of capital punishment in India is intensifying, and global conversations on justice and state power are shifting, this discussion offers timely insights into the ethical and constitutional questions surrounding the death penalty.Want to know more?See https://thesquarecircleclinic.org/.
In this episode, Frances Hand talks to Dr Clara Chapdelaine Feliciati, Lawyer and Associate Professor of Law at Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University about her recently published monograph, The Status of the Girl Child under International Law: A Semioethic Analysis. https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/status-of-the-girl-child-under-international-law/568D0F764A3E85960F03056352CADD74RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.This episode is hosted by Frances Hand.Executive produced by Meghan Campbell.Produced and edited by Sophie Smith.Music for this series is by Rosemary Allmann.
In this episode, Almas Shaikh talks with Dr Anthony Ubani and Dr Wycliffe Nyachoti Otiso discussing the book 'Sexual Harassment and the Law in Africa'. Dr Ubani is the pioneer executive director of #FixPolitics, fellow of the Chartered Institute of Administrators, author, speaker and alumnus of Manchester Business School and the University of Lagos, Nigeria. Dr Otiso is the Dean, School of Law at the Chuka University in Kenya and a contributor to the book. This book, edited by Furaha-joy Sekai Saungweme, Carol Chi Ngang and Graham Towl, presents new research into sexual harassment and violence across Africa and foregrounds the work of African scholars. RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.This episode is hosted by Almas Shaikh.Executive produced by Meghan Campbell.Produced and edited by Sophie Smith.Music for this series is by Rosemary Allmann.
'Rights in Crisis', is a new RightsUp series from the Oxford Human Rights Hub in collaboration with the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development. The series will feature topics on human rights and related issues in India with experts sharing their insights. In this episode Dr. Janaki Srinivasan and Prof. Sandra Feldman, moderated by Dr Aradhana Cherupara Vadekkethil, discuss the nature of the Indian gig economy and how it affects workers’ rights. This conversation explores the precarious conditions of gig workers in India, the legal frameworks shaping their rights, and the broader implications of platform economies on labour protections. With rising digital employment, questions of fair wages, job security, and social protections are more pressing than ever.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.This episode is hosted by Neeraj Shetye.Executive produced by Meghan Campbell.Produced and edited by Sophie Smith.Music for this series is by Rosemary Allmann.
Vox pops on key human rights issues with human rights experts. (https://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/)RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.Executive produced and hosted by Meghan Campbell.Produced and edited by Sophie Smith.Music for this series is by Rosemary Allmann.
In this two-part podcast series, we are exploring why efforts to mitigate climate change need to be aware of women’s equality and why efforts to achieve women’s equality must respond to the climate crisis.This series is a joint project from the Oxford Human Rights Hub, led by Professor Sandra Fredman, and the National Research Foundation-funded South African Research Chair in Equality, Law, and Social Justice at the University of the Witwatersrand, held by Professor Cathi Albertyn.The conversations in this podcast series stem from a new edited collection, ‘Feminist Frontiers in Climate Justice: Rights, climate change and gender equality’, published by Edward Elgar in February 2023 and edited by Cathi Albertyn, Meghan Campbell, Helena Alviar García, Sandra Fredman, and Marta Rodriguez de Assis Machado.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.Executive Produced by Meghan Campbell.Produced, edited and narrated by Sophie Smith.Music for this series is by Rosemary Allmann.
In this two-part podcast series, we are exploring why efforts to mitigate climate change need to be aware of women’s equality and why efforts to achieve women’s equality must respond to the climate crisis. This series is a joint project from the Oxford Human Rights Hub, led by Professor Sandra Fredman, and the National Research Foundation-funded South African Research Chair in Equality, Law, and Social Justice at the University of the Witwatersrand, held by Professor Cathi Albertyn. The conversations in this podcast series stem from a new edited collection, ‘Feminist Frontiers in Climate Justice: Rights, climate change and gender equality’, published by Edward Elgar in February 2023 and edited by Cathi Albertyn, Meghan Campbell, Helena Alviar García, Sandra Fredman, and Marta Rodriguez de Assis Machado.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.Executive Produced by Meghan Campbell.Produced, edited and narrated by Sophie Smith.Music for this series is by Rosemary Allmann.
In this episode, Meghan Campbell talks with Dorothy Estrada-Tanck, Chairperson of the UN Working Group on discrimination against women and girls, about the concept of gender apartheid in light of the horrific denial of the equality and human rights of women and girls in Afghanistan. Dorothy and other members of the Working Group have been advocating for understanding this violation as gender apartheid. In our conversation, we explore what this concept means, what salience it has in thinking more broadly about the current backlash against women's rights and how gender apartheid can be utilized to fight for women's equality.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.This episode was produced in partnership with the EUniWell Fund and the University of Birmingham.Executive produced and hosted by Meghan Campbell.Produced and edited by Sophie Smith.Music for the series is by Rosemary Allman.
Virtually all constitutions guarantee women's right to equality, yet, there is a rise in backlash against legal, political, economic, social and cultural efforts to achieve women's equality.This podcast series speaks with leading legal scholars from the US, Canada, South Africa and India to explore how constitutions can frustrate efforts to achieve women's equality, and to imagine a new constitutionalism that places women as equal actors and participants in the constitutional project.On today's episode Meghan Campbell is joined by Judge Dhaya Pillay of the High Court in Pietermaritzburg and Durban, to discuss women in the South African Constitution.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.This series, Women in Constitutions, was produced in partnership with the British Academy and the University of Birmingham.Executive produced and hosted by Megan Campbell.Produced and edited by Sophie Smith.Music for the series is by Rosemary Allman.
Virtually all constitutions guarantee women's right to equality, yet, there is a rise in backlash against legal, political, economic, social and cultural efforts to achieve women's equality.This podcast series speaks with leading legal scholars from the US, Canada, South Africa and India to explore how constitutions can frustrate efforts to achieve women's equality, and to imagine a new constitutionalism that places women as equal actors and participants in the constitutional project.On today's episode Meghan Campbell is joined by Professor Jennifer Koshan, from the University of Calgary, to discuss women in the Canadian Constitution.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.This series, Women in Constitutions, was produced in partnership with the British Academy and the University of Birmingham.Executive produced and hosted by Megan Campbell.Produced and edited by Sophie Smith.Music for the series is by Rosemary Allman.
