Institute for Human Rights, Åbo Akademi University

🌟 As one chapter ends, another begins!

🎓 Today marked a milestone for many students studying Public International Law at Åbo Akademi University. At today’s graduation ceremonies, students within the Master’s­ Degree­ Pro­gramme in­­ Inter­national Law­ and­ Human­ Rights, a programme offered by the Institute, attained their Master’s Degrees in Social Sciences or in International and Comparative Law.

🎓 Also, students within the Bachelor’s Programme in Social Sciences and with the main subject of Public International Law, also had their graduation ceremony today. Many will continue with their Master’s studies within the Institute’s programme; congratulations, and see you again this fall!

🎉 To those now leaving Åbo Akademi and starting a new chapter, the whole Institute would like to wish you the very best for what the future may hold for you! Remember to always believe in yourselves, and be confident in your knowledge and competence!

🌻 Congratulations, and also lovely summer to staff, students and alumni!

🇮🇸 Club Åbo in Reykjavík:

⚖️ Club Åbo, is Åbo Akademi University’s and University of Turku’s joint team at Nordiska rättegångstävlingen om de mänskliga rättigheterna (The Nordic Moot Court Competition on Human Rights).

🏅 This year’s competition took place last week in Reykjavík, where the team did very well by winning their own division, and with Frida Sundholm receiving an award for best closing statement in their division as well!

🎉 After a close contest in the semifinal however, the opponent took more points this time. Coach Viljam Engström still says he could not be more proud, and together with the whole Institute congratulates all team members of Club Åbo!

🌏 Update from abroad!

📌 This week Doctoral Researcher Angelica Conti has been all the way to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 🇲🇾, to participate in the Research Conference on Refugee Studies and Forced Displacement. The conference took place from Tuesday to Wednesday and was organized by the ASEAN Research Center (ARC) at the Asia School of Business (ASB) in partnership with UNHCR Malaysia.

📌 Organized every year in close connection with the World Refugee Day (celebrated on June 20), this year, it had an added focus on the situation of stateless persons, which is directly related to Angelica's PhD topic.

📌 In addition to academic papers and poster presentations, the conference provided a safe space to individuals with lived experience of refugeehood, with dedicated workshops and a refugee entrepreneur bazaar.

🔎 Many different topics were addressed, you can find the conference's agenda in the comments below!

📣 Check out Karla Schröter’s book chapter:

📄 “Colonial Fantasies in the European Court of Human Rights” is a chapter that explores why the Court has decided that it is in accordance with the ECHR to ban hijabs and face-veils in public institutions and spaces. Instead of properly scrutinising the bans and looking at the power dynamics at play, the Court seems to retreat into colonial fantasies, recreating narratives that make Muslim women victims, objects of conquest and threats to human rights law.

📄 The chapter traces these fantasies back to their origin in colonial history and violence, showing how they continue to guide and legitimise violence against Muslim women until today, even within a human rights framework.

📖 The chapter is published in the book “Emancipating International Law: Confronting the Violence of Racialized Boundaries”, a book exploring “international law’s complicity with racial hierarchy, systemic oppression, and global white supremacy”, as is described by the editors Mohsen al Attar and Claire Smith.

🔗 Access the chapter via the link below!

Colonial Fantasies in the European Court of Human Rights Abstract. This chapter argues that the European Court of Human Rights applies and legitimizes ontologies based on whiteness and masculinity when assessing

Today we have another update from one of our doctoral researchers! Elina Sagne-Ollikainen started her PhD in 2022 and shares her experience below:

🎓Why did you decide to apply to be a doctoral researcher at the Institute?
My research focus is on identifying Impactful Human Rights work in Finland, and I felt that the Institute for Human Rights at Åbo Akademi University is the best research environment in Finland for this topic.

📚What is your primary area of research?
I am studying different societal levels; the public, private and the culture sector and human rights work within these sectors. This entails Human Rights practices in Finland within and by National Human rights bodies and Ombudsman activities, Business and Human rights, linguistic and cultural rights and the connection between theatre as a societal institution and human rights.

📆What does a normal day as a researcher look like?
Reading, writing, conducting field work, thinking, planning or writing grant applications, and hopefully also coffee breaks with other researchers.

💫What is your favorite part of being a researcher?
The autonomy, the intellectual work and the feeling that research can open up new perspectives and possibilities of the society, the people and the world, and maybe in the long term, change things for the better.

Thank you Elina for sharing your experiences!

🗺️ Alumni update: Vitória Dell'Aringa Rocha

💭 Who are you?
I am Vitória Dell'Aringa Rocha and I come from Brazil. I graduated from the Master’s Degree Programme in International Law and Human Rights at Åbo Akademi University in June 2024.

💭 What do you do today?
Today I work as a Latin America and Human Rights Defenders researcher at an international NGO called Business and Human Rights Centre.

💭 How do you look back at your studies?
It was a life-changing experience, both professionally and personally. I am really grateful to have been able to represent Brazil and Latin America, bringing our perspective to the Finnish environment, deconstructing stereotypes and learning a lot as well.

