Urgent Action and Important Opportunities

Rights & Democracy inaugurated its Urgent Action/Important Opportunities fund in April 2000 to better respond to crises and unanticipated special events around the world. Initiated by the Board of Directors, this fund enables Rights & Democracy to fulfill its mandate more efficiently by providing a flexible way of addressing critical issues that are outside the regular thematic program planning, or which cannot be planned far in advance. The President oversees the Urgent Action/Important Opportunities and it is managed by an internal committee with criteria established by the Board of Directors.

With Urgent Action/Important Opportunities, Rights & Democracy can organize campaigns, issue news releases, initiate fact-finding missions, allocate grants, fund special projects or organize conferences to raise public and government awareness on issues related to the defense and promotion of human rights and democratic development.

Since the creation of this fund, Rights & Democracy has supported hundreds of initiatives, notably a fact-finding mission on the situation of indigenous peoples in Colombia, support for an information campaign on a Canadian mining project in Kenya, a campaign for the return of a Tunisian unjustly deported from Canada, participation in an international mission in Argentina, as well as a financial contribution to the Women's Ministry of the interim government in Afghanistan.

Funds have also been allocated towards the publication of advertisements in newspapers and the translation and preparation of popular education documents such as a leaflet on War, Hate and Racism.