Virtually all constitutions guarantee women's right to equality, yet, there is a rise in backlash against legal, political, economic, social and cultural efforts to achieve women's equality.This podcast series speaks with leading legal scholars from the US, Canada, South Africa and India to explore how constitutions can frustrate efforts to achieve women's equality, and to imagine a new constitutionalism that places women as equal actors and participants in the constitutional project.On today's episode Meghan Campbell is joined by Dr. Aparna Chandra, an Associate Professor of Law at the National Law School of India University, to discuss women in the Indian Constitution.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.This series, Women in Constitutions, was produced in partnership with the British Academy and the University of Birmingham.Executive produced and hosted by Megan Campbell.Produced and edited by Sophie Smith.Music for the series is by Rosemary Allman
Virtually all constitutions guarantee women's right to equality, yet, there is a rise in backlash against legal, political, economic, social and cultural efforts to achieve women's equality. This podcast series speaks with leading legal scholars from the US, Canada, South Africa and India to explore how constitutions can frustrate efforts to achieve women's equality, and to imagine a new constitutionalism that places women as equal actors and participants in the constitutional project.On today's episode Meghan Campbell is joined by Professor Julie Suk from Fordham University to discuss women in the US Constitution. RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub. This series, Women in Constitutions, was produced in partnership with the British Academy and the University of Birmingham. Executive produced and hosted by Megan Campbell. Produced and edited by Sophie Smith. Music for the series is by Rosemary Allman.
This is the final episode in a four part series on the project "Rebuilding Ukraine For All: Inclusive Recovery for a Resilient Ukraine," led by Professor Freya Baetens, Dr. Ievgeniia Kopytsia, and Dr. Daryna Dvornichenko.Today’s podcast explores the energy dimension of Ukraine’s recovery lead by Dr. Ievgeniia Kopytsia.Joining the discussion is Anastasiia Zagoruichyk is a Research Associate at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Dr Vlad Mykhnenko, an associate professor of sustainable urban development at University of Oxford. This series is supported by the Oxford Policy Engagement Network Seed Fund.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.Executive Produced by Meghan Campbell.Produced, edited and narrated by Sophie Smith.Hosted by Ievgeniia Kopytsia.Music for this series is by Rosemary Allmann.
This is the third episode in a four part series on the project "Rebuilding Ukraine For All: Inclusive Recovery for a Resilient Ukraine," led by Professor Freya Baetens, Dr. Ievgeniia Kopytsia, and Dr. Daryna Dvornichenko. Today’s podcast explores the scope of an inclusive economic recovery for Ukraine led by Dr. Daryna Dvornichenko.Joining the discussion is Yurii Gaidai, a Senior Economist at the Kyiv-based independent think tank the Centre for Economic Strategy.This series is supported by the Oxford Policy Engagement Network Seed Fund.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.Executive Produced by Meghan Campbell.Produced, edited and narrated by Sophie Smith.Hosted by Daryna Dvornichenko.Music for this series is by Rosemary Allmann.
This is the second episode in a four part series on the project "Rebuilding Ukraine For All: Inclusive Recovery for a Resilient Ukraine," led by Professor Freya Baetens, Dr. Ievgeniia Kopytsia, and Dr. Daryna Dvornichenko.Today’s podcast explores Ukraine’s recovery from a gender perspective led by Dr. Daryna Dvornichenko. Joining the discussion is Ukrainian lawyer and an Associate Professor at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy Kateryna Busol and, Gender Democracy Program Coordinator at the Heinrich Böll Foundation, office Kyiv Ukraine, Galyna Kotliuk.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.Executive Produced by Meghan Campbell.Produced, edited and narrated by Sophie Smith.Hosted by Daryna Dvornichenko.Music for this series is by Rosemary Allmann.
This is the first episode in a four part series on the project "Building Ukraine For All: Inclusive Recovery for a Resilient Ukraine," led by Professor Freya Baetens, Dr. Ievgeniia Kopytsia, and Dr. Daryna Dvornichenko. Today’s podcast explores the environmental dimensions of Ukraine’s recovery led by Dr. Ievgeniia Kopytsia.Joining the discussion is Anna Ackermann, a policy analyst at the International Institute for Sustainable Development, working on Ukraine's green reconstruction and Doug Weir, a Research and Policy Director of Conflict and Environment Observatory.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub. Executive Produced by Meghan Campbell. Produced, edited and narrated by Sophie Smith Hosted by Ievgeniia Kopytsia. Music for this series is by Rosemary Allmann.
In today's episode we speak to Judy fudge, professor in Labor Studies at McMaster University. She is published widely in employment and labor law, feminist approaches to the law and the political economy of law. Today, we will be discussing the Dindigul agreement, and efforts to address gender based violence and harassment in supply chains in India.This episode is produced in partnership with the University of Birmingham, and McMaster University.
In today's episode, we'll be talking to Olivier De Schutter, a Belgian legal scholar specialising in economic and social rights. Mr De Schutter was appointed as the UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights by the Human Rights Council at its 43rd session in March 2020. The discussion today focuses on his recent submission to the UN Human Rights Council on eradicating poverty beyond growth.RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub, https: //ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/ Executive produced by Meghan Campbell Produced and edited by Sophie SmithHosted by Francis Hand Music for this series is by Rosemary Allman
In this special episode guest interviewer, Judy Fudge, a professor in labour studies at McMaster University, interviews Gayatri Krishna, a doctoral student in the School of Labour Studies at McMaster University. Their discussion focuses on Gayatri Krishna's research on the impact of the World Bank on urban development projects and how informal workers develop livelihood strategies in resettlement townships in India.
In this episode, we are exploring some of the key themes in Professor Sandra Fredman’s monograph, Discrimination Law – the new, third edition of which was published by Oxford University Press in December 2022. Sandra Fredman FBA KC is Professor of the Laws of the British Commonwealth and the USA at Oxford University, a fellow of Pembroke College Oxford, and Director of the Oxford Human Rights Hub. She is joined in conversation by Rosalie Abella, formerly a Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada; Jayna Kothari, a Senior Advocate in the Supreme Court of India; and Helen Mountfield KC, a barrister practising at Matrix Chambers in the UK and Principal of Mansfield College Oxford.
In this episode, we are exploring some of the key themes in Professor Sandra Fredman’s monograph, Discrimination Law – the new, third edition of which was published by Oxford University Press in December 2022. Sandra Fredman FBA KC is Professor of the Laws of the British Commonwealth and the USA at Oxford University, a fellow of Pembroke College Oxford, and Director of the Oxford Human Rights Hub. She is joined in conversation by Rosalie Abella, formerly a Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada; Jayna Kothari, a Senior Advocate in the Supreme Court of India; and Helen Mountfield KC, a barrister practising at Matrix Chambers in the UK and Principal of Mansfield College Oxford.
In this episode, we are exploring some of the key themes in Professor Sandra Fredman’s monograph, Discrimination Law – the new, third edition of which was published by Oxford University Press in December 2022. Sandra Fredman FBA KC is Professor of the Laws of the British Commonwealth and the USA at Oxford University, a fellow of Pembroke College Oxford, and Director of the Oxford Human Rights Hub. She is joined in conversation by Rosalie Abella, formerly a Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada; Jayna Kothari, a Senior Advocate in the Supreme Court of India; and Helen Mountfield KC, a barrister practising at Matrix Chambers in the UK and Principal of Mansfield College Oxford.
