The event will begin with a musical performance by the ArTime Quartet, followed by welcome addresses from Manfred Nowak (Secretary General of the Global Campus), Elina Pirjatanniemi (Vice-President), and Orla Ní Cheallacháin (EMA Programme Director).
“September is an important moment of celebration and connection for the EMA Programme; representatives from our 43 participating universities come together to examine our graduating students and to welcome our new students. It is a moment when we collectively reaffirm the importance of our network and of inter-university and international collaboration around human rights education. Nearly 90 students from 33 countries will begin the EMA programme this year showing the continued relevance and resonance of human rights and democracy in Europe and beyond.” As stated, Orla Ní Cheallacháin.
73 EMA graduating students will defend their theses on 20 September in front of the EMA Thesis Defense Panels made up of our EMA Directors. Our 73 graduating students represent a total of 29 countries: Armenia, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, France, Gambia, Germany, Greece, Iceland, India, Ireland, Italy, The Netherlands, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Russian Federation, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States, Zimbabwe.
This year’s keynote speeches will feature:
- Arturs Kucs, Judge at the European Court of Human Rights, former EMA National Director for Latvia for almost two decades and EMA alumnus of 2002;
- Oleksandra Matviichuk, Right Livelihood Laureate 2022 and Nobel Peace Prize recipient, a leading Ukrainian human rights lawyer and head of the Centre for Civil Liberties, whose work has been vital in documenting war crimes and defending civic freedoms.
- Micha Ramakers, Deputy Head of Unit “Gender Equality, Human Rights and Democratic Governance” at the European Commission’s Directorate-General on International Partnerships (INTPA), the closest and most long-standing partner and supporter of the Global Campus of Human Rights.
The programme will also include the EMAlumni Award 2024, the Sports, Arts & Peace Award, speeches by EMA Student Representatives Vitória Assis and Dhruv Maroo, and the awarding of diplomas to the graduates. The ceremony will conclude with the inauguration of the new academic year 2025/2026.
We warmly invite our community, partners, and supporters to join us in celebrating the next generation of human rights defenders.