Prof. Nicolas Levrat has been the UN Special Rapporteur on minority issues since November 2023 and is a Professor of International and European Law at the University of Geneva.

As a member of a Swiss linguistic minority, his academic work has focused on minority rights and Federalism. A remarkable 30-year career includes launching the Geneva Human Rights Week, publishing 7 and editing 20 books, and producing 120 works of academic literature.

Thus far as Special Rapporteur, Prof. Nicolas Levrat has focused on strengthening the protection of minorities through work on the right to identity, minority representation and self-representation, and institutional designs that enhance effective participation. He has issued recommendations through the Forum on Minority Issues, contributed to UN reform discussions to better integrate minority rights, and advanced the promotion of diversity as a universal human-rights value. He has presented reports to the Human Rights Council and is preparing country visits, including planned missions to Iraq and Nepal.

Thursday’s peace café will discuss Levrat’s upcoming country visits to the EU, Nepal and Iraq. Our Q&A is open to all issues relating to minority rights, with a special focus on transitional justice and minority rights in a post-war contexts. We will consider Global North and South influences for shaping minority rights.

Don’t miss this chance to gain real-world perspectives from a seasoned professional in the peacebuilding field!