icsw 2025
programme
International Civil Society Week (ICSW) will take place from 1 to 5 November 2025 in Bangkok, Thailand, co-organised by the CIVICUS global civil society alliance and the Asia Democracy Network. Its theme, ‘Celebrating citizen action: reimagining democracy, rights, and inclusion for today’s world’, pays tribute to civil society activists, groups and movements that have remained resilient amid conservative and authoritarian backlash, holding the line and even achieving progress in claiming rights. As documented by the CIVICUS Monitor, our online tool tracking civic space conditions around the world, civic freedoms are being curtailed in a majority of countries, with severe attacks on civil society in 116 of 198 countries.
The programme is structured into eight distinct, yet interconnected, tracks that align with the overarching theme, inviting participants to reimagine how to champion democracy, human rights and inclusion by mobilising new frontiers and engaging a wider range of global citizens. The sessions are designed in various formats including workshops, live demonstrations, roundtables and panel discussions, to foster an environment of collaboration and learning. In addition to the main sessions, the in-person experience in Bangkok will be enhanced by on-site exhibits in various formats, and the main event will be accompanied by a wide array of events held locally around the world as well as virtual events aimed at broadening participation.
Session Tracks
Each of the programme tracks addresses a critical aspect of civil society and citizen action. These tracks are designed to be interlinked, demonstrating how different areas of work contribute to the central theme of reimagining democracy.
Democracy and civic space: This track focuses on strategies for democratic defence and resistance against authoritarianism. Sessions include topics such as protecting peaceful assembly, countering foreign agent laws, and using participatory tools to monitor and strengthen civic space.
Digital rights, AI and technology: This track explores the intersections of digital technology, human rights and civic space. It features sessions on digital resistance tactics against censorship, surveillance and blackouts, using civic tech for justice and democracy, and addressing the impact of AI on democratic rights.
Civil society futures: resourcing, accountability and sustainability: This track provides a forward-looking perspective on civil society, with a focus on resourcing and accountability. Sessions will discuss alternative funding models such as crowdfunding, innovative strategies for civil society resourcing in times of crisis, and ways to build trust and legitimacy for informal civil society groups.
Gender justice, marginalised identities and intersectional inclusion: This track addresses issues of gender, sexuality, disability, class and migration through an intersectional lens. It includes sessions on feminist leadership, defending LGBTQI+ rights in hostile environments, and using technology to combat gender-based violence.
Youth, intergenerational movements and civic futures: This track is dedicated to youth engagement, civic learning and the role of young leaders in shaping democratic futures. Sessions will focus on youth-led initiatives to influence policymaking, intergenerational strategies for defending civic space, and empowering youth activists in repressive contexts.
Arts, storytelling and creative resistance: This track explores artivism and creative tactics to defend human rights, promote peace and inspire democratic change. It includes sessions on using art to reclaim public spaces, using community media and mobile storytelling to expand civic space, and multiple collaborative workshops, including on zine-making and collage storytelling.
Care, self-care and collective resilience: This track emphasises care as a political strategy for the well-being of activists and communities. Sessions will address collective care, compassionate communication and using creative expression such as theatre and storytelling for healing and regeneration.
Global solidarity and movement-building: This track focuses on building cross-regional alliances, coalitions and joint actions to strengthen civic action. Topics include building transnational solidarity in times of crisis, lessons from diaspora mobilisation, and creating local change networks.
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International Civil Society Week 2025 (1-4 November 2025) Programme
09:00 - 11:00 | Saturday, November 1, 2025
Welcome
Messages from Stellah Bosire, CIVICUS Board Chair, and Mandeep Tiwana, CIVICUS Secretary-General
11:15 - 13:00 | Saturday, November 1, 2025
CIVICUS documentation project
Video: Keep the World Turning
Recognition of AGNA’s 21 years of contributions to the network
Participants will be invited to engage with the CIVICUS timeline installation, exploring civil society’s evolution through interactive documentation.
This conversation will trace how civil society’s role has changed over the past few decades in response to multiple crises. It will examine the variety of challenges successively faced by civil society and explore effective adaptations, innovations in alliance-building and evolving advocacy tactics. Panellists will analyse what makes the current moment unique, how information warfare has changed advocacy fundamentals, and what new support mechanisms today’s threatened civil society requires, concluding with key insights to guide the week’s discussions.
Moderator: Sonia Kwami
Panellists: Amitabh Behar, Ingrid Srinath, Lysa John, Miklos Marschall
Performance by the Burmese SaungCello Ensemble
Spotlight on the case of imprisoned human rights defender Khurram Parvez, India
Recognition of AGNA’s 21 years of contributions to the network
Participants will be invited to engage with the CIVICUS timeline installation, exploring civil society’s evolution through interactive documentation.
Panel: Civil society’s evolution through crises
This conversation will trace how civil society’s role has changed over the past few decades in response to multiple crises. It will examine the variety of challenges successively faced by civil society and explore effective adaptations, innovations in alliance-building and evolving advocacy tactics. Panellists will analyse what makes the current moment unique, how information warfare has changed advocacy fundamentals, and what new support mechanisms today’s threatened civil society requires, concluding with key insights to guide the week’s discussions.
Moderator: Sonia Kwami
Panellists: Amitabh Behar, Ingrid Srinath, Lysa John, Miklos Marschall
Cultural performance
Performance by the Burmese SaungCello Ensemble
Stand As My Witness campaign
Spotlight on the case of imprisoned human rights defender Khurram Parvez, India
14:00 - 15:30 | Saturday, November 1, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Gender Justice, Marginalised Identities and Intersectional Inclusion | Rethinking of universal human rights through lived experience of disability, organised by Disabled Peoples' International Asia Pacific (DPIAP) | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,Floor 1,LArt 107-108_1 | This session explores how lived experiences of disability challenge and enrich our understanding of universal human rights. It invites reflection on inclusive frameworks rooted in dignity and justice. Hosts: Disabled Peoples' International Asia Pacific (DPIAP) |
Digital Rights, Artificial Intelligence and Technology | ERROR 404 - A game about democracy in the digital world, organised by Station Europe | Thammasat,College of Innovation,Floor 5,CITU 505 | Experience ERROR 404, a board game that makes democracy tangible, collaborative, and personal. Players act as citizens navigating an online world of misinformation, censorship, discrimination, and privacy risks - testing choices and consequences together. Hosts: Station Europe. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | GAW 2025 from Principles to Action: Advancing Dynamic Accountability across regions, organised by AGNA & RACI | Thammasat,Faculty of Social Administration,Floor 3,SocAd306 | Learn how dynamic accountability and the Global Standard for CSO Accountability counter shrinking civic space. Case studies reveal how "accountability" is misused to curb activism and how CSOs rebuild trust, plus ways to leverage the OECD DAC Recommendation to strengthen donor-civil society cooperation. Hosts: AGNA & RACI. |
Democracy and Civic Space | Peacefully Defiant: Legal Protections for Civil Disobedience, organised by ECNL, Amnesty International, Climate Defenders Australia | Thammasat,Multipurpose building,Floor 9,Kukrit Pramoj | This workshop highlights international standards, upcoming UNECE Guidelines, and cross-regional strategies to safeguard activists online and offline. Unpack the legal protections for civil disobedience as a form of peaceful protest and democratic engagement. Hosts: ECNL, Amnesty International, Climate Defenders Australia. |
Youth, Intergenerational Movements and Civic Futures | Developing Global Responses to Global Problems:, organised by Mahidol University | Thammasat,Faculty of Sociology,Floor 4,Soc. & Anth L Meeting Room | This panel explores global advocacy challenges and showcases student-led initiatives from the Global Campus for Human Rights. Hear how civil society can mobilize across borders to tackle business and environmental rights violations. Hosts: Mahidol University. |