💭 Any words of wisdom?
Do it with your heart and mind opened. This is the time to challenge everything you thought you knew and to get to know different perspectives and backgrounds. Take advantage of the multicultural environment provided and "pop your bubble". This is essential if you'd like to become a good human rights professional.

🏆 Yesterday, our alumnus Carl Englund was awarded the AIACE Finland pro gradu award! The award was granted to three authors of outstanding theses on EU-related topics. AIACE Finland is the Finnish section of the International Association of Former Staff of the European Union.

🇪🇺 Carl’s thesis, “Human rights violations as a strategic decision? An analysis of CJEU jurisdiction in the CFSP and the effects of the KS and KD case on human rights protection”, examines the limits of the Court of Justice of the European Union’s jurisdiction in the Common Foreign and Security Policy and how these limits affect the protection of human rights.

The panel of judges gave the following reasoning:

🌟 “The thesis addresses a timely and significant question regarding the EU’s role as a defender of the rules-based international order and human rights. A strength of this work is its ability to combine legal analysis with broader institutional and geopolitical implications, as well as with current public discourse. The thesis examines, in particular, the legal dimensions of the EU’s foreign and security policy in a changed geopolitical context, as well as the EU’s relationship with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Furthermore, it analyzes the significance of the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union in the development of jurisdiction and legal protection, and highlights alternative interpretive frameworks. Overall, the thesis was evaluated as a very well-written, analytically strong, and theoretically rich work.”

🎉 Congratulations Calle!

💡Did you know?

📚Tålking Rights is a scholarly blog which is powered by the Institute. It focuses on publishing high quality and topical pieces in the field of human rights and public international law.

🔍Publications on the blog cover a broad range of issues including topics relevant both internationally and to the Finnish context more specifically!

🎓Furthermore, students within the Master’s­ Degree­ Pro­gramme in­­ Inter­national Law­ and­ Human­ Rights also have the opportunity to be part of the blog’s editorial team! This is a valuable experience which provides insight in editing and familiarization with many different areas and topics of law.

🔗 Check out the latest publication from last week via the link below!

Understanding the CED's Competence Under Article 34 Explained Explore the UN Committee's recent decision on enforced disappearances in Mexico, emphasizing its significance and legal implications.

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to be a doctoral researcher here at the Institute? First year doctoral researcher Frida Bergenwall shares her experience below:

🎓Why did you decide to apply to the PhD programme?
I worked as a research assistant at the Institute during my studies, so I was already familiar with both the field and the work environment. I’ve always been open to the idea of a PhD, but it wasn’t until I graduated that I started to seriously consider it. The encouragement and support of my colleagues and supervisors also played an important role, they made the whole process feel less daunting.

📚What is the focus of your research?
I mainly focus on the domestic implementation of international human rights law, with a particular focus on vulnerability, criminal law and protection gaps.

📆What does a normal day look like?
I’ll summarise today as an example: I woke up at 7 and did some work on a report, and at around 10 I made breakfast and got ready for the day. At 11:30 I checked my messages and email, and then I continued with the report. At around 14 I was done with that for the day, and moved on to do some fine tuning of a text for another project. At 15 I took a break to meet a friend for coffee and run some errands. At about 17 I got back home and dealt with my messages and emails again, and now I’m rounding off the workday with this.
It varies from day to day, and I really enjoy the variety and flexibility. Some days, getting a head start on the hardest tasks really helps prevent procrastination and stress later. The work often demands a lot of mental energy and focus, so I’ve found that short breaks are more distracting than helpful, whereas longer breaks let me reset my brain completely. When I go to Turku (instead of working remotely in Helsinki), my work days tend to have a traditional schedule.

💫What is your favorite part of being a researcher?
The opportunity to do work that I find interesting, important and inspiring. The best part of the IMR specifically is the work environment. The kind, passionate, competent and wise people I get to work with are a constant source of inspiration and support, and I couldn’t be more grateful.

Thank you Frida!

🗺️ Alumni update: Carl Englund

💭 Who are you?
My name is Carl Englund and I'm from Pellinki, Porvoo, Finland. I graduated in spring 2025.

💭 What do you do today?
I currently work as a junior expert at the Finnish Human Rights Centre. The HRC is an autonomous and independent expert institution (established by law, with legally binding duties, and not for example a civil society organisation). Its duties include following and promoting the implementation of fundamental and human rights. The Centre together with the Office of the Parliamentary Ombudsman form the National Human Rights Institution of Finland.

As a junior expert my tasks are twofold:
One part of the programme is promoting young people's rights (aged 18-29), including writing a longer report on their status in Finland. The other part of the job is based on my personal background and interests, and includes work on fundamental and human rights in an EU context, rule of law issues, as well as corporate responsibility.

💭 How do you look back at your studies?
I look back at my studies with fondness. I really appreciate the quality of the teachers and the fact that they were so approachable. I also feel that I was given lots of room to focus on areas that especially interested me.

💭 Any words of wisdom?
Remember to have fun outside the studies!