About the IHRN

The International Human Rights Network of Academies and Scholarly Societies (IHRN) is an international consortium of honorary societies in the sciences, engineering, and medicine with a shared interest in human rights.

The IHRN advocates in support of professional colleagues suffering human rights abuses, promotes the free exchange of ideas and opinions among scientists and scholars, and supports the independence and autonomy of national academies and scholarly societies worldwide. It also raises global awareness of the connections between human rights and science, engineering, and medicine.​

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IHRN Executive Committee member Ida Nicolaisen discusses the history and aims of the IHRN and why she got involved.

  • 15th Biennial Meeting of the IHRN

    The Relationship between Academic Freedom and Human Rights

    ‍Now available: a summary of the IHRN public symposium that addressed escalating threats to human rights and academic freedom around the world.

    The symposium was part of the 15th biennial meeting of the IHRN, held in Oslo, Norway, from September 9-11, 2025, and hosted by the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters.

    A brief synopsis of the meeting, along with photos and video recordings of the symposium, can be found on the meeting webpage.

    Read the Summary

  • Violence against Health Professionals in Conflict Zones

    The IHRN’s Executive Committee has issued a public statement calling on all parties to armed conflicts to safeguard the rights of health professionals and urging the global health and research communities, including national academies, to condemn and raise awareness of escalating attacks on health care providers.

    Read the Statement

  • IHRN Bulletin

    The IHRN biannual human rights bulletin contains updates on the IHRN Secretariat’s activities, human rights resources, and highlights of IHRN participating academies’ human rights events, publications, and announcements. Read past issues of the bulletin.

    To receive future issues of this bulletin and other news from the IHRN, subscribe to the IHRN mailing list.

    Subscribe
PARTICIPANTS

National academies and scholarly societies with an interest in human rights are invited to participate in the IHRN

STATEMENTS

The Executive Committee makes occasional public statements on pressing issues related to the mandate of the IHRN

RESOURCES

Learn more about the ways national academies around the world are integrating human rights activities into their work​

“No words are enough to express my recognition to the efforts of the members of your Institutions and those of the International Network on my behalf…I am convinced that I owe my release in a great extent to all of you.”
— Oscar Espinosa Chepe