The publication series “Human Rights Go Local” is jointly edited by the International Centre for the Promotion of Human Rights at the Local and Regional Levels under the auspices of UNESCO and the UNESCO Chair in Human Rights and Human Security at the University of Graz. The series is published by HRGL Publications.
The series allows established researchers, new voices, and practitioners to contribute to the debate on the interlinkages between human rights and global policy frameworks, such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the New Urban Agenda. In addition, the publication series showcases how these very interlinkages can guide us towards creating inclusive, resilient, safe, and sustainable urban spaces and regions.
The contributions to this publication series are targeted to all stakeholders at the local and regional levels: municipal administrations and regional governments; local authorities and service-providers; city coalitions; scholars and activists; and everyone seeking to understand, evaluate, discuss, and engage in fostering human rights and sustainable development at the local and regional levels.
By the UNESCO Centre for the Promotion of Human Rights at the Local and Regional Levels, edited by Gerd Oberleitner and Klaus Starl. With contributions by UN-Habitat, the UNESCO International Coalition of Inclusive and Sustainable Cities, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, the Afadzato South District, the City of Barcelona, the City of Poti, the City of Reykjavík, the City of Swansea, and the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law.
This book is the fifth volume of the publication series “Human Rights Go Local” (HRGL). The series allows established researchers, new voices, and practitioners to contribute to the debate on the interlinkages between human rights and global policy frameworks, such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the New Urban Agenda. The contributions to this publication series are targeted to all stakeholders at the local and regional levels: municipal administrations and regional governments; local authorities and service-providers; city coalitions; scholars and activists; and everyone seeking to understand, evaluate, discuss, and engage in fostering human rights and sustainable development at the local and regional levels.
This volume of the HRGL publication series examines the potential of Human Rights Action Plans for the promotion of human rights accountability at the local level. It provides valuable answers to the following questions:
- What is a local Human Rights Action Plan?
- What are benefits and limitations of local Human Rights Action Plans?
- How can a local Human Rights Action Plan best be developed, implemented, and evaluated?
- How can local governments promote accountability through Human Rights Action Plans?
- What impact do local Human Rights Action Plans have beyond the city border?
By answering these questions, this volume explains how Human Rights Action Plans can make a real difference at the local level. It offers a profound step-by-step guidance for local authorities on the development, implementation, and evaluation of Human Rights Action Plans. In addition, relevant examples of Human Rights Action Plans and related initiatives by local governments and international organisations make the provided instruction more tangible. Further, readers gain important information on key factors that significantly contribute to strengthening local governments’ ability to promote their accountability by means of Action Plans, as well as on lessons learned in this regard by peers.
This volume aims to expand the current understanding on how to promote local governments’ accountability through Human Rights Action Plans in a practical way: The provided concrete suggestions and insightful examples can considerably support local governments in effectively and efficiently addressing the pressing challenges of our time.
Centre for the Promotion of Human Rights at the Local and Regional Levels, Accountability in Action: Human Rights Action Plans of Local Governments, in: Gerd Oberleitner and Klaus Starl (series eds.), Human Rights Go Local Publication Series, Volume 5, HRGL Publishing, Graz, 2024.
By the UNESCO Centre for the Promotion of Human Rights at the Local and Regional Levels, edited by Gerd Oberleitner and Klaus Starl
This volume of the HRGL publication series aims to answer the following questions:
Which management concepts and tools are currently being implemented at the local level worldwide that help to systematically embed a human rights-based outcome orientation? What do IGOs have to offer in this respect?
- How do such practices ensure that respecting, protecting, and fulfilling human rights becomes an everyday practice of local governments?
- How are these instruments reflected in the local budget?
- What are the benefits and concrete outcomes of embedding human rights in the governance system at the local level?
Which guidelines and manuals on applying outcome orientation in local level public management are already available? Can they be adapted to human rights or are they generally open to human rights? What is the benefit of applying human rights-based outcome orientation to guide public management and budgeting in local level governance?
- What is needed from a step-by-step perspective to strategically and procedurally embed human rights into the management processes of local administrations in order to achieve tangible outcomes for the rights-holders?
- What guidance does the human rights framework offer in this regard?
- What are the challenges and solutions / measures to mitigate in all phases of the policy cycle?
UNESCO Centre for the Promotion of Human Rights at the Local and Regional Levels, Governing the City by Human Rights Objectives: Embedding Human Rights in Public Management Instruments, in: Gerd Oberleitner and Klaus Starl (series eds.), Human Rights Go Local Publication Series, Volume 4, HRGL Publishing, Graz, 2023.
by Jasmien Deklerck, edited by Gerd Oberleitner and Klaus Starl
The third volume in the publication series "Human Rights Go Local" argues that the promise of a Human Rights City does not automatically guarantee its citizens’ human rights to the necessary degree. But can Human Rights Cities not be expected to extend their human rights commitment beyond the mere legal minimum standards? Throughout this manual an answer to this question is formulated. In order to avoid that Human Rights Cities only support human rights principles and values in an abstract manner, preference is given to the following five constitutive elements: the legal human rights discourse, the rights-based approach, institutionalisation, the local government as the instigating actor in a multi-actor and multi-stakeholder environment, and the horizontally-organised networking model.
Deklerck Jasmien, From Commitment to Responsibility for Human Rights in Cities and Regions, in: Gerd Oberleitner and Klaus Starl (series eds.), Human Rights Go Local Publication Series, Volume 3, HRGL Publishing, Graz, 2022.
by Isabella Meier, edited by Gerd Oberleitner and Klaus Starl
The second volume in the publication series "Human Rights Go Local" addresses four fundamental questions:
- How to materialize the benefits of qualitative human rights data for evidence-based policy-making, monitoring and impact assessment?
- How to translate human rights issues and questions into research questions?
- How to develop adequate methods for answering research questions and gathering meaningful data?
- How to make research findings useful to local authorities and decision-makers?
Meier Isabella, Research on Human Rights at the Local and Regional Levels: Methods, Practices, Approaches, in: Gerd Oberleitner and Klaus Starl (series eds.), Human Rights Go Local Publication Series, Volume 2, HRGL Publishing, Graz, 2021.
by Karina Gomes and Markus Möstl, edited by Gerd Oberleitner and Klaus Starl
The first publication in the series discusses three fundamental questions:
- What are the interlinkages between human rights and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and what practical implications does this relationship have for the local level?
- How do local level authorities, such as Human Rights Cities, (concurrently) implement human rights and the Sustainable Development Goals in practice?
- Which governance levels are practically involved in the implementation of human rights and the international development agenda at the local level and how do they interact and influence each other?
Karina Gomes and Markus Möstl, Implementing Human Rights and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development at the Local Level: Key Issues and Examples, in: Gerd Oberleitner and Klaus Starl (series eds.), Human Rights Go Local Publication Series, Volume 1, HRGL Publishing, Graz, 2020.