Gender Justice, Marginalised Identities and Intersectional Inclusion | Envisioning Feminist Digital Spaces in Asia, organised by Oxfam in Asia | Thammasat,Student Activity Centre,Floor 4,Stud Act 1-ABC_1 | This roundtable offers a safe space for activists to strategize and strengthen the feminist movement's influence in Asia's digital spaces. Participants will reflect on regional challenges, share inspiring initiatives, and build consensus around key priorities. Hosts: Oxfam in Asia. |
Democracy and Civic Space | From the Margins to the Streets: Reclaiming Protest as a Tool for Inclusive Democracy., organised by Equal Namibia / Diversity Alliance of Namibia | Thammasat,College of Innovation,Floor 5,CITU 504 | This workshop draws on lessons from Namibia and global movements to reclaim protest as a tool for inclusive democracy. Participants will share strategies to make protests safe, intersectional, and impactful, and co-create guiding principles that advance justice and civic space. Hosts: Equal Namibia / Diversity Alliance of Namibia. |
Democracy and Civic Space | Weaponizing the law: Repressive legislations and the shrinking space for civil society and HRDs in Asia, organised by CIVICUS | Royal River,Royal River,Busabongkot B | Examine how laws are being used to restrict civil society and silence human rights defenders across Asia. This session unpacks repressive legislation, its impact on activism, and the legal and advocacy strategies being used to resist and reclaim civic space. |
15:45 - 17:45 | Saturday, November 1, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Reclaiming Civic Sovereignty: What Makes Translocal Infrastructure Work, organised by | Royal River,Royal River,Busabongkot B | ||
Gender Justice, Marginalised Identities and Intersectional Inclusion | Power as a shapeshifter: Reimagining power and leadership, organised by One Future Collective on behalf of The Feminist Leadership Hub | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,1,LArt 107-108_2- NO AV | This interactive session invites participants to view power as a shapeshifter and reimagine leadership beyond colonial models. Guided dialogue explores organizational structures, personal relationships to power, and practices that redistribute authority and care. Hosts: One Future Collective on behalf of The Feminist Leadership Hub. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | Strategic Foresight: Investing in the Gen Z Movement Wave, organised by ActionAid Denmark | Thammasat,Multipurpose building,9,Kukrit Pramoj | Gen Z movements are reshaping change through digital, decentralized organizing that challenges entrenched power and inequality. This session applies strategic foresight to identify needed support and build a global infrastructure for sharing strategies and tactics across borders. Hosts: ActionAid Denmark. |
Global Solidarity and Movement-Building | Narrating Change - A Strategy Game for Democracy and Human Rights Narratives, organised by DAKILA | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,1,LArt 107-108_1 | Narrating Change is a hands-on strategy game that helps participants reimagine democracy and human rights narratives. Through collective play, movement builders and defenders will explore how to shift dominant stories and co-create practical interventions for real-world impact. Host: DAKILA. |
Democracy and Civic Space | Let the Courts Decide? The Potential and Limitations of Climate Litigation from a Democracy Perspective, organised by International IDEA | Thammasat,College of Innovation,5,CITU 505 | This session introduces International IDEA's report and examines climate litigation as a democratic tool used by youth, Indigenous groups, and civil society to hold governments and corporations accountable. Focusing on Asia-Pacific, it explores legal strategies, access to justice, and how courts translate climate commitments into enforceable duties. Host: International IDEA. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | Skillsharing: systems innovation in practice, organised by CIVICUS | Royal River,Royal River,Phanumas | This skillshare shows how CSOs can apply systems innovation to strengthen core functions and adapt to complex challenges. Through practical tools and real examples, we'll cover systems thinking in leadership, financing, risk, resource flows, and grantmaking, with time to reflect, iterate, and plan strategic evolution. |
Arts, storytelling & creative resistance | Human Algorithm - Collage Storytelling, organised by Nanyadiri | Thammasat,Faculty of Social Administration,3,SocAd306 | This workshop explores the gap between machine-generated narratives and human storytelling. Through collaborative collage and zine making, participants connect with a partner before confronting an AI-generated text that attempts to define them. The session culminates in a series of zines that can be digitized and shared publicly. |
Gender justice, marginalised identities and intersectional inclusion | Free to Be, Free to Move: Centering the unheard and unrecognised - the experiences of persons with disabilities in migration, organised by Disability Migration Network (DMN) | This side event discusses the systematic exclusion of persons with disabilities in labor migration governance. Through lived experiences, regional insights, and policy perspectives, the panel will highlight barriers to participation and explore how inclusive, rights-based approaches can strengthen freedom of movement and association for migrants with disabilities. | |
Care, self-care, & collective resistance | Building Sustainability: Agile Tools for Civil Society in Uncertain Times, organised by Kubadili | Thammasat,Student Activity Centre,4,Stud Act 1-ABC_2_ NO AV | This workshop equips civil society organizations with agile, participatory tools to strengthen financial resilience and long-term sustainability. Led by Kubadili, the session features interactive exercises that foster collaboration, creativity, and adaptive strategy-making to sustain civic action and democratic engagement in uncertain environments. |
Democracy & Civic Space | We Don't Live in Different Planets: The Interconnectivity between Civic Space and Climate Justice, organised by Humanis | Thammasat,Student Activity Centre,4,Stud Act 1-ABC_1 | This collaborative workshop redefines "healthy civic spacetime" in the context of climate injustice. Participants will explore how to connect (by building and brokering networks), defend (through protection circles and collective care), and act (via collective actions that expand and sustain movements). |
Democracy & Civic Space | Defending the defenders: Championing Recognition, Participation and Protection of Environmental Human Rights Defenders, organised by CIVICUS | This session spotlights the vital work of environmental human rights defenders and the urgent need to recognize, support, and protect them. Through shared experiences and strategic dialogue, participants will explore pathways to strengthen participation, ensure safety, and uphold the rights of those defending our planet. | |
Gender Justice, Marginalised Identities and Intersectional Inclusion | Power from the margins: Pathways to inclusive local democracy, organised by Samaan Aawaaj ("Equal Voice") - Coady Institute, DidiBahini, The Story Kitchen, CCDB | Thammasat,Faculty of Sociology,4,Soc. & Anth L Meeting Room | Grounded in Samaan Aawaaj ("Equal Voice"), this participatory workshop shares strategies to dismantle exclusion and build local democracy for women from Dalit, Indigenous, and religious minority communities. Participants will co-design steps for citizen-led accountability and inclusive governance. Hosts: Samaan Aawaaj (Equal Voice) - Coady Institute, DidiBahini, The Story Kitchen, CCDB. |
Solidarity Beyond Borders: Building resilience in Exile, organised by | Thammasat,College of Innovation,5,CITU 504 |
13:00 - 15:00 | Saturday, November 1, 2025
Asia Democracy Network's Democracy Assembly 2025 Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title |
|---|---|
Technology, Artificial Intelligence & Democracy, organised by ADN | |
Disinformation, Propaganda, and Populist Rhetoric: Media under Siege, organised by ADN | |
Next Generation Democracy Leadership, organised by ADN | |
From the Margins to the Center: Making our Democracy Movements more Inclusive, organised by ADN |
15:00 - 17:00 | Saturday, November 1, 2025
Asia Democracy Network's Democracy Assembly 2025 Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title |
|---|---|
Militarization and Securitization of Civic and Democratic Space, organised by ADN | |
Safeguarding the Integrity of our Democratic Institutions: Enabling Greater Representation and Accountability, organised by ADN | |
Diaspora and Migrant Communities in Democracy Struggles, organised by ADN |
09:00 - 10:45 | Sunday, November 2, 2025
Protest Lab and WeRise!
Ala Isbeitan from Ard Collective (Jordan), Kalkidan Tesfaye (Ethiopia), and ThuThu from Hit Tine (Myanmar), youth activists, present stories of protest and mobilisation in restricted civic spaces.
Spotlight on the case of imprisoned Thai democracy activist Arnon Nampa, presented by Akarachai from Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, member of Arnon’s legal team.
Hip hop performance by Eleven Finger (Thanayut Na Ayuthaya)
This panel will examine civic freedom restrictions and democratic regression across regions, including patterns emerging in established democracies. Panellists will discuss effective legal and advocacy defence strategies and explore how international organisations can support local responses without creating additional risks. They will address protection mechanisms for human rights defenders facing persecution, forms of international solidarity most valued by democracy movements, and the role of UN mechanisms in safeguarding civic space, concluding with strategic priorities for defending democracy globally.
