We are pleased to announce the first edition of Archive & Resist Conclave, to be held on 24–25 January 2026 in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
The conclave continues the vital work of documenting human rights violations in Bangladesh and beyond, while creating pathways toward reconciliation, healing, and collective resistance. It aims to empower communities with human rights documentation knowledge, resources, skills, and solidarity, bringing together young human rights and digital rights defenders from Bangladesh and the region.
Building on the foundations of community Archive Camp and numerous community gatherings, this two-day gathering will serve as a space for exchange, solidarity, and shared learning. It will bring together prominent human rights and digital rights organisations, grassroots activists, practitioners, students, journalists, and researchers to collectively shape the future of community-led human rights documentation and investigation.
Archive & Resist Conclave is jointly convened by Activate Rights, Bangladesh Protest Archive, and WITNESS, with collaboration of local host Netra News, Bangladeshi Journalists in International Media, and Surge Bangladesh.
The conclave aims to:
- Create a learning space for young people to explore, practice, and reflect on human rights documentation and archiving, while building a shared vision for protecting human rights and strengthening democratic spaces.
- Facilitate critical discussions at the intersection of human rights documentation and trauma-informed, care-based approaches; digital rights; community-led archiving standards; OSINT investigations; and emerging technologies — including both the risks and possibilities of AI in human rights archiving.
- Strengthen regional solidarity and exchange by bringing together practitioners across the Asia-Pacific region to share strategies, tools, and resources, and to build an ecosystem of resistance, memory work, and survivor-centric, justice-focused archiving.
- Foster intergenerational dialogue between experienced practitioners and emerging human rights defenders.
With the theme “Collaborative Futures of Community-Led Human Rights Documentation and Transitional Justice ” the two-day conclave will feature three thematic tracks:
- Archive & Resist
Equipping communities with shared tools, ethical frameworks, and community-led investigation techniques grounded in safety and solidarity. - Empowering Movements with Emerging Technologies
Exploring how new technologies can strengthen — or threaten — memory, justice, and resistance. - Collaborative Futures for Youth
Building intergenerational and cross-movement alliances to support sustainable, long-term human rights documentation work.
A community-led documentation initiative showcase will run throughout the main event. The conclave will conclude with a Resistance Cinema Festival. Parallel and Post-event activities will be led by partner human rights groups and civil society organisations.
Call for Participation
A call for session proposals will be announced soon, inviting community-led initiatives, archiving organisations, civil society actors, and human rights groups to contribute.
Please stay connected with us and follow our social media channels for updates and further information.
