About

 

What is the Rights Now foundation

The Rights Now foundation wants to improve the lives and opportunities of humans in vulnerable situations. We provide financial support to various projects, efforts and initiatives. We also engage in advocacy, primarily by sharing our knowledge and spreading information from our partners and their projects.

Overall, we want to bring about a change toward a more socially sustainable society. We want to contribute to a more just and equitable world, where all people can feel safe and prosper – a world where each and everyone can enjoy their human rights.

The Rights Now foundation provides financial support to non-profit organizations worldwide which implement projects, activities and actions that promote human rights, improved living conditions and opportunities for individuals and groups in society facing vulnerable situations. We promote socially sustainable communities and societies which are healthy, equitable, diverse and democratic. The projects and activities we support always include an educational and training component, to build people´s knowledge and capacity.

Through partnerships and targeted financial support we want to help bring humans out of their vulnerable situations. The Rights Now foundation supports efforts that:

• provide humans with more power and agency, influence and freedom of choice
• contribute to participation and social mobilization
• promote dialogue and meetings across borders, between individuals and different groups in society

ALEF 2022. Project: Literacy and self-help support groups in Uganda.

The Rights Now foundation’s vision is a world where people’s rights are met – a world in which every person is respected and appreciated, where humans feel agency and influence, opportunity and optimism. It is a world where people – regardless of age, gender identity, social class, ethnicity, religious belief, sexual preferences, nationality, geographic location, abilities or disabilities, or other circumstances that unite or divide people – have social, political and economic opportunities to influence their own lives and to participate actively in society.

We provide support based on the conviction that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. As we see it, human rights point to the fact that all humans should be able to live decent lives. They cover many aspects of human life and underline the necessary prerequisites for such a life – such as food, shelter, health, education, work, safety, freedom of expression, freedom from torture and slavery, right to participation in society and in government.

Human rights are universal – they apply throughout the world, regardless of country, culture or specific situation.

Coloboratie Lund – Maxenu 2019. Project: Aftershool in Romania.

Ethical and sustainable investments only

The finance and investment policy of the Rights Now foundation complies with ethical guidelines, international norms and standards. The policy is reviewed continuously to maintain the highest possible standards with regard to ethics and sustainability, based on current knowledge and practice.

Read our finance and investment policy in detail here.

Pictures on rightsnow.se from Unsplash use rights under the Creative Commons Zero. If an image is part of a report sent to the Rights Now Foundation or is created in-house, then copyright adhere as follows:

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

News!

Multidimensional Resilience – Four Projects Awarded Funding

Four projects have been granted funding by the Rights Now Foundation in the 2025 call for proposals. The original allocation for the call was SEK 500,000. Due to the high number and strong quality of project applications submitted under the theme of strengthening resilience against multidimensional poverty, the Board decided to increase the total funding amount. Following a record number of applications, the Board of Rights Now has selected the following projects:

• Project: Hive, Organization: World Action Fund (Uganda) – The project aims to develop the operations of approximately 100 small-scale beekeepers/honey producers. An additional 40 individuals in need of employment, half of whom are women and young adults, will be provided with beehives and supported in starting their own businesses. Through training, improved equipment, and establishing connections with marketplaces, the project will create more efficient production methods and sales opportunities. It will increase income and trade for established small-scale beekeepers, create employment for more people, strengthen the local community, and contribute to healthier ecosystems where bees and plants interact sustainably.

• Project: Breaking Barriers – Empowering Women Workers from Home-Based and Brick Kiln Sectors, Organization: Labor Education Foundation (Pakistan) – To build resilience among women working from home and in brick kiln factories, the project will create meeting forums and encourage engagement in trade union activities and cooperative groups. By strengthening knowledge of laws and rights, approximately 500 women, primarily from low-income and marginalized backgrounds, will gain the opportunity for safer and fairer working conditions. The goal is to enhance women’s knowledge of laws and rights, leadership skills, and negotiation capacity, while improving safety, equality, and wage levels, thereby increasing their socioeconomic security.

• Project: Establishing 20 Evening Tuition Centers for the Educational Empowerment of Rural Children, Organization: Association for Social Solidarity and Empowerment Training Trust (India) – The project aims to establish 20 evening tuition centers in remote rural areas of Madurai district. The primary target group is 200 boys and girls from 20 different villages who will receive educational support and homework assistance. Participating children will strengthen their knowledge in mathematics, science, and English, as well as learn about children’s rights. The overall objective is to enhance their future life and employment opportunities and contribute positively to their local communities.
  

• Project: Empowering Women Home-Based Workers for Sustainable Livelihoods and Safe Work Environment, Organization: Center for Labor and Social Studies (Nepal) – The target group consists of women aged 20–45 living in low-income communities who work from home in crafts such as sewing and weaving, or in preparing food for sale. These women often lack formal education and have limited or no access to government or local support and social protection systems. Approximately 100 women will participate in the project, which aims to strengthen their role and visibility within society. Through awareness-raising and capacity-building initiatives focused on rights and workplace safety, as well as improved connections to established community institutions, the project will create better conditions for self-sufficiency, dignity, and safe working environments.

2025 Theme: Multidimensional Resilience

Building resilience not only helps individuals but entire communities withstand and recover from crises and disasters, and is essential for continued human development. Projects and organizations eligible to apply for funding under the 2025 theme were required to strengthen multidimensional resilience within communities – for example, by developing working methods and approaches that create conditions for social organisation, or by implementing results-oriented initiatives that enhance resilience among populations or areas affected by poverty.