In October 2023, a historic decision was made by the Indian Supreme Court that held that there was no fundamental right to marry, denying the legal recognition for same-sex marriage in India under the Special Marriage Act. Frances Hand sat down with Devina Malaviya, to discuss the intricacies of this case Supriyo v. Union of India. Devina Malaviya is an Assistant Professor of Legal Practice and Assistant Dean in Clinical Legal Education at O.P.Jindal Global University. Devina's interests lie in the area of family law, constitutional law and criminal law. After graduating from National Law University in Delhi in2016, she worked as a law clerk, cum research assistant with Justice Kurian Joseph at the Supreme Court of India.
Vox pops on key human rights issues with human rights experts. Transcript available on the Oxford Human Rights Hub website (ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/).
Vox pops on key human rights issues with human rights experts. Transcript available on the Oxford Human Rights Hub website (https://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/).
In this week's episode, we talk to Ruth Rubio, Professor in the School of Transnational Governance at the European University Institute, about her book, Global Gender Constitutionalism and Women’s Citizenship: A Struggle for Transformative Inclusion, published by Cambridge University Press (ISBN: 9781316630303).Transcript available on the Oxford Human Rights Hub website: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk
In this episode, we spoke to Dr. Saeed Bagheri, lecturer of International Law at the University of Reading about the women-led protests in Iran, sparked in response to the arrest of Mahsa Amini by the morality police and her subsequent death.Transcript available on the Oxford Human Rights Hub website: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk
In this episode, we speak to Justice Steven Majiedt of the Constitutional Court of South Africa on the unique history of South African constitutionalism, whether the constitution can bring about transformation and the future of socio-economic rights protection in light of COVID and the cost-of-living crisis.
In this episode we spoke to Allison Corkery and María Emilia Mamberti at the Centre for Economic and Social Rights about what human rights bring to the current cost of living crisis.
Vox pops on key human rights issues with human rights experts. Transcript available on the Oxford Human Rights Hub website (https://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/).
In this episode we speak to Professor Julie Suk about applying an equality lens to the right to abortion in light of the recent US Supreme Court ruling in Dobbs v Jackson. What do equality arguments bring? Is the US Constitution's understanding of equality helpful in grounding a right to an abortion? And if not, are there alternate constitutional pathways available to the Court?
Transcript available on the Oxford Human Rights Hub website: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk
In advance of a nationwide referendum on the new draft Chilean Constitution, scheduled for the 4th of September, Gautam Bhatia interviews Professor Roberto Gargarella about the writing of this Constitution, its place in the history of Latin American constitutionalism, and the reasons why the draft Constitution deserves to be supported.
Transcript available on the Oxford Human Rights Hub website: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk
Vox pops on key human rights issues with human rights experts. Transcript available on the Oxford Human Rights Hub website (https://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/).
We ask human rights experts who has ultimate responsibility for protecting the most vulnerable in times of crisis.
This is the final episode of a four-part series. The series takes a deep dive into whether equality law is cut out to protect the most vulnerable in times of crisis, and if not, then why not and what can we do about it?
This podcast series is part of the Exponential Inequalities project, led by Shreya Atrey as the Principal Investigator of the British Academy Leverhulme Small Research Grant on Equality Law in Times of Crisis.
Transcript and show notes available on the Oxford Human Rights Hub website at ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk.
Producer, Presenter, Sound Editor: Christy Callaway-Gale Executive Producers: Shreya Atrey, Meghan Campbell, Sandra Fredman Assistant Producers: Mónica Arango Olaya, Gauri Pillai, Natasha Holcroft-Emmess Transcript and show notes: Sarah Dobbie Music: Rosemary Allmann
Human rights experts reveal how we could reform equality law to make sure it protects the most vulnerable in times of crisis.
This is Episode Three of a four-part series. The series takes a deep dive into whether equality law is cut out to protect the most vulnerable in times of crisis, and if not, then why not and what can we do about it?
This podcast series is part of the Exponential Inequalities project, led by Shreya Atrey as the Principal Investigator of the British Academy Leverhulme Small Research Grant on Equality Law in Times of Crisis.
Transcript and show notes available on the Oxford Human Rights Hub website at ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk.
Producer, Presenter, Sound Editor: Christy Callaway-Gale Executive Producers: Shreya Atrey, Meghan Campbell, Sandra Fredman Assistant Producers: Mónica Arango Olaya, Gauri Pillai, Natasha Holcroft-Emmess Transcript and show notes: Sarah Dobbie Music: Rosemary Allmann
Human rights experts help us determine whether equality law is set up to protect the most vulnerable in times of crisis.
This is Episode Two of a four-part series. The series takes a deep dive into whether equality law is cut out to protect the most vulnerable in times of crisis, and if not, then why not and what can we do about it?
This podcast series is part of the Exponential Inequalities project, led by Shreya Atrey as the Principal Investigator of the British Academy Leverhulme Small Research Grant on Equality Law in Times of Crisis.
Transcript and show notes available on the Oxford Human Rights Hub website at ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk.
Producer, Presenter, Sound Editor: Christy Callaway-Gale Executive Producers: Shreya Atrey, Meghan Campbell, Sandra Fredman Assistant Producers: Mónica Arango Olaya, Gauri Pillai, Natasha Holcroft-Emmess Transcript and show notes: Sarah Dobbie Music: Rosemary Allmann
Human rights experts tell stories of inequalities from around the world, revealing how these inequalities have been exacerbated during crises like the COVID-19 pandemic.
This is Episode One of a four-part series. The series takes a deep dive into whether equality law is cut out to protect the most vulnerable in times of crisis, and if not, then why not and what can we do about it?
This podcast series is part of the Exponential Inequalities project, led by Shreya Atrey as the Principal Investigator of the British Academy Leverhulme Small Research Grant on Equality Law in Times of Crisis.
Transcript and show notes available on the Oxford Human Rights Hub website at ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk.
Producer, Presenter, Sound Editor: Christy Callaway-Gale Executive Producers: Shreya Atrey, Meghan Campbell, Sandra Fredman Assistant Producers: Mónica Arango Olaya, Gauri Pillai, Natasha Holcroft-Emmess Transcript and show notes: Sarah Dobbie
Evictions constitute gross violations of a range of internationally recognised human rights, including the rights to adequate housing, food, water, health, education, work, security of the person, security of the home, freedom from cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, and freedom of movement. Evictions intensify inequality, segregation and ghettoization, and invariably affect the poorest, most socially and economically vulnerable and marginalised. In this episode, we speak to Nerishka Singh, a researcher at the Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa (SERI), and Timothy Fish Hodgson, Legal Advisor to the International Commission of Jurists on Economic, Social and Cultural rights in Africa, about eviction cases before the Magistrate’s Courts in Johannesburg, South Africa. The Magistrate’s Courts fall lowest in the hierarchy of courts in South Africa, but are most accessible to the public, and yet these are least studied by researchers. This podcast delves into cutting-edge research by SERI on how the constitutional requirements of the right to adequate housing and right against arbitrary evictions under s 26 of the South African Constitution are implemented by the Magistrate’s Courts.
