A Report from the IAS - Lancet Commission on Health and Human Rights

Seventy-five years after the United Nations’ historic ratification of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the global commitment to protect the fundamental human rights of all people is under grave threat. The International AIDS Society-Lancet Commission on Health and Human Rights was launched in 2021 to study the current state of health and human rights and develop recommendations to reverse the recent backtracking from this commitment.


Coinciding with the release of the commission’s final report, this event will explore the alarming deterioration of human rights over the past two decades in many parts of the world and the serious implications of this trend for human health, particularly the health of the most vulnerable. Through examples such as the failure to achieve international solidarity in confronting the COVID-19 pandemic, the recent spate of restrictive laws governing sexuality and reproductive health, and the inequitable costs of climate change, panelists will examine the social, political and environmental factors that are undermining the centrality of human rights and human dignity, and what actions are needed to update and refocus the world’s commitment to these principles.


Featuring remarks by Richard Horton, Editor-in-Chief of The Lancet, the event will include a short overview of the commission’s findings and a panel discussion with experts on health and human rights to offer reflections on the report and possible actions to renew the global commitment to these critical principles. The event is co-sponsored by The Lancet, the International AIDS Society, and the Duke Global Health institute at Duke University.