Global news

December 31, 2009 - LES Online announces the release of their digital journal on lesbian issues.

December 10, 2009 - On the International Human Rights Day several human rights organizations together with several NGOs organized an event in the UN Building to address sexual orientation and human rights violations.

November 13, 2009 - EERA and the University of Helsinki invite Educational Researchers to participate in and to submit proposals for the European Conference on Educational Research 2010, in Helsinki, Finland.

September 25, 2009 - In order to counter organizations that are seeking to interfere with the development of sound programs and policies to ensure sexual and reproductive health and rights, SIECUS has sent a letter of support to the Director-General of UNESCO, Mr Koïchiro Matsuura, for their work in developing these prorgrams. Please send out your support to UNESCO.

August 15, 2009 - The Scientific Committee organizes the 4th Africa Conference on Sexual Health and Rights, to be held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from February 8 – 12, 2010. The conference will explore the overall theme of 'Sexuality and HIV & AIDS in Africa" and several objectives and sub-themes. The Conference is calling for Abstracts: submission deadline is 19th October 2009.

August 09, 2009 - Challenging stigma of minority sexual practices: Exchange on HIV/AIDS, sexuality and gender.

August 07, 2009 - New York – The American Psychological Association declared Wednesday that mental health professionals should not tell gay clients they can become straight through therapy or other treatments. Instead, the APA urged therapists to consider multiple options — that could range from celibacy to switching churches — for helping clients whose sexual orientation and religious faith conflict.

August 07, 2009 - In a workshop on Monday 27th July 2009, during the Outgames LGBT Human Rights Conference, IGLYO offered a workshop in which 16 good practices were explored.

April 19, 2009 - The Fellowship for Human Rights Defenders provides the opportunity for human rights defenders to take time out from their normal work to undertake a project which will further develop their capacities and contribute to the protection of human rights defenders internationally.

February 24, 2009 - World Social Forum 2009: Women's Assembly Declaration.

February 20, 2009 - The Education steering team of IGLYO gathered in London last December. It was attended by two member organisations, NUS LGBT ( UK ) and ANSO (Nordic countries), and two international partners, ESU (European Students Union) and OBESSU (Organising Bureau of European School Student Unions). The steering team reviewed IGLYO's priorities in education, one of the four core pillars of our Strategic Plan 2008-2010.

February 19, 2009 - Al-Fatiha is an organisation dedicated to Muslims of all cultural and ethnic backgrounds who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer, and questioning or exploring their sexual orientation and/or gender identity (LGBTIQQ), and their families, friends and allies.

February 18, 2009 - IDAHO is an initiative of Louis-Georges Tin, in partnership with ILGA and organises the International Day Against Homophobia. IDAHO initatiates campaigns to gain political support for the decriminalisation of homosexuality.

February 17, 2009 - The 13th annual Summer Institute on Sexuality, Culture and Society is to be held at the Graduate School of Social Sciences, Universiteit van Amsterdam from July 5 - July 30th, 2009. Students and professionals are invited to participate in courses, seminars and dialogues in Amsterdam on the cultural and social dimensions of human sexuality. The Summer Institute is an intensive four-week summer programme, which focuses on the study of sexuality across cultures and is taught by an international faculty team.

February 17, 2009 - The Special Youth Programme fellowship consists of an initial 4.5 months fellowship at UNFPA Headquarters, New York, followed - upon satisfactory performance - by a continued fellowship of another 4.5 months in the UNFPA Regional Office or Country Office in the region / country of the fellow.

February 11, 2009 - Preparation of NGO participation in the World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenofobia and Related Intolerance, to be carried out the 6 and 7 of March 2009, in the Dominican Republic.

February 10, 2009 - Celebrating 60 Years of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights In appreciation of the dynamics of an interdependent world, the UNESCO Chair will host an annual intergenerational forum that brings together young leaders from all regions of the world in the field of human rights once annually. The forum will be held from August 1st to 9th and coincides with the International Youth Day, taking place on August 12, 2009.

January 17, 2009 - The International Training Program on LGBT and Human Rights organized by RFSL and RFSU on behalf of Sida is now open for applicants for 2009. For 2009 two courses will take place.

January 15, 2009 - IGLYO and ILGA launched the LGBT Youth World List - the first international network of its kind.

December 12, 2008 - As the world celebrates the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the UN General Assembly will hear a statement in mid-December endorsed by more than 50 countries across the globe calling for an end to rights abuses based on sexual orientation and gender identity. A coalition of international human rights organizations today urged all the world’s nations to support the statement in affirmation of the UDHR’s basic promise: that human rights apply to everyone.

December 03, 2008 - In mid-December 2008, States from every region of the world will join together to deliver a statement recognizing human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity at the United Nations General Assembly.

November 26, 2008 - In the first week of October trans activists from The Netherlands, Euzkadi (Basque country), Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Ireland and the UK gathered in Manchester for a four day training session.

