COMMUNICATION

At the opening of the course “Youth and Human Rights Activism”, the director of the European and Ibero-American Academy of Yuste Foundation, Juan Carlos Moreno Piñero, claimed that these sessions are “different and necessary because they speak of the present but above all of the future”. In his opinion, the issue has an impact on civil society and young people in particular since more than sixty people from twelve countries have enrolled, “and not in all these countries, he stated, is respect for human rights sufficiently guaranteed”. (18/07/2023)

Moreno Piñero highlighted the students’ great interest in the contents of the course, which demonstrates their commitment to values and human rights and at the same time, he said, “remember that there are many other young people of your age who are listening to us and who risk their freedom and even their life to defend the fact that we can all express our ideas freely, to defend equality between men and women or that no one is better than anyone else because of their different skin colour”. Thus, the director of the Foundation asked the students enrolled to be authentic activists committed to the defence of human rights because “it is in your generation where much of the hope for the future of humanity lies”.

In turn, the PhD in Latin Philology from the University of Extremadura, Marta Ramos Grané, explained that, as a humanist, she considers that rights and the struggle to achieve them is one of the engines of society. She, therefore, affirmed that advancement and progress come hand in hand with dialectics and in her opinion, “without debate, we are lost”. To conclude, Ramos assured that despite living in a world that is dehumanised and individualistic, “there are still people willing to fight and defend other people and the role of activism and associationism to achieve change is therefore important”.

To close the floor for discussion of the opening, the vice-rector of Students, Employment and Mobility of the University of Extremadura, Alicia González Pérez, expressed her satisfaction because the course “Youth and Human Rights Activism” intends to reflect on the importance of youth activism promoted by different media and platforms “to work on building a better, more sustainable, inclusive future that respects human rights” she affirmed. In the the vice-rector’s opinion, current issues such as new feminisms, migrations, climate actions, social platforms against poverty, digitisation and its impact on society, refugees and migrations “are crucial to work the defence of human rights from an institutional and political sphere and from civil society and the third sector” she explained.

This course, which is taking place at the Monastery of San Jerónimo de Yuste, can be followed online via Yuste Foundation’s YouTube channel, thus opening a window to the world.

“Youth and Human Rights Activism”, which is framed within Yuste Foundation’s training programme Campus Yuste, is part of the University of Extremadura’s International Summer Courses and is sponsored by MAFRESA; it counts with the collaboration of the Youth Council of Extremadura; the Youth Institute of the Regional Government of Extremadura, the European Documentation Centre of Extremadura; National Heritage and the Councils of Caceres and Badajoz.