Moderator: Irene Petras
Panellists: Anabel Cruz, Gina Romero, Marco De Ponte, Patricia Lerner, Yasir Khan
Stand As My Witness campaign
Spotlight on the case of imprisoned Thai democracy activist Arnon Nampa, presented by Akarachai from Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, member of Arnon’s legal team.
Cultural performance
Hip hop performance by Eleven Finger (Thanayut Na Ayuthaya)
Panel: The battle for civic and democratic freedoms
This panel will examine civic freedom restrictions and democratic regression across regions, including patterns emerging in established democracies. Panellists will discuss effective legal and advocacy defence strategies and explore how international organisations can support local responses without creating additional risks. They will address protection mechanisms for human rights defenders facing persecution, forms of international solidarity most valued by democracy movements, and the role of UN mechanisms in safeguarding civic space, concluding with strategic priorities for defending democracy globally.
Moderator: Irene Petras
Panellists: Anabel Cruz, Gina Romero, Marco De Ponte, Patricia Lerner, Yasir Khan
11:00 - 12:15 | Sunday, November 2, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Gender justice, marginalised identities and intersectional inclusion | Democracy is a Verb: Bunking Misinformation With Kindness, organised by Dignity in Difference | Thammasat,Faculty of Political Science, Floor 1,PolSci 102 | This session explores how kindness, empathy, and creativity can counter misinformation. Using the Bunk With Kindness platform, participants will test compassionate response strategies and explore ways to bring them offline. The session offers adaptable tools and facilitation ideas to ground advocacy in care amid rising disinformation targeting civil society. |
Care, self-care, & collective resistance | Living Stories of Change: The ICSW Human Library "Don't Judge a Book by Its Cover: Human Library at ICSW" "Democracy in First Person: Voices from the Human Library". | Thammasat,Faculty of Political Science, Floor 1,PolSci.103 | This Human Library invites participants to "check out" human books who share lived stories of struggle and resilience in democracy, human rights, and inclusion. Through guided conversations, attendees move beyond abstractions, challenge stereotypes, and build empathy and understanding. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | Supporting Social Movements through Participatory Grantmaking: A Case Study of the activist-led and advised Collective Action Assistance Fund (CAAF), organised by Humanity United, on behalf of the Collective Action Assistance Fund | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts, Floor 1,LArt 107-108_2- NO AV | This session explores the lived experience of participatory grantmaking through the activist-led Collective Action Assistance Fund (CAAF). Donors and partners share insights, challenges, and lessons in supporting movements through shared power and collaborative funding. |
Democracy & Civic Space | Lethal in Disguise: Crowd-control weapons and shrinking civic cpace, organised by International Network for Civil Liberties Organizations (INCLO) | Thammasat,College of Innovation,Floor 5,Innovation 501 | This session examines how so-called "less-lethal" crowd-control weapons - tear gas, rubber bullets, kinetic impact projectiles - are misused to repress protest and chill civic space. Experts from Argentina, Australia, and Indonesia share evidence, impacts, and strategies to curb abuses and strengthen protections for protesters, journalists, and communities. |
Digital rights, AI & technology | Digital Resistance Tactics: How Civil Society Evades Censorship, Harnesses AI, and Navigates Internet Shutdowns, organised by Democracy Reporting International (DRI) and EU System for an Enabling Environment for Civil Society (EU SEE) | Thammasat,College of Innovation,Floor 5,Innovation 502-503 | This session highlights how civil society is resisting digital repression through creative, tech-savvy strategies. After a brief overview of key threats tracked by the EU SEE project, participants will join rotating fishbowl conversations on challenging censorship, bypassing internet shutdowns, and harnessing AI for public good-sharing real-world tactics and building collective resilience. |
Democracy & Civic Space | From Crackdown to Pushback: Resisting the Repression of Dissent; Part 1, organised by Amnesty International, INCLO, Climate Defenders Australia, Forum-Asia, KontraS, Centre for Applied Legal Studies/Right 2 Protest, Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, CELS | Amid escalating crackdowns on peaceful protest, this two-part session - plenary plus interactive workshop - shares global case studies and winning tactics. Participants explore legal and advocacy strategies, from anti-SLAPP protections to campaigns for a torture-free trade treaty, and forge cross-border alliances to push back against the misuse of less-lethal weapons and criminalization | |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | Bridges to the Future: Funding, Networks, and Collective Power for Global Civil Society., organised by REDECIM | Thammasat,College of Innovation,Floor 5,Innovation 506 | This session addresses global trends shaping civil society and collective strategies to grow impact. Drawing on AGNA's donor mapping and cross-regional collaboration, we'll show how networks build sustainability and influence. Participants leave with takeaways on governance, funding diversification, and bridge-building across regions. Hosts: REDECIM. |
From Posts to Protests: Shrinking Civic Space and Digital Authoritarianism in Asia | Thammasat,College of Innovation,Floor 5,Innovation 505 |
13:15 - 14:30 | Sunday, November 2, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Democracy & Civic Space | Voices of 36th July: How Queer Resistance & People's Power Reclaimed Democracy in Bangladesh, organised by Brave Dimension Global | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,Floor 1,LArt 107-108_1 | |
Gender justice, marginalised identities and intersectional inclusion
| Democracy 2.0: When the Unheard Take the Mic, organised by Video Volunteers | Thammasat,College of Innovation,Floor 5,Innovation 501 | |
Digital rights, AI & technology | Harnessing Tech for Democracy: Lessons from the Global Hackathon Movement, organised by CIVICUS World Alliance for Citizen Participation | Thammasat,College of Innovation,Floor 5,Innovation 505 | |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | Legal Resilience Lab, organised by PILnet | Thammasat,College of Innovation,Floor 5,Innovation 506 | Strengthen your organization's legal resilience in this 75-minute, hands-on workshop. We'll surface common legal risks facing CSOs - registration, compliance, governance, contracts, and safeguarding - and co-design practical responses. Participants leave with peer-tested tools, quick diagnostics, and next steps to protect operations and sustain impact. |
Democracy & Civic Space | Protecting Civic Space and Human Rights Defenders, organised by ICD Uruguay | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,Floor 1,LArt 107-108_2- NO AV | As restrictions on expression, participation, assembly, and association intensify globally, human rights defenders face growing threats and persecution. This session will explore protection strategies, share lessons learned, and offer recommendations on capacity building and reflective spaces to better support those on the frontlines of defending civic space. |
13:15 - 16:00 | Sunday, November 2, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Arts, storytelling & creative resistance | Building collective narrative power in contested spaces: Learning with and from narrative practitioners around the world | Thammasat,Faculty of Political Science,Floor 1,PolSci.103 | This workshop brings together global narrative practitioners to explore how storytelling can reimagine democracy, rights, and inclusion. Participants will share insights and strategies for amplifying alternative narratives in restricted civic spaces, with a focus on trust, safety, and collective resilience. |
Democracy & Civic Space | EU SEE: Mapping the Pulse of Civil Society's Enabling Environment: From Early Warning to Collective Action, organised by CIVICUS | Thammasat,College of Innovation,Floor 5,Innovation 502-503 | This session reflects on civil society-generated research from the EU System for the Enabling Environment (EU SEE), including early warning alerts and responsive actions through the Flexible Support Mechanism. Through interactive dialogue and breakout groups, participants will share national experiences and co-develop strategies to strengthen support and improve response mechanisms. |
