CFA: Invitation to Participate in the “I Defend Rights” Project

CFA: Invitation to Participate in the “I Defend Rights” Project
Priority deadline: July 1, 2018

https://www.idefendrights.org/

I Defend Rights: Shifting the Narrative about Human Rights Defenders and Civil Society Globally is a project of the Norwegian Human Rights Fund and Memria.org, in collaboration with numerous partners around the world.

Please join us and record your voice.

There is no need for preparation in advance. We will ask three questions and record (audio only) your answers.

We are collecting audio accounts from human rights defenders to create a global archive of recordings of their experiences working on the front lines defending the rights of others. We then develop multiple ways to share many of these audio recordings with much broader audiences, such as through exhibits and using social media platforms.

  • It is easy and only takes a few minutes
  • You can re-record as many times as you want
  • We will ask you a few simple questions
  • You can remain anonymous
  • We will not ask you to reveal sensitive information
  • You can (but don’t have to) upload photographs of yourself or your work

We are collecting these recordings because the world needs to know about the work of people like YOU who defend rights. (Please record your story using a computer and not a phone or tablet.)

These stories will be used for Advocacy, Outreach Communication and strengthening a positive narrative about human rights defenders that more accurately conveys how important this work is.

Tips for telling a great story
  • Tell your story as if you were talking to a friend or a relative. Make it personal.
  • Add photos! It is best if the first photo you add is a nice image of yourself so that people can see you as they listen to or read your story.
Tips for audio recording
  • You can re-record as many times as you want. Take a couple of practice runs until it feels more natural talking into your computer.
  • Try not to use a pre-written script so that your story sounds as natural as possible. It is ok if it is not perfect.
  • Try to speak as clearly as possible, and get as close to the microphone as you can.
  • Try to find a quiet place with no background noise. It is even better if the room has carpet. This will reduce the amount of echo on the recording.

The deadline for recording and submitting your story is June 8, 2018, so we strongly encourage you to submit you story as soon as possible!

The “I Defend Rights” team is also working to develop ways to share many of these audio recordings with broader audiences, such as through exhibits and using social media platforms, and encourages you to share this call for participants to submit their stories with your colleagues and networks via email and social media.

For more about the I Defend Rights project, visit https://www.idefendrights.org/. We also have links to our website in Spanish and French.

To submit your story, click “Tell Your Story”, create a login and begin recording your story. If you have any questions, please feel free to email help@memria.org.