Recorded August 2019. Transcript available on the Oxford Human Rights Hub website (ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk).
Vox pops on key human rights issues with human rights experts.
Transcript available from the Oxford Human Rights Hub website (ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk)
In this episode, Gauri Pillai, Managing Editor of the Oxford Human Rights Hub, speaks to Professor Adrienne Stone, Director of the Centre for Comparative Constitutional Studies at Melbourne Law School and Professor Eric Heinze, Professor of Law and Humanities, Queen Mary University of London on the human rights implications of the alleged free speech crisis in university campuses.
In this episode, Seun Matiluko, a journalist and a current BCL student at Oxford Law Faculty, speaks with Dr Shreya Atrey, an Associate Professor in International Human Rights Law at Oxford's Department for Continuing Education and Faculty of Law, about a recent report from the UK Government's newly formed Commission for Race and Ethnic Disparities.
Hosted and recorded by: Seun Matiluko Edited by: Christy Callaway-Gale Produced by: Gauri Pillai Executive producer: Kira Allmann Show notes by: Sarah Dobbie Music by: Rosemary Allmann Additional thanks to: Sandra Fredman and Megan Campbell
Full transcript available at: http://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/media/
This episode is released under an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives Creative Commons license. This allows you to republish the episode, but you must credit RightsUp and The Oxford Human Rights Hub.
In this episode, we speak with Dr Isabel Cristina Jaramillo from Los Andes University in Colombia about “Gender in Transition: Studies about the Role of the Law in the Distribution of Resources for Implementing the Transition in Colombia after the Peace Agreement." We explore what gender has meant during Colombia's transition to peace and reconciliation and what the peace agreement has meant to the construction of Colombian feminisms.
Full transcript available at: http://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/media/
Hosted and recorded by: Mónica Arango Olaya Edited by: Christy Callaway-Gale Co-produced by: Mónica Arango Olaya Executive producer: Kira Allmann Show notes by: Sarah Dobbie Music by: Rosemary Allmann Additional thanks to: Sandra Fredman, Megan Campbell, Gauri Pillai, and Natasha Holcroft-Emmess
This episode is part of a four-part series in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. In this episode, guest host Simphiwe Laura Stewart talks with Rekgotsofetse Chikane about the "Rhodes Must Fall" movement. They discuss the intersections and tensions of #MustFall with black consciousness, black feminism, and pan-Africanism, and the diverse histories of oppression and resistance across time and borders. Rekgotsofetse Chikane is the author of “Breaking a Rainbow, Building a Nation: The Politics Behind #MustFall”. He was one of the leading figures of the Rhodes Must Fall movement in South Africa.
Hosted and recorded by: Simphiwe Laura Stewart Edited by: Christy Callaway-Gale & Kira Allmann Co-produced by: Natasha Holcroft-Emmess and Sarah Dobbie Executive producer: Kira Allmann Show notes by: Sarah Dobbie Music by: Rosemary Allmann Additional thanks to: Sandra Fredman, Meghan Campbell, Mónica Arango Olaya, and Gauri Pillai
This episode is part of a four-part series in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. In this episode, we talk to Shea Streeter about the seemingly intractable issue of police brutality and race in the United States and how race and gender shape the ways that people experience, perceive, and respond to incidents of violence.
The Oxford Human Rights Hub is an anti-racist organisation, and we are committed to continuously working to be better allies to communities protesting against deeply entrenched systems of racial domination and oppression. In this spirit, this podcast series aims to amplify the voices of Black and Brown scholars, activists and practitioners. We also want to acknowledge a long legacy of work that has collectively, across time and disciplines, built and bolstered the foundations of this present movement. Now is a time to listen, learn, support and amplify.
Hosted and recorded by: Richard Martin Edited by: Christy Callaway-Gale Co-produced by: Richard Martin, Mónica Arango Olaya, and Christy Callaway-Gale Executive producer: Kira Allmann Show notes by: Sarah Dobbie Music by: Rosemary Allmann Thanks to: Natasha Holcroft-Emmess and Gauri Pillai
This episode is part of a four-part series in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. In this episode, we talk to Savala Trepczynski about racial hierarchy and the role of whiteness in the Black Lives Matter movement.
The Oxford Human Rights Hub is an anti-racist organisation, and we are committed to continuously working to be better allies to communities protesting against deeply entrenched systems of racial domination and oppression. In this spirit, this podcast series aims to amplify the voices of Black and Brown scholars, activists and practitioners. We also want to acknowledge a long legacy of work that has collectively, across time and disciplines, built and bolstered the foundations of this present movement. Now is a time to listen, learn, support and amplify.
Here, we explore the question: what role does racial hierarchy play in perpetuating inequalities?
Hosted and recorded by: Ndjodi Ndeunyema Edited by: Christy Callaway-Gale Co-produced by: Natasha Holcroft-Emmess and Christy Callaway-Gale Executive producer: Kira Allmann Show notes by: Sarah Dobbie Music by: Rosemary Allmann Thanks to: Mónica Arango Olaya and Gauri Pillai
This episode is part of a four-part series in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. In this episode, we speak with Dr Foluke Adebisi, a Senior Lecturer in Law at Bristol University in the United Kingdom, about decolonizing education.
The Oxford Human Rights Hub is an anti-racist organisation, and we are committed to continuously working to be better allies to communities protesting against deeply entrenched systems of racial domination and oppression. In this spirit, this podcast series aims to amplify the voices of Black and Brown scholars, activists and practitioners. We also want to acknowledge a long legacy of work that has collectively, across time and disciplines, built and bolstered the foundations of this present movement. Now is a time to listen, learn, support and amplify.
This episode focuses on decolonising education. It looks particularly at the intersection between human rights and the decolonial approach to education. Dr Adebisi is an expert in an intersection of areas looking at law, race, equality, legal education, and decolonising education. She's also the founder of Forever Africa Conference and Events (FACE), a hub for Pan-Africanist thought and community in the UK.
A full transcript of this episode is available at: http://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/media/
Hosted and recorded by: Nomfundo Ramalekana Edited by: Christy Callaway-Gale Co-produced by: Gauri Pillai and Christy Callaway-Gale Executive producer: Kira Allmann Show notes by: Sarah Dobbie Music by: Rosemary Allmann Thanks to: Mónica Arango Olaya and Natasha Holcroft-Emmess
During the Umbrella Movement in 2014, Nathan Law was one of the five representatives who took part in the dialogue with the Government debating political reform. Upholding non-violent civic actions, Nathan, Joshua Wong and other student leaders founded Demosistō in 2016 and ran for the Legislative Council election. Nathan was elected and became the youngest Legislative Counsellor in history. Yet, his seat was overturned in July 2017 following Beijing’s constitutional reinterpretation. Nathan was later jailed for his participation in the Umbrella Movement. Due to the risk imposed by the draconian National Security Law, Nathan left Hong Kong and continues to speak up for Hong Kong people on the international level. In this episode, we speak to Nathan about Hong Kong's struggle for democracy and the relationship between democracy and human rights.
