In honor of HRAP’s 35th anniversary, ISHR has asked Columbia University alumni to share their recollections of the program. The fourth alumnus to be featured is Jaclyn Sawyer who earned a MSW in Social Work and Policy Practice from the Columbia School of Social Work in 2015. Jaclyn is the Associate Vice President of Data Strategy at Breaking Ground and a Lecturer at the Columbia School of Social Work.
I first learned of the Human Rights Advocates Program (HRAP) in 2013 when I was a graduate student and one of the few lucky Americans living at International House. I was studying public policy and social work at Columbia University, and part of an incredible community of graduate students from across the world, areas of study, and educational institutions. That year I had the privilege of getting to know a cohort of human rights advocates, finding inspiration and overlap in our collective advocacy work. One of the advocates, Sylvester Uhaa, and I found particular resonance in each other’s work, both dedicated to justice reform. We found common cause in our efforts to promote the dignity and humanity of anyone interacting with justice systems and advocacy to reduce the incarcerated population. We learned from each other’s experiences in New York and Nigeria, and went on to develop a project to support Sylvester’s work at home and establish libraries and educational programs within Nigerian prisons.
Together, we facilitated the delivery of 22,000 books to Nigerian prisons, and developed methods to measure the impact of educational programming within prisons on recidivism rates and positive reintegration outcomes. Despite some hurdles along the way, the project progressed from planning to execution, laying the groundwork for educational initiatives within the prison system. This project still inspires me in the power of finding shared goals in work executed across cultures and circumstances, and the power of building these relationships to bring capacity to the collective work and strengthen grassroots efforts.
Since that work in 2014, I have forged my career in building data capacities in human rights and social justice endeavors. I have helped numerous non-profits learn what data they have and the stories it holds, exploring how they can leverage small data in thoughtful ways to further their mission. I have stayed connected to higher education institutions to cultivate these spaces where people and ideas come together to develop novel, shared solutions that can’t be developed alone. As a lecturer at Columbia University, School of Social Work I developed a course called Advocacy in Emerging Tech, Media, and Society that prepares students across disciplines to leverage their skills in the emerging tech landscape and engage with the pressing issues of human rights in the digital age. In this capacity, I’ve been able to stay connected to the HRAP program year after year, meeting the new cohorts and hosting workshops on data-based advocacy.
In the digital age, human rights advocacy is undergoing a profound transformation, as technology shapes both the challenges and opportunities for activists. I am thrilled to continue to be connected to HRAP and be able to explore new tools and approaches with advocates and learn how the work is adapting in new environments. There is an urgent need for collaboration between technologists, policymakers, and civil society to uphold human rights in the digital realm and HRAP has provided an inspiring avenue for initiating these connections and collaborations, strengthening and upholding practitioner networks across the globe.
