Description

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This week’s episode features a conversation with Maggie Ardiente, President 
of Humanists International, reflecting on the global defence of freedom of belief and the role of humanists in resisting rising authoritarianism.

Maggie shares the origin story of the Freedom of Thought Report, explaining how early engagement with the US State Department helped ensure discrimination against atheists and humanists was formally documented. What began as a modest advocacy intervention has grown into Humanists International’s flagship annual publication, used by diplomats, policymakers, and civil society organisations worldwide.

We also explore how humanists engage international institutions such as the UN Human Rights Council and UNESCO, the growing coordination of nationalist movements across borders, and why coalition-building across beliefs is essential to defending democracy and universal human rights. The episode concludes with a look ahead to the World Humanist Congress in Ottawa and the theme of humanism as resistance.

In this episode, we cover

• The origins and growth of the Freedom of Thought Report
• How documentation translates into international advocacy
• Humanists working inside the UN Human Rights Council
• Why cultural expression and media freedom matter at UNESCO
• The rise of interconnected nationalist movements
• Funding asymmetries in global human rights work
• Why coalition-building across beliefs is essential
• Humanism as resistance and the World Humanist Congress 2026

Further reading and references

• Freedom of Thought Report:  https://humanists.international/what-we-do/freedom-of-thought-report/
• UN Human Rights Council overview:  https://www.ohchr.org/en/hr-bodies/hrc/about-council
• UNESCO 2005 Convention on the Diversity of Cultural Expressions:  https://www.unesco.org/creativity/en/2005-convention
• World Humanist Congress 2026: https://humanists.international/event/world-humanist-congress-2026/

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This podcast is produced by Humanise Live.

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🎶Music: Horizon by Simon Folwar

Podcast transcripts are AI-generated and may contain errors or omissions. They are provided to make our content more accessible, but should not be considered a fully accurate record of the conversation.