Executive Producer: Kira Allmann Produced by: Sandra Fredman and Mónica Arango Olaya Edited by: Christy Callaway-Gale Hosted by: Mónica Arango Olaya Music by: Rosemary Allmann Show Notes by: Sarah Dobbie Thanks to: Meghan Campbell, Gauri Pillai, Natasha Holcroft-Emmess
A full transcript of this podcast is available on our website:http://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/media/
Constitutions are the legal bedrock of many countries, but they're also political, and are produced within a specific socio-historical context, much like any text. As much as Constitutions are there to protect citizens, they can also exclude certain groups of people. And when a Constitution doesn't work for all, how do we best address this? To what extent can we reinterpret a Constitution so it's more inclusive? And when do we need to start again, from scratch? In this episode, Gautam Bhatia and Joel Modiri discuss these questions in the context of India and South Africa.
Transcript available: http://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/media/the-transformative-possibilities-of-a-constitution-with-joel-modiri-and-gautam-bhatia/
Interview with: Gautam Bhatia and Dr Joel Modiri Recorded by: Nomfundo Ramalekana Produced and edited by: Christy Callaway-Gale Executive producer: Kira Allmann Shownotes: Sarah Dobbie Music: Rosemary Allmann
Covid-19 lockdowns worldwide have forced huge portions of our lives online, from education to work, with important human rights ramifications. But there's an argument to be made that the Covid-19 lockdown has been good for the environment. there have been reports of lower levels of littering and urban pollution. As humans withdrew from public spaces, some native wildlife has reemerged. But our newly intensified online routines, from video conferencing to binge-watching Netflix, might have more of a negative environmental impact than we realise. The Internet and the systems that support it are reportedly responsible for 3.7% of global greenhouse gas emissions, roughly the same as the airline industry. And it's estimated that the typical professional creates 135 kilogrammes of CO2 just sending emails — which is equivalent to driving 200 miles in a family car. We don't often think about the effect of the Internet on the natural environment, and the related implications for human rights. In this episode, we talk to Internet governance consultant Michael Oghia about why we need to build an environmentally sustainable Internet for the future.
Interview with: Michael Oghia (Global Forum for Media Development) Host: Kira Allmann Producer/Editor: Kira Allmann Executive Producer: Kira Allmann Music: Rosemary Allmann
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought questions around global healthcare financing and equitable access to treatments to the fore. But this is not the first time a spotlight has been thrown on the thorny issue of fair resource allocation in efforts to tackle global health issues. In her book, “The Uncounted: Politics of Data in Global Health” (Cambridge University Press), Dr Sara Davis considers how human rights issues can affect the data which underlie global healthcare funding. She looks closely at the indicators which drive resource allocation, the metrics used to measure success in tackling health issues, and the people whose experiences healthcare data often fails to capture. Ultimately, in a world of finite resources, this data plays an important role in determining who is more likely to live or die.
Interview with: Sara Davis (Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva) Host: Natasha Holcroft-Emmess Producer/Editor: Christy Callaway-Gale Executive Producer: Kira Allmann Music: Rosemary Allmann
In 2016, a peace agreement was negotiated between the Colombian Government and one guerrilla movement known as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or the FARC. But the peace deal was rejected by a narrow margin in a referendum in 2016. A revised peace deal was eventually ratified by the Congress of Colombia. The peace agreement provides for the Special Jurisdiction for Peace, a tribunal created in 2018 to implement the transitional justice component of the peace agreement. In this episode, we talk with Judge Lemaitre, who currently the Investigating Judge for the jurisdiction's first macro case, about the future of restorative justice in Colombia.
A full transcript is available on our website: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk
Interview with: Julieta Lemaitre (Special Jurisdiction for Peace, Colombia) Host: Natasha Holcroft-Emmess Producer: Natasha Holcroft-Emmess Executive Producer: Kira Allmann Music: Rosemary Allmann
The spread of Covid-19 has affected many areas of our lives with major implications for our rights and freedoms. The instigation of a UK-wide lockdown has had an especially pronounced effect on our rights, and the burden of this disruption will fall most heavily on those whose livelihoods, health, and security were already fragile. Furloughed employees, those who are self-employed, and those who must now seek social security benefits face an unprecedented level of uncertainty. Today we discuss the impact of coronavirus on worker's rights in the UK.
Full transcript available: ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/media/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-workers-rights-with-michael-ford
Interview with: Michael Ford, QC (University of Bristol & Old Square Chambers) Hosted by: Natasha Holcroft-Emmess Produced and edited by: Christy Callaway-Gale Executive producer: Kira Allmann Shownotes: Sarah Dobbie Music: Rosemary Allmann
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all of us in many ways. States around the world have imposed restrictions of varying levels of stringency to control the spread of the virus. The Central Government in India introduced a nationwide 21-day lockdown on 24th of March 2020. The lockdown saw an almost complete restriction on the movement of people and the closure of all establishments except those providing essential services. India’s lockdown has been described as the world’s biggest coronavirus lockdown and the harshest coronavirus containment measure in the world. The lockdown was declared with a four-hour notice period. It has been extensively reported that the impact of the lockdown has fallen most heavily on those most vulnerable. In this episode, we speak to Professor Kalpana Kannabiran, a professor of sociology and the Director of the Council for Social Development Hyderabad, about the Indian government's response to the pandemic and the impact on rights.
Full transcript and shownotes: http://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/media/the-need-for-empathy-understanding-indias-covid-19-lockdown-with-kalpana-kannabiran/
Interview with: Kalpana Kannabiran (Council for Social Development Hyderabad) Hosted by: Gauri Pillai Produced and edited by: Christy Callaway-Gale Executive producer: Kira Allmann Shownotes: Sarah Dobbie Music: Rosemary Allmann
In this episode, we discuss the intersection between the responses to public health crisis and human rights with Luisa Cabal, Acting Director of the Community Support, Social Justice, and Inclusion at UNAIDS. UNAIDS recently published a guidance paper of lessons learned from other pandemics, such as the HIV pandemic, about how to respect and uphold human rights during exceptional times.
