The year in review

Civil society is operating in a context that has fundamentally changed in the last year. Political changes in the USA have accelerated and intensified global regressive trends. Democratic institutions are under assault from extremist populist movements opposed to civil society that are gaining ground across continents. Mass atrocities in Gaza and in conflicts in Myanmar, Sudan, Ukraine and elsewhere show international norms that once provided some protection for civilians are under attack. The climate crisis continues to grow: 2024 was yet another record-breaking year for global temperatures, creating increasing waves of climate displacement as states continue to fail to meet their emission reduction commitments and fossil fuel corporations actively undermine climate action.

As civil society mobilises as a crucial counterpower in response to these interconnected crises, CIVICUS’s mission to strengthen citizen action is more relevant than ever. When governments fail to protect human rights or address people’s needs, civil society steps forward, documenting abuses, demanding accountability and protecting the vulnerable. From delivering humanitarian aid in conflict zones to pushing forward climate action, from defending attacked journalists to supporting displaced communities, civil society is democracy’s immune system. It identifies threats and mobilises responses that formal institutions cannot or will not provide. This role is growing more critical as traditional democratic safeguards weaken and international cooperation declines.

Yet as civil society’s work becomes more necessary, it is also becoming more difficult. Civic space –the fundamental freedoms of association, expression and peaceful assembly – is civil society’s oxygen but is under assault in a growing number of countries. The CIVICUS Monitor’s latest findings reveal that over 70 per cent of the world’s population live in severely constrained civic space conditions. Financial pressures compound these restrictions, with the Trump administration’s cancellation of USAID funding the most notorious blow to groups already struggling with shrinking resources as states prioritise narrow national interests and private funders retreat amid uncertainty.

In this hostile environment, CIVICUS has strengthened its role as a guardian and catalyst of civic space. We provide urgent financial, legal and technical support where civil society faces immediate threats. Recent examples include legal and protection support for women rights defenders facing office raids and harassment, and emergency funding and relocation assistance for activists confronting digital surveillance and imminent arrest.

Acknowledging the central role digital tools play in civic participation and state repression, our Digital Democracy Initiative provided digital security support and grants to help civil society groups counter disinformation around elections. Through the Digital Action Lab, we supported organisations across eight countries to strengthen digital access and engagement among historically excluded groups.

Our advocacy has delivered results. The Stand As My Witness campaign helped secure the release of three arbitrarily imprisoned human rights defenders, bringing total releases achieved under this initiative to 33 since its launch five years ago. On the global stage, our strategic advocacy influenced key United Nations (UN) resolutions on digital rights, human rights defenders and peaceful assembly. We enabled 41 partners to participate in UN human rights mechanisms, providing capacity strengthening and direct advocacy support that amplified grassroots voices in shaping international standards and country recommendations.

Recognising that civil society must fundamentally adapt its ways of working, we piloted innovative approaches through the Local Leadership Labs, collaborating with local partners to achieve tangible policy changes. Our Nelson Mandela-Graça Machel Innovation Awards demonstrated that community-owned narratives and solutions produce more relevant, fair and impactful outcomes. The five winning initiatives – from comprehensive youth human rights training in the Philippines to solidarity-centred philanthropy in South Africa – showed that when communities own their narratives and design their solutions, better outcomes result. For the first time in its 20-year history, this time past recipients co-designed the awards process.

As nationalist and populist movements advance by offering simplistic promises that undermine rights, civil society must reclaim the human rights agenda by connecting it to everyday concerns. To help counter regressive narratives, CIVICUS Lens has provided a platform for around 250 civil society activists to share their stories, demonstrating the value of a vibrant civil society in improving people’s lives and strengthening democracy from the ground up.

This year confirmed that advances come by embracing flexible, movement-oriented approaches while maintaining principled leadership and building solidarity networks across borders and issues. As authoritarianism advances and the rules-based international order crumbles, civil society stands as the crucial line of defence for human dignity and rights. Through crisis response, strategic advocacy and unwavering solidarity with those under threat, CIVICUS is living proof that another world remains possible.