If any Russian-speaking human rights activist is looking for a paper idea, write about the 1991 Russian Declaration of the Rights and Freedoms of Man and Citizen. After 10+ years in the field, with 3 in the Soviet space, I had no idea this existed. ru.wikisource.org/wiki/%D0%9F%...

February is a Wrap! We explored how everyday life—from beans to vacations—connects to human rights through our choices and allocation of resources. Join us for our continued spotlighting of human rights activists and key concepts. See you next month! everydayhumanrights.substack.com

"Old CO2 predictions were wildly off!" The IPCC believed in 1992 that we'd hit 420ppm in 2020. The reality is that we hit that in ~2023. Lessons: 1) yes, we're making progress fighting climate change, but not enough 2) our models, even those from the 90s, are damn good.

"To remember is to resist." The ideas we explored last week include: - Japanese-Americans internment - social justice - speaking one's mother tongue - judicial review - the People Power Revolution Bonus: tomorrow's post is our first reader-suggested topic! everydayhumanrights.substack.com

Nice visual that shows how climate change concern has increased in the US. In 2015, only 11% of Americans were alarmed (Fully convinced, highly concerned) about climate change. Now that number is 25%. climatecommunication.yale.edu/about/projec...

I had the idea of organizing a monthly get together in a bar for young men, focusing on men who normally stay in and lose themselves to porn and video games. The goal is socializing, and help young men learn from us older ones. Then I realized my own life is too unstable to do this :/

One of the few mechanisms we have that can shift this administration is to voice our displeasure. Trump cares about ratings, and he's pushing back on the most extreme aspects of RFK (supposedly including limiting childhood vaccines) because they're unpopular.

The fact that Congress was silent in the face of the most disastrous foreign policy idea in modern history (yes, worse than the initial idea of invading Iraq), is damning. We, the people, can't count on our representatives to ensure the federal government works for the people.

Great article! It quantifies Trump's democratic back sliding. While executive orders have been disastrous, there hasn't been as much of a drop in lasting changes (e.g. policies or laws). While Trump has harmed America, the cuts are not as deep as they look. giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...

My daily human rights newsletter is live! I'm excited to see this idea of accessible human rights information come to life!

Announcing my new project: Everyday Human Rights. Everyday Human Rights will bring you a daily dose of accessible human rights, including birthdays of defenders, international remembrance days, and clear explainers of key concepts. The only prerequisite is curiosity. everydayhumanrights.substack.com

On this Human Rights Day, I need to repeat a dynamite line dropped by Luciano Bottini Filho. "Human rights is the infrastructure of justice." We need social movements to get people to call for justice. When they do, the human rights system is there to give that call substance.

Human rights are political, but they are also grounded in universal instruments like the UDHR. When you strip away that foundation, they just become politicized weapons, weakening the message and human rights in general.

America is coming off no better than a Disney villain. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/c...

So. Much. Interest! People want to understand planetary health, how to use it, and how to communicate it. I firmly believe the future of health includes planetary health. We need sustainable systems, and that means having a broader understanding. #APHA2025

A shout-out to Meharry’s new School of Global Health. It's the first school of global health in the US and heavily leans into the importance of multidisciplinary collaboration across medicine, policy, law, data, and community. If you're considering a PhD, check them out. meharryglobal.org

Happy One Health Day (which I just learned is a thing)! Recognizing that human, animal and environmental health are all linked is essential for us to face the crises of the 21st century. The 20th century's medical approach to health will be become less effective and sustainable as time progresses.

Very disappointed with @apha.org for expelling Amy Hagopian for her work organizing members to use the mechanisms of APHA to fight against genocide in Gaza. We, the membership, deserve to hear the justification for expelling such a long-standing and long-contributing member of APHA. #APHA2025

"This is your battleground. This is your mission." APHA: Everyone that cares about public health must be an advocate for public health against the attacks by the current US administration. Great to see people rising up for health justice and science-based policy. #APHA2025

On Nov 5 at 4 PM, join and support members of the healthcare, public health, and scientific communities in a march from the APHA Rally for the Public’s Health to the Capitol to deliver petitions to Congress demanding the resignation or removal of RFK Jr. www.911forhealthandscience.org

Today begins @apha.org 2025 Annual Meeting in DC! I totally woke up at 4am from the excitement and not at all because of jet lag! (P.S. I'm presenting on the 4th and 5th on One Health and global health governance. Come join!) #APHA2025 #MakingThePublicsHealthANationalPriority #WayTooLongHashtags

One Health - from the perspective of vaccine hesitancy. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/27/s...

This was America. The Voting Rights Act had near universal support in 2006. Now try envisioning MAGA Republicans being willing to sign it, let alone help it pass. You can't. The Republican party has changed for the worse.

Bravo to everyone--no matter where you are--fighting for democracy.

Here's a live feed from @aclu.org on today's No Kings Day. If you're like me and can't join in person, then follow along with their coverage. www.aclu.org/news/civil-l...

It's reported that Israeli forces boarded at least one boat of the flotilla. Concerningly, the 24/7 live feed from multiple ships have stopped, with at least one due to water cannons.

Where the separate divisions of ANTIFA landed on the beaches of Normandy on June 6, 1944:

Random idea to promote science and policy literacy: when institutions issue public-facing reports, they also release a chatbot trained on the report. People can ask the bot questions, and the bot could transparently explain the steps taken and assumptions made by the authors.

The significance of this new justification from Israel is that it demonstrates that proportionality--a key tenet of humanitarian law--is dead. Destroying a camera cannot justify a double tap strike on a hospital. apnews.com/article/isra...

I'm old enough to remember when bombing a hospital and double-tapping first responders were considered outrageous and unacceptable. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...

The US administration is helping bring about the new multipolar world by intentionally hamstringing itself. I wonder what will be the reckoning for all of these self-inflicted wounds. www.bbc.com/news/article...

An article I wrote looking how to continue to pursue justice in light of the planned peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The short answer is that a sense of justice is developed from the bottom up, not imposed from the top down. evnreport.com/opinion/just...

"There are now about 30 countries against Israel… the Lord is counting on me to stand on the side of Israel." This is DEEPLY concerning coming from a justice of the International Court of Justice. Was her dissent based on legal analysis or her religious beliefs? www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/...

With so many current and future crises needing social or global responses, it's concerning to see how conscientiousness is in free fall within the next generation. [h/t] FT for the chart.

A few days late, but even the head of the Israeli lobby group J Street believes that Israel is committing genocide. www.timesofisrael.com/j-street-hea...

I've never doubted the idea that the seige of Gaza was inspired by Azerbaijan's unequivocal success at ethnically cleaning Nagorno-Karabakh/Artsakh through mass starvation. I'm glad this mainstream article makes the connection. www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/0...

Because of Israel's unrelenting genocide, Germany has been put in the mutually exclusive situation of wanting to support Israel while also wanting to comply with international law. Shockingly, it looks like Merz is doing the latter. www.politico.eu/article/germ...

When these hucksters get in positions of power, they either must admit the obvious reality they've been denying or double-down on their lies. Unfortunately, as a society, we're only good at condemning the former.

It still frustrates me that no high-level person is raising the idea of responsibility to protect. R2P was literally created for situations where a government is intentionally causing mass human rights abuses.

Yet another TACO trade from Trump. I'm still surprised that the EU was willing to accept the bad deal just to get stability than to ride it out until the courts ultimately stop Trump's tariffs.

To realize rights on a societal or global level now inextricably also means to realize planetary health.

Trump's firing of the democratic members of the CPS Commission confirms one thing: norms are dead. There's no reason to give any power to the minority party unless legally required. All the weaknesses of the US system are exposed, no longer papered over by "gentlemen's agreements".

I avoid simply insulting Trump. It rarely achieves anything but preaching to the choir. But sometimes his deluded statements need to be shared just to remind people who he is. Honestly, only a zealot can view this post and think it says anything positive about Trump.

A great long read on the breakdown of the Food and Drug Administration. It's interesting how well-intended criticisms have been used to justify obliterating what was a great institution. (gift article) www.nytimes.com/2025/07/08/m...

Did the European Commission, through spokesperson Eva Hrncirova, just reject Israel's justification for denying humanitarian aid to enter Gaza? www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/no...

Fun fact. As of today, we're now closer to 2050 than we are to 2000.

Lancet study: Over the period 2001–2021, USAID prevented 90 million deaths, of which 30 million children under the age of 5. The Musk/Doge cuts could result in 14 million deaths, including 4.5 million children, by 2030. www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

Russia droning schools. Israel and Iran bombing hospitals. Now, IDF soldiers purposefully shooting into unarmed crowds. Attacks on civilians used to be condemned. Now, the life of someone you consider an "other" is worth less than the cost of a bullet or FPV drone. www.haaretz.com/israel-news/...

Measles's low mortality is used to justify non-vaccination, but we're relearning that not lethal doesn't mean not harmful. "what frightened Kiley more than the potential spread was the severity: ... one in five unvaccinated people with measles will be hospitalized" www.nytimes.com/2025/06/22/u...

It's hard to watch this and not be compelled to act. We can save 90 million lives a year for $20 a person. Why is the US ending such a successful program? youtu.be/oJW2iES4oPw?...