Download a full transcript: http://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/media/how-to-uphold-human-rights-during-a-pandemic-lessons-from-unaids-with-luisa-cabal/
Interview with: Luisa Cabal (UNAIDS) Hosted by: Mónica Arango Olaya Produced and edited by: Christy Callaway-Gale Executive producer: Kira Allmann Shownotes: Sarah Dobbie Music: Rosemary Allmann
This is a special episode of RightsUp, which takes Sandy Fredman’s new book, Comparative Human Rights Law, as a starting point for global conversation around the role of law, lawyers, courts, and judges in forwarding human rights in different contexts. Each episode will delve into the overarching themes of the book and highlight some specific examples from different jurisdictions -- on issues such as capital punishment, abortion, the right to housing, health, and education, and the right to freedom of speech and religion.
In this discussion, Sandy speaks with Colm O'Cinneide, a professor of human rights law at UCL, who also served on the member of the European Committee on Social Rights of the Council of Europe. They discuss the intersections between socio-economic rights and civil/political rights in the context of Europe.
Guests: Sandra Fredman and Colm O'Cinneide Produced by: Kira Allmann Music by: Rosemary Allmann
This is a special episode of RightsUp, which takes Sandy Fredman’s new book, Comparative Human Rights Law, as a starting point for global conversation around the role of law, lawyers, courts, and judges in forwarding human rights in different contexts. Each episode will delve into the overarching themes of the book and highlight some specific examples from different jurisdictions -- on issues such as capital punishment, abortion, the right to housing, health, and education, and the right to freedom of speech and religion.
In this discussion, Sandy speaks with Justice S. Muralidhar, a judge on the High Court of Delhi, who has delivered judgments in some of the most important housing rights cases in India. They discuss a right to housing and the value of comparing how different legal systems deal with this issue.
Guests: Sandra Fredman and Justice S. Muralidhar Produced by: Kira Allmann Music by: Rosemary Allmann
This is a special episode of RightsUp, which takes Sandy Fredman’s new book, Comparative Human Rights Law, as a starting point for global conversation around the role of law, lawyers, courts, and judges in forwarding human rights in different contexts. Each episode will delve into the overarching themes of the book and highlight some specific examples from different jurisdictions -- on issues such as capital punishment, abortion, the right to housing, health, and education, and the right to freedom of speech and religion.
In this discussion, Sandy speaks with Judge Edwin Cameron, who recently retired from the Constitutional Court of South Africa after serving for more than two decades as a judge in South African courts.
Guests: Sandra Fredman and Edwin Cameron Produced by: Kira Allmann Music by: Rosemary Allmann
The United Nations adopted the Sustainable Development Goals in 2015. They aim to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all people. The goals provide policy objectives for countries to aspire to meet over a number of years. In this final episode of our SDG podcast series, we talk about how the Sustainable Development Goals and human rights can work together to achieve transformative change in the realm of gender equality. In order for the SDGs to be truly transformative for women, attention needs to be paid simultaneously to four dimensions of equality: first, redressing disadvantage; second, addressing stereotyping, stigma, prejudice and violence; third, facilitating voice and participation; and fourth, achieving systemic or institutional change. Professor Sandra Fredman (University of Oxford) talks about applying these dimensions of equality in her recent report for the British Academy on human rights, the SDGs, and gender equality.
This episode is part of a special series on “Working Together: Human Rights and the Sustainable Development Goals,” a British Academy project led by Professor Sandy Fredman, Fellow of the British Academy and Director of the Oxford Human Rights Hub. As part of this project, the Academy convened a roundtable in January 2018 with academic experts, policymakers and practitioners from the UK and overseas to discuss the ways in which human rights and developmental goals can work together to achieve the SDG agenda and particularly gender equality and women’s empowerment.
Interview with: Sandra Fredman (University of Oxford) Produced by: Kira Allmann (University of Oxford) Music by: Rosemary Allmann
Sustainable Development Goal 1 is to eliminate poverty in all its forms everywhere. Poverty stands in the way of people enjoying many of their basic human rights and it can also be the product of violations of certain rights, like the right to education. Tackling global poverty requires bridging questions of human rights law and economic development. In this episode Prof Philip Alston (UN Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights) talks about the challenges of using both human rights law and economic development agendas to address poverty.
This episode is part of a special series on “Working Together: Human Rights and the Sustainable Development Goals,” a British Academy project led by Professor Sandy Fredman, Fellow of the British Academy and Director of the Oxford Human Rights Hub. As part of this project, the Academy convened a roundtable in January 2018 with academic experts, policymakers and practitioners from the UK and overseas to discuss the ways in which human rights and developmental goals can work together to achieve the SDG agenda and particularly gender equality and women’s empowerment.
Interview with: Philip Alston (New York University) Produced by: Kira Allmann (University of Oxford) Music by: Rosemary Allmann
In September 2015, the UN adopted the Sustainable Development Goals to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all people. The Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs, have made an overt commitment to human rights as fundamental to the international development agenda. SDG Goal number 1 is to end poverty in all its forms everywhere. And the targets specifically state that poverty must be eliminated for all men, women and children. But poverty affects these groups differently, and the causes of poverty for men, women, and children also differ. Empirical evidence tells us that women disproportionately live in poverty. So how do we tackle the gendered nature of poverty, when it seems to be missing from both development agendas and human rights frameworks?
This episode is part of a special series on “Working Together: Human Rights and the Sustainable Development Goals,” a British Academy project led by Professor Sandy Fredman, Fellow of the British Academy and Director of the Oxford Human Rights Hub. As part of this project, the Academy convened a roundtable in January 2018 with academic experts, policymakers and practitioners from the UK and overseas to discuss the ways in which human rights and developmental goals can work together to achieve the SDG agenda and particularly gender equality and women’s empowerment. Meghan Campbell participated in the discussion.
Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann (University of Oxford) Interview(s) with: Dr Meghan Campbell (University of Birmingham) Music by: Rosemary Allmann
If you like this podcast, please consider making a donation to the Oxford Human Rights Hub to support the work we do to make human rights information more accessible: www.alumniweb.ox.ac.uk/law/donations…ke-a-donation
In September 2015, the UN adopted the Sustainable Development Goals to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all people. For the first time, these goals explicitly aim to bring human rights and economic development into conversation with one another. There are 17 Sustainable Development Goals to be realised by 2030, each with their own targets. Goal number 5 is to ‘achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.’ One of the targets under Goal 5 is to eliminate all harmful practices, such as child, early, and forced marriage, and female genital mutilation, or FGM. In this episode, we talk with Brenda Kelly, a consultant obstetrician at the John Radcliffe Hospital and a founder of the Oxford Rose Clinic, which specialises in treating women and girls who have experienced FGM. Brenda shares her insights from working with FGM patients about how the law and medicine interact when it comes to achieving gender equality.
This episode is part of a special series on “Working Together: Human Rights and the Sustainable Development Goals” a British Academy project led by Professor Sandy Fredman, Fellow of the British Academy and Director of the Oxford Human Rights Hub. As part of this project, the Academy convened a roundtable in January 2018 with academic experts, policymakers and practitioners from the UK and overseas to discuss the ways in which human rights and developmental goals can work together to achieve the SDG agenda and particularly gender equality and women’s empowerment. Brenda Kelly participated in the discussion.
Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann (University of Oxford) Interview(s) with: Dr Brenda Kelly (John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford) Music by: Rosemary Allmann
If you like this podcast, please consider making a donation to the Oxford Human Rights Hub to support the work we do to make human rights information more accessible: www.alumniweb.ox.ac.uk/law/donations…ke-a-donation
The death penalty was written into the colonial penal code in India when the country was under British direct rule, and it stayed on the books after independence. Today India remains a ‘retentionist’ country – meaning that it retains the death penalty in the face of a growing global movement to abolish it worldwide on human rights grounds. At the end of 2017, there were 371 prisoners on death row in India. India is one of the few democracies that retains the death penalty, and it has voted against recent UN resolutions seeking a global end to the death penalty. In this episode, Anup Surendranath talks about the research he and his team at the National Law University in Delhi have conducted on death row inmates in India and what challenges remain on the path to abolition.
Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann (University of Oxford) Interview with: Dr Anup Surendranath (National Law University in Delhi) Music by: Rosemary Allmann
If you like this podcast, please consider making a donation to the Oxford Human Rights Hub to support the work we do to make human rights information more accessible: www.alumniweb.ox.ac.uk/law/donations…ke-a-donation
There is an unmistakable growing awareness of the ways in which our human lives and the environment are intertwined and interdependent. Unprecedented environmental degradation, resource depletion, and the looming reality of climate change have all drawn anxious attention to the human impact on the environment. Law is critically important here. Countries like Spain, France, Portugal, and Finland have already recognized a human right to a healthy environment. But some environmental advocates are arguing that this isn’t enough. We need to recognize the inherent rights of nature itself. In this episode, we discuss the limitations of human rights in confronting environmental harms and how we could realise the rights of nature.
Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann (University of Oxford) Interview(s) with: Mari Margil (Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund) Music by: Rosemary Allmann
If you like this podcast, please consider making a donation to the Oxford Human Rights Hub to support the work we do to make human rights information more accessible: https://www.alumniweb.ox.ac.uk/law/donations/make-a-donation
In September 2015, the UN adopted the Sustainable Development Goals to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all people. For the first time, these goals explicitly aim to bring human rights and economic development into conversation with one another. There are 17 Sustainable Development Goals to be realised by 2030, each with their own targets. Goal number 5 is to ‘achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.’ While gender equality stands alone as a goal, it also cuts across many of the other sustainable development goals. This raises some questions – about whether gender equality can ever be realised on its own, in its own right – or whether it has to be realised in context. Inclusion and empowerment of women and girls must take place at every level and in every development target. In this episode, we explore development issues that disproportionately affect women and girls and interrogate how the SDGs can do better to address them.
This episode is part of a special series on “Working Together: Human Rights and the Sustainable Development Goals” a British Academy project led by Professor Sandy Fredman, Fellow of the British Academy and Director of the Oxford Human Rights Hub. As part of this project, the Academy convened a roundtable in January 2018 with academic experts, policymakers and practitioners from the UK and overseas to discuss the ways in which human rights and developmental goals can work together to achieve the SDG agenda and particularly gender equality and women’s empowerment. Isabel Cristina Jaramillo Sierra participated in the discussion.
Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann (University of Oxford) Interview(s) with: Isabel Cristina Jaramillo Sierra (Universidad de los Andes) Music by: Rosemary Allmann
If you like this podcast, please consider making a donation to the Oxford Human Rights Hub to support the work we do to make human rights information more accessible: https://www.alumniweb.ox.ac.uk/law/donations/make-a-donation
In September 2015, the UN adopted a set of goals to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all people. These are the UN Sustainable Development Goals, to be realised by 2030. The Sustainable Development Goals replace and build on the Millennium Development Goals, which were established in 2000 with targets set for 2015. The Sustainable Development Goals make some important changes to the development agenda, and one significant update is that they include an overt commitment to human rights for the first time. But how to integrate human rights into development agendas remains an open question. What will the relationship between human rights and the Sustainable Development Goals look like in practice?
This episode is part of a special series on “Working Together: Human Rights and the Sustainable Development Goals” a British Academy project led by Professor Sandy Fredman, Fellow of the British Academy and Director of the Oxford Human Rights Hub. As part of this project, the Academy convened a roundtable in January 2018 with academic experts, policymakers and practitioners from the UK and overseas to discuss the ways in which human rights and developmental goals can work together to achieve the SDG agenda and particularly gender equality and women’s empowerment. Professor Olivier de Schutter participated in the discussion.
Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann (University of Oxford) Interview(s) with: Olivier de Schutter (Université catholique de Louvain) Music by: Rosemary Allmann
If you like this podcast, please consider making a donation to the Oxford Human Rights Hub to support the work we do to make human rights information more accessible: https://www.alumniweb.ox.ac.uk/law/donations/make-a-donation
Almost exactly a year ago, in January 2017, the UK Department of Education published a report by the Disabled Students Sector Leadership Group (DSSLG) which offered guidance on how universities and other higher education providers could better support disabled students. In short, the report found that institutions of higher education could do much more to make learning and teaching more inclusive for disabled students. This February the University of Oxford will be hosting a conference on Disability Law and Policy to mark the launch of the newly established Oxford University Disability Law and Policy Project, headed by Dr Marie Tidball. In this episode, Marie talks about disability rights and the importance of teaching a new generation of lawyers about disability law.
The Disability Law and Policy Project aims to put disability law at the centre of learning and teaching in the law curriculum. This conference will focus on legal issues affecting persons with disability, at the intersection of gender, race, age, sexuality and class, in the interest of promoting the intellectual study of disability and its relationship with domestic and international law. Registration is free and open to the public.
Register here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/oxford-disability-law-and-policy-conference-2018-tickets-41955341556
Interview with: Dr Marie Tidball (University of Oxford) Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann (University of Oxford) Music by: Rosemary Allmann
[Released: 29 January 2017]
A transcript of this interview is available on the Oxford Human Rights Hub website: http://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/media/nothing-about-us-without-us-disability-law-and-policy-in-the-uk
The EU has played an important role both internationally and domestically in EU member states, in developing and protecting equality rights in the interest of ensuring peace and security. UK and EU equality law has evolved very much in parallel, with regular exchange and cross-pollination. Today, equality commissions in the UK handle the protection and enforcement of equality law. The present Equality and Human Rights Commission, which is responsible for law in England, Scotland, and Wales, was established by the Equality Act of 2006. The Equality Commission for Northern Ireland was established with the Northern Ireland Act of 1998, a clear recognition of the importance of equality to the peace process. There are undoubtedly unique considerations and concerns with regard to equality in Northern Ireland, which we discuss in this episode with Evelyn Collins, Chief Executive of the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland.
