When you’re talking to a group about a topic like human rights, it can help to use something visual. PowerPoint presentations – a classic tool for teachers, group facilitators, and trainers – can engage your audience while providing essential information. Creating a PowerPoint from scratch, however, isn’t always something you have time for. Turning to a source like the United Nations or UNICEF assures you’re getting accurate information compiled by experts. Depending on the PowerPoint and how you intend to use it, you’ll want to check the usage rights. If you’re using it simply as a guide for your own creation, you likely won’t need to cite it or ask permission. Here are five PowerPoints available online:
“Welcome to the United Nations”
The United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization committed to international peace and cooperation between nations. Their main bodies include the General Assembly, the Security Council, and the International Court of Justice. They produced the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and are a leading authority on global human rights. This PowerPoint can be found on their visitor’s center website. It serves as a great introduction to the organizations, its different parts, and its purposes. Slides include “The General Assembly,” “Security Council,” “Peacekeeping,” and “Economic and Social Council.” If you want to teach a group about the basics of human rights and the UN, this free PowerPoint is a great place to get a general overview.
“Introduction to Women’s Human Rights”
UNICEF
UNICEF is the UN agency responsible for helping children around the world. Their mandate also includes women. The organization is present in 192 territories and countries. Areas of focus include immunizations, disease prevention, improving nutrition for mothers and children, and more.
This PowerPoint, which is actually part of a huge Facilitator’s Guide, teaches people about the history of women’s rights. Since this is intended for a workshop leader, there’s also space for them to talk about women’s rights locally based on where the workshop is being held. The PowerPoint outlines why women’s human rights are of special consideration, the waves of women’s rights, international instruments, and the future of women’s rights.
“Activity 6: We Are All Born Free”
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is a non-governmental organization based in the UK. It was first founded in 1961 and focuses on undertaking research and action focused on preventing and ending grave abuses of human rights. Areas of focus include ending death penalty and torture. In 1977, the organization won the Nobel Peace Prize. As an organization committed to catching the public’s attention, they provide resources on their website to help educators and anyone else interested in learning more about human rights.
The Activity 6 PowerPoint and PDF is a great way to introduce children to the concept of human rights. It’s called “We Are All Free,” which is also the name of a book for children that uses illustrations to explain all 30 fundamental rights. The PowerPoint describes thirteen of the articles in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, including Articles 1-4, Article 8, and Article 30. The slides simplify the language so kids can understand and uses colorful, vivid illustrations to demonstrate the articles’ meaning. The age range for this presentation is 6-9 years old.
“Human Rights in Secondary School”
Amnesty International
This resource is part of a series of PowerPoints in a teaching pack meant for kids age 11-16. It also comes from Amnesty International. They recommend the pack for Human Rights Day or any lesson where learning about human rights is the goal. Lessons include “Understanding Human Rights,” Human Rights in the UK,” and “Freedom of Expression.” The PowerPoints are labeled by lesson number. Lesson 1, “Understanding Human Rights,” is comprised of pictures from different times in history. They ask what right is being violated. When paired with the PDF that contains the lesson plans, an educator can effectively meet the learning objectives. The lesson plans tell you exactly when to show each slide.