Democracy & Civic Space | From Crackdown to Pushback: Resisting the Repression of Dissent, organised by Amnesty International, INCLO, Climate Defenders Australia, Forum-Asia, KontraS, Centre for Applied Legal Studies/Right 2 Protest, Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, CELS | Thammasat,Faculty of Political Science,Floor 1,PolSci 102 | Amid escalating crackdowns on peaceful protest, this two-part session – plenary plus interactive workshop – shares global case studies and winning tactics. Participants explore legal and advocacy strategies, from anti-SLAPP protections to campaigns for a torture-free trade treaty, and forge cross-border alliances to push back against the misuse of less-lethal weapons and criminalization |
14:45 - 16:00 | Sunday, November 2, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Civil Society Futures | Reimagining civil society: the future of citizen action, organised by RACI | ||
Democracy & Civic Space | How to Protect the Most Marginalised Under Authoritarian Rule?, organised by Hamrah Initiative, Hosted by the Global Dialogue | Thammasat,College of Innovation,5,Innovation 501 | |
Developing an Inclusive Federal Economic Policy for a Democratic Burma | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,1,LArt 107-108_1 | ||
Introducing the Latin America and Caribbean DDI Regional Support Mechanisms | Thammasat,College of Innovation,5,Innovation 505 | ||
Reimagining A World Where HRDs Are Protected | Thammasat,College of Innovation,5,Innovation 506 |
16:15 - 17:45 | Sunday, November 2, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Digital rights, AI & technology | Crash Course: Monitoring online narratives and threats to the digital enabling environment, organised by Democracy Reporting International | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,Floor 1,LArt 107-108_2- NO AV | |
Global Solidarity & movement-building
| Beyond Borders: Building Transnational Solidarity in Times of Crisis, organised by Myqty Women - Education Community | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,Floor 1,LArt 107-108_1 | This 90-minute interactive session spotlights overlooked crises and underrepresented voices from the Global South. Through brief cases, small-group dialogues, and collaborative mapping, human rights defenders co-create cross-border solidarity strategies rooted in care, reciprocity, and collective power - especially when struggles are ignored by mainstream attention. |
Youth, intergenerational movements and civic futures
| "What Can We Do When We Can't Speak?", organised by Civic Literacy Myanmar | Thammasat,College of Innovation,Floor 5,Innovation 501 | An interactive workshop on how youth and women activists sustain civic engagement under repression. Hear real stories, join simulations, and co-create a "Civic Survival Kit" of safer strategies for community action. Leave with practical tools that center grassroots resilience and citizen-led democracy. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | Data is Power: Building Bold Advocacy in Uncertain Times, organised by EM2030 | Thammasat,College of Innovation,Floor 5,Innovation 502-503 | This training equips advocates with foundational knowledge of data-driven advocacy. Participants will explore how to use data to craft compelling messages, shape impactful actions, and influence decision-making - building bold, evidence-based campaigns in uncertain times. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | EC grant training, organised by CIVICUS | Thammasat,College of Innovation,Floor 5,Innovation 505 | Get an overview of European Commission grant management for partners. Learn compliance essentials-eligibility, budgeting, reporting, procurement, audits-and practical tips to avoid common pitfalls and streamline implementation. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | From Crisis Response to Preparedness: Co-Creating Principles for Funders and Civil Society, organised by Better Preparedness Initiative - HRFN/PSFG | Thammasat,College of Innovation,Floor 5,Innovation 301 | This session convenes funders and civil society to co-create practical principles for crisis preparedness and response. Drawing on the Better Preparedness Initiative's Crisis Coordination Playbook, participants will define resilient funding and equitable partnership before, during, and after crises, producing shared priorities and draft principles to guide collaboration and advocacy. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | Civil Society Resilience in Action: Shaping the Flexible Support Mechanism Together, organised by CIVICUS, Oxfam Novib, Protection International, Urgent Action Latin America and Caribbeans (Consortium Event - Flexible Suppor Mechanism) | Thammasat,Faculty of Political Science,Floor 1,PolSci.103 | This consultation session invites civil society actors to shape the Flexible Support Mechanism (FSM) through dialogue on its methodology, funding, and priorities. Participants will co-design the CSA Consultation Group (CCG) with grassroots input, ensuring FSM remains responsive to civic space challenges and grounded in lived realities across the region. |
Democracy & Civic Space | Co-creating change: Innovative mechanisms for civil society and multilateral development institutions engagement in a new era of development cooperation, organised by This event is co-hosted by the World Bank, Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Open Government Partnership (OGP) | Thammasat,Faculty of Political Science,Floor 1,PolSci 102 | As democratic backsliding, funding cuts, and shrinking civic space intensify, this session reimagines CSO'multilateral collaboration. We'll co-create practical ways development banks can partner - with financing, participation, and accountability - so civil society can drive inclusive development, social innovation, and robust oversight. |
10:00 - 11:00 | Sunday, November 2, 2025
Plenary 1: The State of Democracy in Asia - Where are we now?
11:10 - 12:30 | Sunday, November 2, 2025
Plenary 2: Resistance Without Borders - Sustaining Struggles Under Military Rule, Occupation and Forced Exile
13:40 - 15:00 | Sunday, November 2, 2025
Plenary 3: Breaking the Wheel: Dismantling the Cycle of Autocratic Control
15:25 - 16:55 | Sunday, November 2, 2025
Plenary 4: Unraveling the Authoritarian Playbook and New Tactics for Resistance
09:00 - 10:45 | Monday, November 3, 2025
Innovation Awards
Video: Innovation Awards 2024
Presentation of awards: Innovative solutions to contemporary challenges
Poetry performance by Zakariya Amataya
This conversation will examine how systems of oppression interact and compound marginalisation, exploring economic inequality’s intersection with various forms of discrimination as well as colonial power dynamics within civil society and development work. Panellists will discuss how marginalised communities build autonomous power, ensuring accountability campaigns remain community-led, centring the most marginalised women’s voices, and resisting both traditional patriarchy and digital attacks. They explore coalition-building across difference, navigating tensions between social justice movements, and conclude with visions for true inclusion.
Moderator: Biljana Spasovska
Panellists: Arthur Larok, Kevin Wessels, Mette Kristensen, Vandita Morarka, William Gois
Spotlight on the case of Hong Kong democracy activist Chow Hang-Tung, presented by lric Lee from Lady Liberty Hong Kong.
Presentation of awards: Innovative solutions to contemporary challenges
Cultural performance
Poetry performance by Zakariya Amataya
Panel: Nothing about us, without us: Centring marginalised voices
This conversation will examine how systems of oppression interact and compound marginalisation, exploring economic inequality’s intersection with various forms of discrimination as well as colonial power dynamics within civil society and development work. Panellists will discuss how marginalised communities build autonomous power, ensuring accountability campaigns remain community-led, centring the most marginalised women’s voices, and resisting both traditional patriarchy and digital attacks. They explore coalition-building across difference, navigating tensions between social justice movements, and conclude with visions for true inclusion.
Moderator: Biljana Spasovska
Panellists: Arthur Larok, Kevin Wessels, Mette Kristensen, Vandita Morarka, William Gois
Stand As My Witness campaign
Spotlight on the case of Hong Kong democracy activist Chow Hang-Tung, presented by lric Lee from Lady Liberty Hong Kong.
