UN Special Rapporteur Andrea Bolaños Vargas Joins the Aryeh Neier Center for Justice at Bard College Berlin
UN Special Rapporteur Andrea Bolaños Vargas. Photo courtesy of the UN Office of the High Commissioner
Andrea Bolaños Vargas, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, is joining the Aryeh Neier Center for Justice at Bard College Berlin as a visiting fellow. Bolaños Vargas is a Colombian political scientist and feminist researcher with more than 20 years of experience in human rights and international humanitarian law. She is also the First Latin American to hold the mandate from the UN Human Rights Council. The fellowship provides a hub for Bolaños Vargas’s work, which has focused on migration, gender, and the protection of human rights defenders, in the form of research and advisement for various UN agencies, regional bodies, and civil society organizations across Latin America.
Special rapporteurs are independent experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council. They serve unpaid and in a personal capacity, conduct country visits, raise cases with governments, and issue public reports. The mandate on human rights defenders can be applied to anyone working to defend, promote, or protect human rights, in any country.
“Human rights defenders face mounting pressure everywhere, and the threats are increasingly digital and transnational," said Fred Abrahams, a founder and director at the Neier Center. “We're honored to support the Special Rapporteur's essential work."
The Neier Center was founded in 2026 at Bard College Berlin, bringing together education and investigations to advance the rule of law. The Center trains students and professionals in human rights investigations, including open-source techniques, develops new research methods, and conducts strategic investigations, alone and in partnerships.
Post Date: 10-13-2026
Special rapporteurs are independent experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council. They serve unpaid and in a personal capacity, conduct country visits, raise cases with governments, and issue public reports. The mandate on human rights defenders can be applied to anyone working to defend, promote, or protect human rights, in any country.
“Human rights defenders face mounting pressure everywhere, and the threats are increasingly digital and transnational," said Fred Abrahams, a founder and director at the Neier Center. “We're honored to support the Special Rapporteur's essential work."
The Neier Center was founded in 2026 at Bard College Berlin, bringing together education and investigations to advance the rule of law. The Center trains students and professionals in human rights investigations, including open-source techniques, develops new research methods, and conducts strategic investigations, alone and in partnerships.
Post Date: 10-13-2026