The Promise Institute for Human Rights

With our innovative courses, globally renowned experts, and opportunities to launch students into human rights careers, there is no better place to study human rights law than The Promise Institute for Human Rights.

2024 Annual Report

From our events bringing global experts to UCLA to discuss nuanced and complex human rights issues, to our human rights scholarship, post-graduate fellowships, student scholarships, legal research, and advocacy alongside impacted communities, this Annual Report evidences that The Promise Institute for Human Rights is resilient and rising to meet the moment. We are truly grateful to our students, faculty, partners, and supporters — thank you for joining us!

Dive Into the Annual Report

Advancing Indigenous Housing Rights in Los Angeles: International Best Practices and a Legal Framework

We’re excited to join the Los Angeles City/County Native American Indian Commission in announcing the release of a pivotal new report authored by our Human Rights in Action Clinic students, led by Prof. Joseph Berra.

Los Angeles County is home to the largest population of American Indians and Alaska Natives in the United States, and due to the legacy of systemic racism and genocide, this population endures disproportionate homelessness – a risk that is increasing with each passing year.

Learn More and Read Our Report

Read our Symposium with Just Security

Just Security is an online forum for the rigorous analysis of security, democracy, foreign policy, and rights. This symposium – a collaboration between The Promise Institute and Just Security – expands on insights captured by our in-person symposium speakers and elevates some of the most pressing questions about the relationship between AI and human rights.

Dive In

Celebrating the 2024 Aurora Prize Laureate: Dr. Denis Mukwege

Together with our co-organizers, the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative, the eighth Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity was awarded to Dr. Denis Mukwege, a world-renowned gynecological surgeon and human rights activist from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. At the Aurora Prize Ceremony at UCLA on May 9, 2024, Dr. Mukwege received a $1,000,000 award in support of the Panzi Hospital and Foundation which he founded in 1999. To date, the hospital and its staff have cared for more than 80,000 survivors of sexual violence.

The hospital not only treats survivors with physical wounds, but also provides legal aid, socio-economic reintegration, and psychosocial services to its patients. Dr. Mukwege has been fearless in his efforts to increase protections for women and to advocate that those responsible for sexual violence be brought to justice, including the Congolese government and militia groups laying siege to eastern DRC. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2018.

Learn More about Dr. Mukwege and the Aurora Prize

Justice & Accountability for Nagorno-Karabakh/Artsakh Project

This project seeks to address impunity for international crimes perpetrated against Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh/Artsakh and parts of Armenia by the Azerbaijan government since 2020 to the present.

Backed by rigorous open-source investigation, fact-finding, and legal research and analysis, the project calls for concrete justice and accountability measures to be taken by states and international and regional courts and mechanisms in order to prevent further atrocities, address violations of the rights of Armenian refugees, and promote peace in the region.

Explore the Project