11:00 - 12:15 | Monday, November 3, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Democracy & Civic Space | Journalism and free speech amidst crises, organised by CIVICUS | Thammasat,Faculty of Social Adminnistration,Floor 5,SocAd 501 | We live amid multiple crises. Journalism and freedom speech, critical for democracy and human rights, are under attack. Media is facing a crisis of trust and public relevance. CIVICUS brings together a panel of global journalists to discuss how we can strengthen journalism and free speech to defend civic space. |
Youth, intergenerational movements and civic futures
| From Classrooms to Communities: Building Peace Through Transformative Education., organised by MASTERPEACE RO | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,Floor 1,LArt 107-108_1 | This interactive workshop shows how transformative peace education turns classrooms into communities of peace. Drawing on lessons from 30 Peace Schools, participants will use dialogue, role-play, and creative exercises to build empathy, cooperation, and conflict resolution. We'll surface practical ways to scale peacebuilding from individual learners to entire communities. |
Global Solidarity & movement-building
| Climate, Queer, and Decolonial Protests: Where Struggles Intersect and Solidarity Reimagined., organised by CIVICUS | Thammasat,Puey Ungphakorn School ,Floor 6,PU School Lecture room 1-2 | This session spotlights youth-led climate, queer, and decolonial movements reimagining protest amid shrinking civic space. Through stories and interactive dialogue, we'll examine how intersectional organizing claims space, builds resilience, and practices radical solidarity across borders. Participants leave with strategies for allyship, collective care, and inclusive, democratic action. |
Democracy & Civic Space | Censorship by Detention: Defending the Right to Organize in an Age of Criminalisation, organised by World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) | Thammasat,Student Activity Centre,Floor 4,Stud Act 1-ABC_2_ NO AV | This session examines the growing criminalization and arbitrary detention of human rights defenders- "censorship by detention." Grounded in local realities, it connects practitioners and advocates to share strategies, coordinate global advocacy, and defend the right to organize, civic freedoms, and democratic participation. |
Youth, intergenerational movements and civic futures
| Defending the Future: Threats to Youth-Led Civil Society and Movements, organised by European Partnership for Democracy | Thammasat,Student Activity Centre,Floor 4,Stud Act 1-ABC_1 | This interactive workshop and dialogue will explore existential threats to youth-led civil society and informal movements. Participants will co-develop innovative responses to attacks on association, digital threats, and funding barriers - drawing lessons from Gen Z activism to adapt civic engagement to shifting global contexts. |
Introducing the Middle East and North Africa DDI Regional Support Mechanisms | Royal River,Royal River,Busabongkot B | ||
Shaping the Future: Unlocking Foresight to Navigate Civic Space by 2030 | Royal River,Royal River,Busabongkot A | ||
Truth under pressure: Fact-checking to counter disinformation in constrained civic spaces | Royal River,Royal River,Phanuransi C | ||
Reimagining Access to Justice: A Civic-Tech Approach to Tackling GBV through MobiMOCC | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,Floor 1,LArt 107-108_2 |
13:15 - 14:30 | Monday, November 3, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | Context Is Everything: Fostering Local Philanthropy, organised by Charities Aid Foundation | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,1,LArt 107-108_2 | As foreign aid contracts, local giving grows in importance. This session, led by CAF International Network members, shares ways to build community philanthropy and a culture of everyday generosity, mobilizing regular citizens as protagonists in sustaining civil society. Hosts: CAF International Network. |
Digital rights, AI & technology | Promoting Freedom of Peaceful Assembly Via Censorship-Free Online Platform, organised by One More Percent | Thammasat,Faculty of Social Adminnistration,3,SocAd 306 | This session showcases an app designed to facilitate peaceful protests through a censorship-free online platform, promoting the right to freedom of assembly in increasingly restricted digital environments. |
Global Solidarity & movement-building
| Solidarity in Action: Connecting our Stories, Strengthening our Movement, organised by CIVICUS | Thammasat,Puey Ungphakorn School ,6,PU School Lecture room 1-2 | Join CIVICUS members for an interactive workshop blending storytelling, problem-solving, and collective visioning to strengthen solidarity and connection across civil society. Expect an active, energizing session full of creativity and fun! |
Democracy & Civic Space | Building a Transnational Solidarity Movement: Exile Activism Against Repression, organised by Hamrah Initiative, Hosted by the Global Dialogue | Royal River,Royal River,Busabongkot B | This interactive workshop brings together exiled civil society groups and activists from Asia and the Middle East to share lessons, confront shared challenges, and co-create strategies for cross-border solidarity. Through small-group discussions, participants will design collaborative advocacy and protection efforts to strengthen transnational resistance to repression. |
When localisation is achieved - narratives on possible and preferable futures and how to start now to make it happen! | Royal River,Royal River,Busabongkot A |
13:15 - 16:00 | Monday, November 3, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Global Solidarity & movement-building | Strengthening resilience and solidarity - An Interactive Workshop on Existential Threats to Civil Society, organised by Transparency, Accountability and Participation (TAP) Network | Royal River,Royal River,Phanuransi C | This interactive workshop explores existential threats to civil society - from shrinking civic space and anti-democratic trends to constrained funding. Through shared experiences and peer learning, participants will map risks, surface resilience strategies, and identify concrete actions for collective solidarity and pushback. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | Reimagining civil society resourcing: A blueprint for action, organised by CIVICUS | Thammasat,Student Activity Centre,Floor 4,Stud Act 1-ABC_1 | This session moves from strategy to action on civil society resourcing. We'll co-create context-ready outcomes and invest in safe spaces where local actors connect, exchange, and set shared priorities. Together we'll mobilize resources and partnerships to turn collaboration into concrete, sustainable results. |
Democracy & Civic Space | The power of participatory civic spaces monitoring: Case studies from Oxfam and Plan International, organised by Oxfam, Plan | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,Floor 1,LArt 107-108_1 | This session shows how participatory civic space monitoring strengthens capacity, resilience, and coordinated action for democracy, rights, and inclusion. Oxfam and Plan International share case studies from their monitoring tools, then co-create ways to adapt approaches to diverse contexts and needs. Hosts: Oxfam, Plan International. |
14:45 - 16:00 | Monday, November 3, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Arts, storytelling & creative resistance
| What We Bring To The Table: A Solidarity Potluck For The Citizen Imagination, organised by DAKILA | Thammasat,Puey Ungphakorn School ,Floor 6,PU School Lecture room 1-2 | This participatory potluck celebrates a culture of participation, rights, and inclusion beyond reactive responses. Activists and changemakers will share practices that nourish democratic culture and citizen imagination. Participants are invited to bring small treats from their countries to exchange as an act of solidarity. |
Democracy & Civic Space | This session introduces Oxfam's Rights in a Digital Age (RiaDA) systems map - a prototype diagnostic for digital-rights pathologies - and spotlights partner work from Vietnam and Cambodia under the ReCIPE program. Learn how collaborative mapping and engagement can strengthen a rights-respecting digital ecosystem. Host: Oxfam. , organised by Aqua Energy Research Institute - NPC | This panel explores how social enterprises and community-led innovation can accelerate a just energy transition across the Global South. Speakers will share research and practice on governance linking water, energy, and social justice, highlighting collaborative pathways to equitable, sustainable development. | |
Introducing South and East Asia regional support mechanisms | Royal River,Royal River,Busabongkot B | ||
Reclaiming Civic Space: Enabling Collective Action through Open Platforms for a Safe and Inclusive Civic Space | Royal River,Royal River,Busabongkot A | ||
"Social Enterprises and the Just Transition: Governance for Sustainable Development" | Thammasat,Faculty of Sociology,Floor 4,Sociology-L Meeting Room | ||
Gender justice, marginalised identities and intersectional inclusion | Access in Action: Using Tech to Reimagine Inclusion at Work, organised by Wakari | Thammasat,Student Activity Centre,Floor 4,Stud Act 1-ABC_2_ NO AV | |
Democracy & Civic Space | Tracking global trends, reimagining responses, organised by CIVICUS | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,Floor 1,LArt 107-108_2 |
16:15 - 17:45 | Monday, November 3, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Arts, storytelling & creative resistance
| Archives Without Borders: Reclaiming Language Through Memory and Play, organised by Artist ( lillyannepham.com ) | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,Floor 1,LArt 107-108_1 | This play-based session invites participants to create "archives without borders" - memory kits holding fragmented language, diaspora, and everyday resistance. Through scent, sound, storytelling, and found materials, we'll try mixed and invented ways of communicating to build connection and power. |
