How we create change

From individuals and communities to civil society organisations, from state actors to tech companies, and from media regulators to international standards-setting bodies, building bridges is our unique contribution to defending freedom of expression at a structural and policy level.

At the local, national, and UN levels, this vital work has released journalists from prison, led to nations enshrining free expression in laws and constitutions, integrated human rights with internet infrastructure – and much, much more.

From local to global – and back

ARTICLE 19 defends freedom of expression locally, regionally, and globally.

Our 9 regional hubs worldwide, from Dakar to Dhaka, are deeply embedded in the communities they serve. These are our hubs for innovation and leadership on the most pressing issues of our times – and the primary means to achieve our mission. Our international office, advocates, and experts support them to create change.

Our unique structure and global reach enable us to amplify local voices on the world stage and hold governments accountable for their international obligations.

Our theory of change in action

Resisting biometric mass surveillance

Biometric mass surveillance and emotion-recognition technology are inherently incompatible with human rights. That’s why ARTICLE 19 is calling for them to be banned.

If taking on AI sounds like David vs. Goliath, that’s because it is. We’re up against the world’s richest, most powerful companies – and our governments’ failure to rein them in.

But by bridging local, regional, and global advocacy, we’ve already won a few battles.

And we all know how David vs. Goliath ends…

How we’ve created change

Biometric mass surveillance and emotion-recognition technology are inherently incompatible with human rights. That’s why ARTICLE 19 is calling for them to be banned.

If taking on AI sounds like David vs. Goliath, that’s because it is. We’re up against the world’s richest, most powerful companies – and our governments’ failure to rein them in.

But by bridging local, regional, and global advocacy, we’ve already won a few battles.

And we all know how David vs. Goliath ends…

From global…
Back in 2020, the UN Human Rights Council adopted a resolution expressing serious concern over the use of facial-recognition technology (FRT) against peaceful protesters.

ARTICLE 19 had pushed tirelessly for this in our global advocacy.

… to local
Two years later, we used that UN resolution to fight for justice for Nikolay Glukhin.

His ‘crime’? Staging a one-man peaceful protest on a Moscow train against the treatment of Konstantin Kotov – who was also arrested for peacefully protesting in Moscow just one month earlier.

The subway’s FRT cameras were used to identify and convict Glukhin.

He appealed, but Moscow City Court ruled against him.

… to regional
But Glukhin didn’t back down.

He fought his case all the way to the European Court of Human Rights.

And in July 2023 – following ARTICLE 19’s intervention – he won.

The European Court found that Russia had violated Glukhin’s rights to freedom of expression and privacy by using FRT to arrest and convict him.

This landmark victory didn’t just help Glukhin. It set the stage for defending protesters across Europe from FRT.

… and back again
Since then, slowly but surely, our position on AI has been adopted across the UN.

And in 2025, the Human Rights Council passed its strongest resolution yet on the use of FRT and other biometric technologies, drawing the line on mass surveillance for the first time.

ARTICLE 19 was, once again, heavily involved in the negotiations.

Globally, regionally, and locally, we continue to demand tech that serves humans – not the other way around.

CCTV surveillance camera against a lime green textured metal wall.