For more information about the work of the Equality Commission, please visit: equalityni.org
Interview with: Dr Evelyn Collins (Equality Commission for Northern Ireland) Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann (University of Oxford) Music by: Rosemary Allmann
[Recorded: 20 October 2017 / Released: 14 December 2017]
Just this morning, news broke that the UK has reached a deal with the EU. Theresa May announced that there would be no hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland, the Good Friday Agreement would be upheld, and that EU citizens’ rights would be protected in the UK. Few details about the agreement are available, and there are still many questions about how these very critical elements of the deal will be implemented. What has been clear, however, is that Northern Ireland is center stage right now in the Brexit debates, so we're diving into the issues at stake here and how human rights might also be important in this ongoing conversation.
For more information about Professor Colin Harvey's ESRC project on Brexit law, please visit: https://brexitlawni.org
Interview with: Professor Colin Harvey (Queen's University, Belfast) Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann (University of Oxford) Music by: Rosemary Allmann
[Recorded: 9 October 2017 / Released: 8 December 2017]
There are many ways in which private businesses hold financial and political power akin to states. They also commit violations and abuses of power akin to states. But are they held accountable in the same way that states are? This episode is all about whether corporations should have human rights obligations – should they be responsible for upholding and defending human rights the way that we expect governments to? We interview Boni Meyersfeld, Professor of Law at the University of Witswatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, about corporate responsibility, gender inequality, and human rights in an age of globalization.
Interview with: Professor Boni Meyersfeld Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann Music by: Rosemary Allmann
[Original release: 20 September 2017]
Following U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement, what is the future of environmental justice and human rights in the United States and the world? We talk with environmental human rights expert and lawyer, Nick Stump, about what we can learn from the experiences of the Appalachian region of the U.S. Appalachia is known for coal mining, and it became a focal region in Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, as Trump promised to save a declining and environmentally destructive industry to create more coal jobs. As such, Appalachia has become symbolic of the American economic crisis, along with other industrial regions. We talk about the environmental realities in Appalachia, the power of symbolism, and the prospects for realising environmental human rights.
Interview with: Nick Stump (West Virginia University) Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann (University of Oxford) Music by: Rosemary Allmann
[Release: 1 August 2017]
In May of 2016, the Obama administration issued federal guidance that stated transgender people are protected according to United States civil rights law preventing sex discrimination in schools. It was a historic move, in response to a wave of cases making their way through federal courts regarding discrimination against transgender people. But in February 2017, the newly elected Trump administration rescinded the federal guidance issued under President Obama, and the legal landscape on this issue instantly changed. In this episode we talk with Corey Stoughton, former Senior Counsel at the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, about the future of transgender rights in America.
Interview with: Corey Stoughton Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann Music by: Rosemary Allmann
[Original release: 30 May 2017]
Since the 1973 Supreme Court ruling on Roe v. Wade, abortion has been legal in the United States. But terminating pregnancy remains a controversial issue, and it plays a surprisingly large role in American politics. In this episode, we talk to Carol Sanger, professor of law at Columbia University and author of 'About Abortion: Terminating Pregnancy in 21st Century America' about why abortion is such a prominent political issue in the United States and how we might expect the Trump administration to deal with reproductive rights.
Interview with: Professor Carol Sanger Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann Music by: Rosemary Allmann
[Original release: 12 May 2017]
The Human Rights Act incorporated the rights guaranteed in the European Convention on Human Rights into UK law. In this episode, we look at the Human Rights Act in a past interview with Sir Keir Starmer, MP for Holborn and St. Pancras, currently Shadow Brexit Secretary, and former Director of Public Prosecutions for the Crown Prosecution Service.
Interview(s) with: Sir Keir Starmer, MP Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann Music by: Rosemary Allmann
In the 19th century, the Contagious Diseases Acts were passed in the UK and Ireland to curtail the spread of venereal disease among military personnel in certain cities. In this episode, we talk to Dr Anne Hanley, a Junior Research Fellow at New College, Oxford, about why this legislation had such a disproportionate effect on women and what we can learn from it today.
Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann Interview(s) with: Dr Anne Hanley Music by: Rosemary Allmann
[Original release: 11 April 2017]
In the six years following the Arab Spring, there has been a notable increase in death sentences and executions in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). In this episode, we talk to James Lynch, Deputy Director of the Global Issues Programme at Amnesty International, about the death penalty in MENA countries, the aftermath of the Arab Spring, and the prospects for abolition in the future.
Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann Interview(s) with: James Lynch Music by: Rosemary Allmann
[Original release: 10 February 2017]
On 24 January 2017, the UK Supreme Court ruled in the case Miller and Dos Santos vs. Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union. The Court decided that the Government does not have a prerogative power to trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. Instead, an act of parliament will be needed to begin the process of the UK leaving the EU. In this episode, we bring back Professor Alison Young, an expert in constitutional law, to talk about the aftermath of this decision - what it means and what we can now expect from the Brexit process.
Join us in person or on Facebook Live tomorrow, 31 January, at 5:15 PM GMT, for a conversation on Brexit and human rights. Professor Alison Young will be discussing Brexit with Professors Paul Craig, Timothy Endicott, and Nick Barber.
Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann Interview(s) with: Professor Alison Young Music by: Rosemary Allmann
[Original release: 30 January 2017]
The UK Supreme Court is expected to deliver a decision on the case Miller and Dos Santos vs. Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union on January 24th. The question before the Supreme Court is whether the Government or parliament has the power to invoke Article 50 and start the process of the UK leaving the EU. In this episode, Dr Kira Allmann talks to Professor Alison Young about the case and its implications for Brexit.
Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann Interview(s) with: Professor Alison Young Music by: Rosemary Allmann
[Original release: 20 January 2017]
RightsUp #RightNow is a series of mini episodes in the RightsUp podcast series that explores current events dealing with human rights issues.
On 11 January, members of a public bill committee in the UK parliament voted against an amendment to the Children and Social Work Bill that would have made sex and relationship education compulsory in all schools. In this episode of RightsUp #RightNow, we talk to Dr. Meghan Campbell, deputy director of the Oxford Human Rights Hub, about the implications of this decision and the need for a human rights based approach to sex education.
Produced by: Dr Kira Allmann Interview(s) with: Dr Meghan Campbell Music by: Rosemary Allmann
[Original release: 16 January 2017]
Episode 3 of RightsUp (released 08 July 2015)
Interviews with: Arushi Garg, Indira Jaising Produced by: Kira Allmann, Max Harris, and Laura Hilly
Episode 2 of RightsUp (released 21 May 2015)
Interviews with: David Bilchitz, Karl Laird Produced by: Kira Allmann, Max Harris, and Laura Hilly
Episode 1 of RightsUp (released 06 May 2015)
Interviews with: Mary Anne Franks, Holly Jacobs, Jessica Mason, Clare McGlynn, Ann Olivarius, Erika Rackley Produced by: Kira Allmann, Max Harris, and Laura Hilly