Digital rights, AI & technology | Co-Creating a Healthier Digital Civic Space through Partner Engagement, organised by Oxfam | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,Floor 1,LArt 107-108_2 | This session introduces Oxfam's Rights in a Digital Age (RiaDA) systems map - a prototype diagnostic for digital-rights pathologies - and spotlights partner work from Vietnam and Cambodia under the ReCIPE program. Learn how collaborative mapping and engagement can strengthen a rights-respecting digital ecosystem. Host: Oxfam. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | Legal Health Check Workshop for Social Enterprises and Non-profit Organisations, organised by TrustLaw, Thomson Reuters Foundation | Thammasat,Puey Ungphakorn School ,Floor 6,PU School Lecture room 1-2 | This workshop introduces TrustLaw's Legal Health Checks, a practical tool to identify operational legal needs and bolster organizational resilience. Participants will learn how to reduce exposure to SLAPPs, adopt best practices, and access pro bono resources and peer support to strengthen compliance and governance. Host: TrustLaw. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | Decolonising Aid and Advancing Localisation in Times of Global Inequality and Funding Shortages, organised by Oxfam in Asia | Thammasat,Faculty of Sociology,Floor 4,Sociology-L Meeting Room | This session convenes feminist and grassroots leaders to challenge colonial power structures in aid and funding. Through roundtable dialogue, participants will co-create feminist strategies for transformative decolonization and gender-just localization, with a focus on Asia. |
Democracy & Civic Space | CIVICUS Monitor: Understanding civic space trends: from rising threats to civil society to local resistance, organised by CIVICUS | Thammasat,Student Activity Centre,Floor 4,Stud Act 1-ABC_1 | This session presents the latest civic-space trends from the CIVICUS Monitor, followed by a brief panel with frontline testimonies. In facilitated breakouts, participants compare country contexts, surface common and divergent challenges, and co-develop practical responses to strengthen civic space and citizen action. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | EC grant training: Part 2 , organised by CIVICUS | Thammasat,Student Activity Centre,Floor 4,Stud Act 1-ABC_2_ NO AV | Get an overview of European Commission grant management for partners. Learn compliance essentials - eligibility, budgeting, reporting, procurement, audits - and practical tips to avoid common pitfalls and streamline implementation. |
Digital rights, AI & technology | AI-Driven Assemblies: Can Machines Facilitate Collective Decision-Making?, organised by SG Innovation & Strategies | Royal River,Royal River,Phanuransi C | This interactive session invites participants to explore AI as a facilitator - not a substitute - for inclusive decision-making. Through simulations, case studies, and collaborative design, attendees will co-create a framework for integrating AI into democratic processes, especially in under-resourced or transitioning contexts. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | Mapping Power, Strengthening Action: A Stakeholder Design Lab with Vuka! Allies, I4C, and AGNA Members, organised by Vuka Coalition for Civic Action | Royal River,Royal River,Busabongkot A | Join a stakeholder design lab with Vuka!, Innovation for Change (I4C), and AGNA to map key regional actors and assess narrative landscapes across civil society. Together we'll set country and regional priorities for strengthening civic space and generate practical interventions. Hosts: Vuka! Coalition, I4C, AGNA. |
Arts, storytelling & creative resistance | The Tactics Lab: Artivism and Solidarity for Global Resistance, organised by Amnesty International | Royal River,Royal River,Busabongkot B | This session explores artivism - the use of art to resist, preserve history, sustain movements, and forge solidarity. Facilitated by Amnesty International's Civic Space Fellowship team, participants will share examples and co-create a living repository while crafting creative resistance strategies for their contexts. Hosts: Amnesty International (Civic Space Fellowship). |
09:00 - 10:15 | Tuesday, November 4, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Arts, storytelling & creative resistance | The Art of Freedom: Designing Creative Advocacy for Structural Change, organised by AOF( Art of Freedom) Global Foundation | Thammasat,Faculty of Political Science,2,PolSci.202 | This hands-on session explores how to turn resistance into ritual through creative advocacy rooted in community wisdom and cultural resilience. Using storytelling exercises and case studies from Afghanistan, participants will design public interventions that challenge oppressive systems and advance collective liberation. Host: Art of Freedom Project. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability: Safeguarding the Sector in an Age of Disruption, organised by ICNL | Amid shrinking civic space and funding shocks, this panel examines how CSOs adapt, diversify resources, and safeguard operations. Speakers from civil society and donors share regional cases and practical innovations, exploring resilience, accountability, and enabling legal frameworks to secure sustainable, independent civic action in a disruptive era. | |
Democracy & Civic Space | Emerging Trends in Elections in the Digital Age, organised by CIVICUS | This session spotlights citizen-led innovation that safeguards elections in the digital age. CIVICUS' DDI partners from diverse regions share civic-tech tools that bolster integrity and inclusion, amplify marginalized voices, and counter manipulation. Participants leave with replicable practices for more transparent, participatory democracies. | |
Care, self-care, & collective resistance | Rest, Ritual and Reclamation: Reimagining African Activism through Theatre, organised by Atlantic Institute (Global Fellow) | Thammasat,Puey Ungphakorn School ,Floor 6,PU School Lecture room 1-2 | This interactive workshop explores rest, ritual, and theater as tools for sustainable activism in African contexts. Through embodied practices, participants center healing and collective care, using performance to reflect, connect, and imagine new strategies for change. |
Gender justice, marginalised identities and intersectional inclusion | Queering and Transcending Citizen Action for Democracy: How can we build better coalitions?, organised by ILGA World and The Williams Institute | Thammasat,Faculty of Sociology,Floor 4,Sociology-L Meeting Room | This roundtable brings together LGBTI and non-LGBTI civil society actors to explore how democratic coalitions can better reflect and support sexual and gender minorities. Through dialogue and shared experiences, participants will co-develop recommendations for inclusive, equitable, and rights-based cross-movement alliances. |
Global Solidarity & movement-building | Demo: The Coalition Hub - A Digital Platform for Collective Resource Coordination, organised by CIVICUS | Royal River,Royal River,Phanumas | The demo will present an early-stage prototype of the Coalition Hub, a digital tool to centralise and connect resources for civil society organizations. Participants will explore its key features through a live, interactive walkthrough and share feedback. |
From the Street to the Screen: Shifting Protest Forms in the Digital Space | Royal River,Royal River,Phanuransi C | ||
Civil Society Futures: Safeguarding the Sector in an Age of Disruption | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,Floor 1,LArt 107-108_1 |
09:00 - 11:45 | Tuesday, November 4, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Digital rights, AI & technology | Decoding AI Harm: A Lab for Challenging Algorithmic Injustice, organised by CIVICUS | Royal River,Royal River,Busabongkot A | Explore how algorithmic systems amplify bias and harm in this hands-on lab. Using real-world cases, participants will map risks, test simple audit tactics, and co-design mitigation strategies - from governance safeguards to community-led advocacy. Leave with practical tools to challenge AI-driven injustice in your context. |
Gender justice, marginalised identities and intersectional inclusion
| Defending life when spaces close: voices, resistances and learnings of women environmental and territorial defenders in Latin America and Asia | Royal River,Royal River,Busabongkot B | This participatory double session amplifies women defenders from Latin America and Asia. Participants will share struggles, protection strategies, and practices of intersectional collective care. The conversation builds cross-regional alliances for land, territorial, and environmental justice amid closing civic spaces. |
10:30 - 11:45 | Tuesday, November 4, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Youth, intergenerational movements and civic futures | Connect the thread: intergenerational strategies for civic power, organised by CIVICUS | An interactive session where youth and veteran organizers trade tactics for building civic power across generations. We'll explore mentorship models, shared leadership, and tools that bridge digital and on-the-ground organizing. Participants leave with practical steps to sustain intergenerational collaboration in their movements. | |
Democracy & Civic Space | Building Resilience for Human Rights and Democracy Through Capacity Building, organised by Diplomacy Training Program | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,1,LArt 107-108_1 | This roundtable explores capacity building for human rights advocacy in Asia, focusing on strategic collaboration in education and training. Participants will reflect on shared efforts, identify opportunities to reduce duplication, and strengthen collective support for human rights and democratic resilience in the region. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | From process to practice: what it takes to enable local leadership, organised by CIVICUS | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,1,LArt 107-108_2 | This session shares the journey of the Local Leadership Labs - what worked, what didn't, and what changed. Through stories, lessons, and co-created prototypes, we'll show how cross-actor connections strengthen ecosystems. Participants leave with practical steps to enable local leadership and evolve systems to support it. |
