UK and Ireland Human Rights Committee

The UK and Ireland Human Rights Committee (UKI HRC) is a joint initiative led by our seven partner academies. The UK Young Academy provides representation as a Young Academy, offering an early-career perspective to this human rights work.

Together, the UKI HRC works to uphold academic freedom and defend the human rights of scholars and researchers worldwide.

The UKI HRC engages in advocacy, awareness-raising, and information-sharing. It responds to alerts issued by the International Human Rights Network of Academies and Scholarly Societies. 

This global network, coordinated by the US National Academy of Sciences, monitors cases where researchers across the globe are subjected to repression for having exercised their human rights in line with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The UKI HRC reviews cases brought forward by the International Human Rights Network. It coordinates responses either from individual academies or collectively, where appropriate. This is namely in cases where there is evidence that the human rights of an individual have been violated or denied because of their academic or scientific work.

Through this work, the UKI HRC reinforces the principle that academic freedom is a cornerstone of human rights.

Currently, we have three UK Young Academy members acting as representatives who sit on the UKI HRC.