Human Rights Education A Manual for National Human Rights Institutions As part of their human rights promotion function, NHRIs have a responsibility to: • raise community awareness about their purpose, role and functions • build practical and applied understanding of human rights and enable and mobilize others to become human rights actors and defenders • use their unique national position to build cultures of human rights across all levels and sectors of society. Although NHRIs have the autonomy to undertake human rights education in a way that is appropriate to their national context, most will: • develop and distribute information on human rights • engage in public awareness sessions • provide specialized training to targeted groups • use the media to promote understanding and awareness of human rights and of their own work • work toward ensuring that human rights are taught in schools.55 The plan of action for the second phase56 of the World Programme for Human Rights Education identified NHRIs is a key body to work with State agencies in scoping, planning, implementing and evaluating national human rights education plans. It is also the responsibility of NHRIs to monitor the progress of State national human rights education plans and to report on progress to the United Nations through human rights reporting mechanisms. 3.2. BASIC REQUIREMENTS OF NHRIs IN PROVIDING HUMAN RIGHTS EDUCATION As covered in the following chapters, human rights education involves a wide range of approaches and activities. It is a lifelong process, involving all sectors of society. NHRIs, as independent institutions, are well placed to provide human rights education across these sectors. NHRIs promote understanding of human rights through their educational programmes and other activities. They provide basic information about human rights but also go further and explain human rights concepts and law. This requires much more than the production of posters, leaflets and even reports. It requires personal engagement and interaction through formal and non-formal educational programmes and activities. All NHRIs have considerable experience in the struggle to change attitudes. However, many have had only some successes. Attitudinal change requires more than educational courses and programmes. It can often be achieved through the ordinary activities of NHRIs in investigating and exposing human rights violations. People begin to question their own attitudes, and the attitudes of others in government and in the community, when they are confronted with the experiences of those who have suffered human rights violations. Most of the work of NHRIs can and should have an educational component. NHRIs should be conscious of this and ensure that all programmes and activities have a specific component of human rights education. Some NHRI activities, such as national inquiries into situations of human rights violation, have human rights education as one of their principal goals and one of their main methodologies.57 20 55 National Human Rights Institutions: History, Principles, Roles and Responsibilities; Professional Training Series No. 4 (Rev. 1); OHCHR; 2010; p. 73. 56 Available online at www.ohchr.org/Documents/Publications/WPHRE_Phase_2_en.pdf. 57 For more information, see Chapter 2 of the Manual on Conducting a National Inquiry into Systemic Patterns of Human Rights Violation, APF, (updated 2019).