November 19, 2008 - The International Service for Human Rights (ISHR) is opening the call for applications for the Advanced Geneva Training Course on International Law and Advocacy to be held in Geneva from 16 to 27 March 2009.

November 04, 2008 - Advertisers who are producing sexist commercials and ads are being scolded by the European Parliament for the way their ads sexually stereotype men and women.

October 30, 2008 - The International Lesbian and Gay Association will hold its 24th world conference Nov 3 – 6 in Vienna, Austria. 200 lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex activists from over 80 countries will attend the event, an occasion to celebrate ILGA’s 30-year-long history. 120 of those are scholars from Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, Central and Eastern Europe, their participation possible thanks to a generous grant from the Austrian government and a number of partners of ILGA (see the full list of donors below and the programme of the conference attached).

October 20, 2008 - Mr. Carlos Cáceres from the Universidad Cayetano Heredia, in Peru, is involved in a policy research for the UNDP HIV. He is kindly requesting information on non-health sector experiences to address sexual diversity as part of the HIV response, OR with an impact on HIV work.

October 09, 2008 - Policy Advisor, Sexual Minorities, HIV/AIDS Location: New York, USA, Application Deadline: 20-Oct-08,

October 06, 2008 - Mia Hemming, a journalist from Finland is preparing an article about hopes of same sex couples to have children. Anyone with information is invited to respond.

September 25, 2008 - Please forward to your networks in the Asia Pacific region.

June 12, 2008 - The international Female Masculinities seminar is a two-day transdisciplinary conference convened by Prof. Saskia Wieringa (UvA) and co-convened by Prof. Evelyn Blackwood (Purdue University). We would like to take this opportunity to invite students, academics and activists to the seminar, which will take place on September 5 and 6 at the University of Amsterdam.

June 06, 2008 - Funders for Lesbian and Gay Issues (FLGI) is seeking to identify and compile information on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) organizations and projects working in the Global South and East. Take part in their survey!

May 15, 2008 - The US based Open Society Institute in March launched a fellowship program to enable outstanding individuals from around the world to pursue projects that will inspire meaningful debate and shape public policy. The Fellowship will focus on national security, citizenship, marginalization, authoritarianism and on new strategies for advocacy.

May 11, 2008 - The Journal of LGBT Education starts 2008 under a new title: the Journal of LGBT Youth. The relabeling took place to better include articles on youth in outside school settings. This first issue of 2008 contain 9 interesting articles, one describing an effective program to combat homophobia among 11 years old students.

May 08, 2008 - As part of it's initiative on "Resisting and Challenging Religious Fundamentalisms" AWID (the Association for Women's Rights in Development) is gathering insights into the contemporary workings of religious fundamentalist movements and previously undocumented strategies employed by women's rights activists to successfully challenge them. We intend to share the selected case studies with AWID members and other women's rights activists and advocates around the world.

May 08, 2008 - The University of Nottingham Human Rights Law Centre runs an annual summer school on the theme of “Human Rights Monitoring” in June 2008. Following the success of the 2007 course which considered aspects of the reporting process of the United Nations Treaty Bodies, in 2008 UNHRLC will be returning to this theme as well as looking at the individual communications procedures. The dates are 16-20 June.

May 08, 2008 - Sur – Human Rights University Network and the International Service for Human Rights invite contributions to be published in a Special Issue on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of Sur – International Journal on Human Rights (n. 9, second semester 2008). Te deadline for submission is 1 June 2008. Papers submitted after that date may be considered for later issues.

January 29, 2008 - The University of Maryland, near Washington DC, USA, offers a 3 week, 3 credit course on International LGBT Human Rights. 14 July - 4 August 2008 and will be based one week each in Washington, D.C, Geneva and Stockholm.

January 28, 2008 - The Supreme Court of Nepal issued directive orders to the Government of Nepal to end discrimination against LGBTI and ensure equal rights as heterosexual men and women in Nepal.

January 02, 2008 - "Whoever circumvents the institution of the family undermines peace in the entire community, national and international"

September 21, 2007 - The Journal of LGBT Youth put out a call for articles in a double issue on teens, which will appear as well in book format in 2009.

September 06, 2007 - ILGA-Europe plans to submit a written contribution to the EU Commission consultation on the future of Europe 's schools. Deadline for the Commission: October 15.

August 03, 2007 - The Journal will issue a special on Global Perspectives on Same-Sex Sexualities: Desires, Practices, and Identities.

August 03, 2007 - In a new series entitled Coming Out, Clare English explored why some societies are more tolerant than others.

July 22, 2007 - IKEA got the prize for their TV spot ‘Why shouldn’t sofas come in flavours, just like families?’

July 21, 2007 - From 25 November till 10 December 10, the Center for Women's Global Leadership will lead again a global campaign against gender violence.

March 26, 2007 - Today, 28 international experts launched the Yogyakarta Principles. The Yogyakarta Principles translate general human rights to the position of people who may be disadvantaged on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity.