Communication & Advocacy Intern Job description

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Organization : Manushya Foundation

Communication & Advocacy Intern Job description Internship – Manushya Foundation Full time

The Manushya Foundation: Empowering Communities; Advancing Social Justice. “Manushya” is a Sanskrit term being understood by many communities across Asia and in the world, meaning “humans”, “human being”, or even “human rights” (such as manusia in Bahasa or Malay).

The Manushya Foundation is an Asian regional organisation aiming at empowering local communities to advance Social Justice, Human Rights & Peace. The Manushya Foundation aims at connecting Humans across Asia to build capacities, share experiences, strengthen solidarity and become agents of change.

Since 2017, we have been implementing our three step 'bottom-up' empowerment approach to 'Engage - Mobilise - Empower' Agents of Change. As a women-led organisation, we apply a 'gender lens' to all our work and decided to invest our energy and develop innovative strategies to tackle the most alarming human rights challenges faced by women and marginalised communities in Asia, by working on these four thematic areas: 1. Business & Human Rights - to ensure governments put People over Profit; 2. UN Human Rights Mechanisms - to guarantee meaningful engagement of communities in International Accountability Mechanisms; 3. Women’s

Empowerment - to promote women's leadership and ensure women lead human rights movements

across Asia; 4. Digital Rights - to uphold online freedom and push back on censorship in authoritarian regimes; and 5. Resourcing Human Rights Defenders (HRDs) & Social Movements - to help marginalized communities who are the most at risk of human rights violations. We hope to enable change in those areas by supporting: (1) Capacity Development of local communities;

Manushya Foundation,

5/4 Sutthisan Winitchai Road, Soi 1, Samsen Nai, Phayathai 10400, Bangkok, Thailand

Manushya Foundation’s strategy lies on three pillars:

ENGAGE communities by building their capacities on all UN human rights mechanisms to ensure their effective participation, and by providing them with the tools to efficiently build credible evidence and monitor the human rights situation on the ground (human rights documentation) to hold their government accountable on their human rights obligations.
MOBILISE communities around human rights movements, by building CSOs coalitions comprising all human rights issues, where communities are treated equally and can build solidarity and where all human rights are equal (civil and political rights as well as economic, social and cultural rights).
EMPOWER communities by ensuring they are at the center of the human rights response in their countries, engaging constructively and providing solutions to their government to improve the human rights on the ground. By applying a bottom-up approach, communities will own their issues, provide solutions and become the agents of change in their countries. Communities will bring back solutions at the local level to further empower their peers, ensuring no one is left behind.

The Manushya Foundation is a small NGO, with the advantages and constraints attached. Every staff member plays an important role and carries responsibilities. Dedication is key as it greatly impacts the work of the organisation. It is therefore necessary to embrace the vision and goals of the organisation and fully commit to its success.

The Manushya Foundation offers an opportunity for interns to develop a unique experience in supporting local communities and in improving the human rights situation on the ground.

Description of Duties & Responsibilities

Under the supervision of the Executive Director and the Research & Advocacy Team members, the intern would primarily support communications related to the implementation of the objectives of Manushya Foundation:

Develop and disseminate webstories, multimedia, blog posts, knowledge products and resources amongst human rights organisations, civil society, development organisations, and the diplomatic community;
Assist in writing press releases;
Social Media Management: develop social media content (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Linkedin, Youtube, etc.), invite users to follow/like Manushya Foundation;
Update the website to build Manushya Foundation’s web presence;
Develop Manushya’s newsletters on Mailchimp;
Copy editing of papers and reports;
Create infographics for social media and/or documents; participate in the design of documents such as reports, press releases, factsheets, invitations to events, and more;
Conduct research and analysis on the human rights situation in Asia;
Support the development of concept notes, policy papers, and contribute to knowledge products as necessary;
Support all aspects leading up to consultations and workshops including collaborating with regional and national partners on the agenda and organisation of meetings, among other administrative tasks;
Assist in any other relevant tasks as assigned by the supervisor.

Profile needed

Degree in communications, development, human rights, international relations, or any related field;
Knowledge of human rights mechanisms;
Strong interest in supporting local communities;
Interest in advocacy at the international level;
Experience in communications, social media, and/or web development; knowledge of Wix, Wordpress and Canva is critical;
Strong analytical skills and dedication;
Attention to detail and willingness to learn;
Excellent oral and written English;
Experience working on human rights issues is a strong asset.
Knowledge of Thai is an asset.

Internship conditions

The internship can be an online or in person internship, and it is full time for a period of three to six months between February 2021 and August 2021. The intern is expected to start the internship on 15 February 2021. The internship is not paid.

Interns will get first-hand experience working with communities on the ground, to gather data and information. All costs incurred during these field visits will be covered by Manushya Foundation for the duration of the internship.