The protection of human rights defenders and the right to defend human rights is a fundament for all other human rights work. Protection must be tailored to the specific social and cultural context that human rights defenders and communities live and operate in, and on both an individual and collective level. We take a holistic approach to protection, understanding that it entails physical, digital, psychosocial and communal elements, and that it can be both proactive by focusing on prevention and self-protection strategies, as well as reactive by responding when attacks happen. Local human rights organisations and local, national and regional networks play an important role in protecting human rights defenders and defending the right to defend human rights.

In addition to providing grants focusing on the protection of human rights defenders and the right to defend human rights, the NHRF will continue to manage the temporary relocation programme Oslo as a Breathing Space City for human rights defenders.* Other than managing the temporary relocation programme, the NHRF does not provide support to individual human rights defenders.

*The NHRF is the secretariat for this programme, which we manage in collaboration with four other Norwegian human rights NGOs. The human rights defenders who are selected for the programme come to Oslo for a stay of up to three months, allowing them to take a break from their everyday life in stressful and hostile environments. The aim is that they can return to their home countries with a larger and stronger network, having rested and recovered, and carrying feelings of solidarity and support with them.

The NHRF’s work to support the protection of human rights defenders (HRDs) in two ways:

• Through project support to grantees in prioritised countries. Protection of HRD and the right to defend rights is one of our thematic priorities in our call for proposals, and we support projects that include components of strengthening self-protection mechanisms, advocacy for protection nationally and internationally, psychosocial external support or community based approaches to psychosocial work and wellbeing for (W)HRDs, information security, creating support networks, legal support to HRDs at risk and more.
• Grant support for organisations working for the protection of HRD independent from our geographical priorities. HRD grants can be given to organisations, institutions, networks, and groups working for the protection of human rights defenders regardless of the country of origin.
  

The NHRF does not support individual HRDs, but focuses on organisations, institutions, networks and groups working for the protection of HRDs. To read more about the NHRF conditions for support and priorities, please read our FAQ for Grantseekers.

Our grantee partners work as both (W)HRDs and to support (W)HRDs who promote and defend the rights of many different marginalized and vulnerable groups. Our support has reached (W)HRDs in many different parts of the world who dedicate their lives to defend the rights of and to, among others, LGBTQ+, minorities, land and natural resources, indigenous peoples, journalists, workers, migrants, commercial sex workers, political activists, women and girls, etc.

Although there are many different methods to achieve positive and progressive results in this area, the projects we support often use methods that focus on enhancing the protection of HRDs and preventing further risk, as well as strengthening their organizational structures. Networking and advocacy are also important tools that can make significant differences in the outcomes of projects. Our work also includes psychosocial support to defenders.

We have learned that the NHRF can provide valuable support through solidarity and by helping to connect HRDs and the organisations we support to national and international networks. The NHRF strives to provide this meaningful support and work outside the parameters of the standard donor-grantee relationship.

In some prioritized countries we work with strategic partners that support grantees in strengthening further their protection and self-protection mechanisms, as well as to offer psychosocial and legal support.