Arts, storytelling & creative resistance | Unlearning, Unfolding: Zine-ing Towards Queer Justice, organised by QueersExperience | Thammasat,Faculty of Sociology,4,Sociology-L Meeting Room | Through a playful bingo and hands-on zine-making, this workshop invites participants to reflect on allyship, imagine queer futures, and commit to action. We'll close with a collective share-out that builds community learning, accountability, and momentum toward queer justice. |
Global Solidarity & movement-building | EC Networks Meeting - Reclaiming Collective Power: The Evolving Role of Networks in Defending Civic Space, organised by CIVICUS | Royal River,Royal River,Phanuransi C | This meeting convenes EC networks to share strategies for defending civic space and reclaiming collective power. Participants will exchange lessons on coordination, rapid response, and advocacy, and identify joint actions to support members facing restrictions and to influence policy and funder practices. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | "Radical Imagination, Real Impact: Celebrating Civil Society Innovation" The CIVICUS Nelson Mandela - Graça Machel Innovation Awards Showcase, organised by CIVICUS | Celebrate bold solutions advancing democracy, rights, and inclusion. Finalists of the CIVICUS Nelson Mandela - Graça Machel Innovation Awards share real-world impacts and lessons from their initiatives. | |
Digital rights, AI & technology | Introducing the Sub-Saharan Africa DDI Regional Support Mechanisms, organised by CIVICUS | Royal River,Royal River,Phanumas | This session introduces the Sub-Saharan Africa DDI Regional Support Mechanisms, highlighting collaborative infrastructure designed to strengthen democratic innovation across the region. |
An Intergenerational Dialogue: Power, Justice and Collective Vision | Thammasat,Faculty of Political Science,2,PolSci.202 |
12:00 - 13:15 | Tuesday, November 4, 2025
ICSW Concurrent Events
| Track | Event title | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Arts, storytelling & creative resistance | Mainstreaming Artivism: ArtLords Case Study in Afghanistan, organised by ArtLords | Thammasat,Faculty of Political Science,2,PolSci.202 | This session showcases ArtLords' case study from Afghanistan on artivism in fragile contexts. Through a panel, presentation, and digital exhibit, it explores how murals and performance challenge oppression, spark dialogue, and build solidarity - while spotlighting ongoing support for at-risk and exiled artists. |
Democracy & Civic Space | Now what? Legal support to civil society, organised by Thomson Reuters Foundation | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,1,LArt 107-108_1 | This interactive roundtable explores legal strategies to defend civil society amid growing regulatory pressure and funding challenges. Participants will assess the global landscape and co-identify tools and resources to protect civic space and support organizational resilience. |
Democracy & Civic Space | Harnessing innovative methodologies on civic space to build a resilient civil society, organised by EU SEE, ECNL , OMCT | Thammasat,Faculty of Liberal Arts,1,LArt 107-108_2 | This session spotlights innovative methodologies for monitoring civic space and the enabling environment, comparing tools used by ECNL, OMCT, EU SEE, and participants. Together we'll identify gaps and turn monitoring insights into sharper advocacy, policy, and strategy. Hosts: ECNL, OMCT, EU SEE. |
Democracy & Civic Space | Protecting the Oxygen of the Human Rights Ecosystem: Ensuring the Safety of Human Rights Defenders Against Suffocating Democracy in Southeast Asia, organised by Tifa Foundation | Thammasat,Puey Ungphakorn School ,6,PU School Lecture room 1-2 | This session combines a panel and information booth on protecting environmental and human rights defenders in Southeast Asia. Speakers share safety insights and highlight initiatives that strengthen protection and solidarity. Hosts: Tifa Foundation, FORUM-ASIA, Samdhana Institute, People Empowerment Foundation. |
Civil Society Futures: Resourcing, Accountability and Sustainability | From restrictive to inclusive: co-creating a community-led pooled fund, organised by CIVICUS | Thammasat,Faculty of Sociology,4,Sociology-L Meeting Room | This session introduces a community-led pooled fund that shifts governance, grantmaking, and operations to grassroots groups. Participants will co-create and refine the model, advancing inclusive, accountable, locally led funding that counters extractive practices and strengthens agency amid shrinking civic space. |
Care, self-care, & collective resistance | Reimagining Care and Power: A Global Dialogue for Women of Colour Leading Social Change, organised by Independent, Thousand&One, Climate Sirens | Royal River,Royal River,Phanuransi C | This participatory workshop gathers Women of Colour activists to share stories and co-create strategies that reframe care as a transformative political act. Through dialogue and solidarity, participants will explore how care sustains movements and strengthens collective resilience across borders. |
Digital rights, AI & technology | Democracy vs. the Algorithm? Civil Society, AI, and the Future of Rights, organised by Innovation for Change (I4C) | Royal River,Royal River,Le celeste | AI is reshaping civic space - from governance and services to disinformation and surveillance. This session unpacks democratic risks and opportunities and co-creates a Civil Society AI Action Brief with rights-based recommendations. Through interactive scenarios, participants design safeguards so technology strengthens, not undermines, civic freedoms. |
Global Solidarity & movement-building | Fair for All: Defending civic space for inclusive and sustainable trade and value chains, organised by Oxfam | Royal River,Royal River,Phanumas | This session showcases insights from the Fair for All program across 14 countries on defending civic space for inclusive, sustainable trade and value chains. A panel shares research linking civic space to equitable trade and partner strategies amid shrinking freedoms, offering actionable recommendations for policymakers, donors, and practitioners. |
Digital rights, AI & technology | Reclaiming Attention: Countering Authoritarian and Populist Weaponisation of Digital Engagement', organised by CIVICUS | Royal River,Royal River,Busabongkot A | Across six sessions, this series examines how authoritarian and populist actors weaponize digital engagement - and how civil society can reclaim attention and rebuild trust online. Drawing on partners' lived experiences, we'll map regional realities, surface promising tactics, and explore opportunities to strengthen democratic digital ecosystems. |
Artivism as Resistance: Reclaiming Public Space in Post-Regime Contexts | Royal River,Royal River,Busabongkot B |
14:15- 16:00 | Tuesday, November 4, 2025
Youth manifesto
Presented by the CIVICUS Youth Action Team
The Commoner Band
This dialogue will explore how intersecting crises reshape organising across generations, examining which approaches no longer suffice and what each generation brings that’s essential for movement survival. Panellists will address genuine power-sharing beyond consultation, climate policies young people demand that institutions resist, funding structures and hierarchies excluding youth organisers, and adultist assumptions in activism. They will discuss balancing crisis urgency with long-term capacity-building, transferring power and decision-making authority between generations, funding youth-led initiatives without imposing adult structures, and concrete practices advancing intergenerational collaboration.
Moderator: Yi Kang Choo
Panellists: Debbie Stothard, Mihajlo Matkovic, Wilhelmina ‘DitDit’ Pelegrina, Willeke Van Rijn
Video created from materials produced at the Stand As My Witness creative atelier, including participant illustrations, solidarity messages from the Witness Wall installation, Postcards of Hope written to imprisoned defenders, and collective action moments captured throughout the week. Presented by the CIVICUS Communications team.
Call to action and collective solidarity pledge
Reflection on the week’s journey from examining where we stand through democratic struggles and inclusion battles to building futures together, inviting participants to carry forward the commitments and connections made throughout ICSW 2025.
Cultural performance
The Commoner Band
Panel: Intergenerational dialogue/Building sustainable movements
This dialogue will explore how intersecting crises reshape organising across generations, examining which approaches no longer suffice and what each generation brings that’s essential for movement survival. Panellists will address genuine power-sharing beyond consultation, climate policies young people demand that institutions resist, funding structures and hierarchies excluding youth organisers, and adultist assumptions in activism. They will discuss balancing crisis urgency with long-term capacity-building, transferring power and decision-making authority between generations, funding youth-led initiatives without imposing adult structures, and concrete practices advancing intergenerational collaboration.
Moderator: Yi Kang Choo
Panellists: Debbie Stothard, Mihajlo Matkovic, Wilhelmina ‘DitDit’ Pelegrina, Willeke Van Rijn
Stand As My Witness campaign: Live solidarity creation
Video created from materials produced at the Stand As My Witness creative atelier, including participant illustrations, solidarity messages from the Witness Wall installation, Postcards of Hope written to imprisoned defenders, and collective action moments captured throughout the week. Presented by the CIVICUS Communications team.
