Human Rights and Information

The Human Rights and Information Program is a collaboration with OSI's Human Rights and Governance Grants Program that focuses on information handling by human rights organizations. Data gathered for human rights advocacy purposes—often at great risk to investigators—is rarely used to its full potential. This initiative aims to help human rights organizations improve their capacity to make the data they collect searchable and reusable, and to capture data in such a way that it can be cross-referenced, integrated with new analytical tools, and disseminated through a host of new distribution platforms.

Organizations that monitor, investigate and advocate for human rights need the ability to capture and safeguard large amounts of information easily, to analyze and interpret it in new ways, and to communicate and deploy it effectively. However, the majority of these organizations, large and small, lack both the systems and staff to manage their information internally, and the skills to turn well-structured information into powerful advocacy.

This is not only a question of databases and data input, or mash-ups and monitoring by mobile phone: it entails a deeper change in the entire monitoring and advocacy process. The aim of this project is to tap the great potential for making human rights organizations more effective by improving their capacity in this area.

If you are considering applying for funding under this initiative, please email the relevant program manager with a brief description of your project. They will be able to advise you if your proposal is suitable for funding from OSI, and guide you through the application process from there.

View contact information for this initiative.