Call to action and collective solidarity pledge
Closing
Reflection on the week’s journey from examining where we stand through democratic struggles and inclusion battles to building futures together, inviting participants to carry forward the commitments and connections made throughout ICSW 2025.
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ICSW 2025 – Plenary sessions
Plenary 1: Where we stand
The opening plenary invites us to reflect on how civil society has transformed over time — learning from moments of crisis and resilience to make sense of where we stand today. By drawing on our collective past, we find direction and inspiration for the road ahead.
With a performance from the Burma Mini Orchestra
Agenda:
1. CIVICUS Business
- Message from the CIVICUS Board Chair
-Presentation of the CIVICUS documentation project
-AGNA 21 years
2. Cultural performance: Burma Mini Orchestra
3. Panel discussion: Civil society’s evolution through crises
4. Recorded message
5. Stand As My Witness
6. Transition to concurrent sessions
With a performance from the Burma Mini Orchestra
Agenda:
1. CIVICUS Business
- Message from the CIVICUS Board Chair
-Presentation of the CIVICUS documentation project
-AGNA 21 years
2. Cultural performance: Burma Mini Orchestra
3. Panel discussion: Civil society’s evolution through crises
4. Recorded message
5. Stand As My Witness
6. Transition to concurrent sessions
Plenary 1: Where we stand
The opening plenary invites us to reflect on how civil society has transformed over time — learning from moments of crisis and resilience to make sense of where we stand today. By drawing on our collective past, we find direction and inspiration for the road ahead.
With a performance from the Burma Mini Orchestra
Agenda:
1. CIVICUS Business
- Message from the CIVICUS Board Chair
-Presentation of the CIVICUS documentation project
-AGNA 21 years
2. Cultural performance: Burma Mini Orchestra
3. Panel discussion: Civil society’s evolution through crises
4. Recorded message
5. Stand As My Witness
6. Transition to concurrent sessions
With a performance from the Burma Mini Orchestra
Agenda:
1. CIVICUS Business
- Message from the CIVICUS Board Chair
-Presentation of the CIVICUS documentation project
-AGNA 21 years
2. Cultural performance: Burma Mini Orchestra
3. Panel discussion: Civil society’s evolution through crises
4. Recorded message
5. Stand As My Witness
6. Transition to concurrent sessions
09:00 - 11:00
Welcome to Bangkok
Thammasat University, International Civil Society Week, and the Asia Pacific Social Forum welcome participants to their events in Bangkok.
11:15 - 13:00
ICSW Opening plenary
The opening plenary invites us to reflect on how civil society has transformed over time — learning from moments of crisis and resilience to make sense of where we stand today. By drawing on our collective past, we find direction and inspiration for the road ahead.
Panelists: Miklos Marschall, Ingrid Srinath, Lysa John, Amitabh Behar with a performance from the Burma Mini Orchestra
Panelists: Miklos Marschall, Ingrid Srinath, Lysa John, Amitabh Behar with a performance from the Burma Mini Orchestra
14:00 - 15:15 | Democracy & Civic Space
Reimagining A World Where HRDs Are Protected
This session explores global trends shaping civil society and the collective strategies that strengthen its impact. Drawing on AGNA’s work mapping donors and fostering cross-regional collaboration, it highlights how networks can drive sustainability and influence. Participants will gain insights on governance, funding diversification, and building bridges toward a more connected and resilient civil society.
Plenary 2: Defending democracy and civic space
This plenary explores the rising restrictions on civic freedoms and how civil society is mobilising to protect democracy and defend civic space. We examine which defence strategies are proving effective, and how we can better protect defenders and support movements under threat.
Panelists: Gina Romero, Anabel Cruz, Patricia Lerner, Yasir Khan
1. CIVICUS business
Protest Lab / WeRisers
2. Recorded message
3. Cultural Performance: Rap against dictatorship
4. Recorded Message
5. Panel Discussion
6. Stand As My Witness
Panelists: Gina Romero, Anabel Cruz, Patricia Lerner, Yasir Khan
1. CIVICUS business
Protest Lab / WeRisers
2. Recorded message
3. Cultural Performance: Rap against dictatorship
4. Recorded Message
5. Panel Discussion
6. Stand As My Witness
Plenary 3: Inclusion struggles: rights at the margins
This plenary highlights the voices and struggles of marginalised communities working for inclusion across gender, sexuality, race, disability, ethnicity, religion, and migration status — exploring how intersectional oppression shapes their realities and how solidarity is built across distinct struggles.
Panelists: Blessing Ewa, Mette Kristensen, Vandita Morarka, Arthur Larok
1. CIVICUS business
2. Recorded message
3. Cultural Performance by Zakariya Amataya
4. Recorded Message
5. Panel discussion: Nothing about us, without us: centering marginalised voices
6. Stand As My Witness
Panelists: Blessing Ewa, Mette Kristensen, Vandita Morarka, Arthur Larok
1. CIVICUS business
2. Recorded message
3. Cultural Performance by Zakariya Amataya
4. Recorded Message
5. Panel discussion: Nothing about us, without us: centering marginalised voices
6. Stand As My Witness
Closing Plenary: Futures we’re building: youth, climate and intergenerational justice
This closing plenary centres youth voices and climate action, focusing on how we foster intergenerational dialogue to build lasting movements, addressing climate impacts, and moving from consultation to genuine power sharing.
Panelists: Willeke van Rijn, Debbie Stothard, Mihajlo Matkovic
1. CIVICUS business
2. Recorded message
3. Cultural Performance by the Commoner Band
4. Recorded Message
5. Panel discussion: Intergenerational dialogue/Building sustainable movements
6. Stand As My Witness: Live Solidarity Creation
Panelists: Willeke van Rijn, Debbie Stothard, Mihajlo Matkovic
1. CIVICUS business
2. Recorded message
3. Cultural Performance by the Commoner Band
4. Recorded Message
5. Panel discussion: Intergenerational dialogue/Building sustainable movements
6. Stand As My Witness: Live Solidarity Creation
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Speakers
Amitabh Behar
Oxfam International
Anabel Cruz
Instituto de Comunicación y Desarrollo (ICD)
Mads Christensen
Executive Director, Greenpeace International
Naila Farouky
CEO - Arab Foundations Forum
Prof. Pete Fussey
Professor and Head of Sociology, Social Policy and Criminology, University of Southampton
Lysa John
Executive Director, Atlantic Institute, Oxford
Caro Krijger
Head of the Civil Society Division of the Social Development Department, Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Arthur Larok
Secretary General, Action Aid International
Patricia Lerner
Senior Advisor, Greenpeace International
Dr. Daragh Murray
Reader- International Law and Human Rights, Queen Mary University of London
Lotte Peters
Diplomat in training and policy officer at the Civil Society Division of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Marco de Ponte
HIVOS
Willeke van Rijn
CEO | The Resource Alliance
Gina Romero
The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association
Ingrid Srinath
Chair, Resource Alliance
Yasir Khan
Editor-in-Chief, Thomson Reuters Foundation
Sonia Kwami
Independent Consultant and CIVICUS Board Member
Stellah Bosire
Executive Director of The Africa Center for Health Systems and Gender Justice and CIVICUS Board Chair
Irene Petras
International Center for Not-for-Profit Law’s Africa Program Lead and CIVICUS Board Member
Mette Müller Kristensen
Executive Director of Global Focus and CIVICUS Board Member
Vandita Morarka
CEO of One Future Collective and CIVICUS Board Member
Biljana Spasovska
Executive Director of the Balkan Civil Society Development Network (BCSDN) and CIVICUS Board Member
Yi Kang Choo
Programme Officer at Transparency International and CIVICUS Board MemberThis year’s
theme is
“Celebrating
citizen action:
Reimagining democracy, rights, and inclusion for today’s world”, and the programme will feature several sub-tracks dedicated to key issues including democracy, human rights, inclusion, artivism, resourcing, and more.
Together, we’re building a space that reflects the power and diversity of civil society in the region and worldwide.
Stay tuned – we’ll be sharing updates on sessions, speakers, and activities very soon.
