Student Fellowship in Human Rights – The European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR)
Applications for 2024 have now closed.
The Bonavero Institute Summer Fellowship at the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) in Berlin is a ten-week internship, tenable from early July to late September 2024.
About ECCHR
The European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) is an independent, non-profit legal and educational organization dedicated to protecting civil and human rights worldwide. It was founded in 2007 by a small group of renowned human rights lawyers, in order to protect and enforce the rights guaranteed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as well as other human rights conventions and national constitutions, by juridical means. ECCHR engages in innovative strategic litigation, using European, international, and national law to enforce human rights and to hold state and non-state actors accountable for egregious abuses.
About the internship and the Critical Legal Training at ECCHR
Primarily, Bonavero fellows work with ECCHR staff to gain comprehensive insight into individual cases and program areas, as well as the overall philosophy of our work and our approach to strategic legal intervention. By engaging with ECCHR colleagues in other parts of the world, fellows get firsthand experience of global human rights work. They learn to critically assess legal work and hone their understanding of the political and socio-economic contexts of our cases.
Furthermore, interns at ECCHR participate in our Critical Legal Training. The Critical Legal Training hosts regular events including discussions, storytelling and workshops with partners. Regular trainee meetings on current problems and fundamental questions of law supplement the learning program and also serve to trigger and advance important political debate. The same is true for other aspects of the program like the Human Rights Cinema viewings organized by the participants, and alternative tours of Berlin arranged by program staff. All Critical Legal Training elements have one thing in common: they strive to broaden the participants’ perspectives beyond traditional approaches to legal work.
For an internship at ECCHR, applicants should bring in a certain skill set depending upon the program team they are interested in working with. Their preferences should be made clear in their application:
Business and Human Rights: Sound knowledge of the international debate on business and human rights and lawsuits taken against corporations on a national level. Background knowledge of climate justice and corporate accountability is a plus.
International Crimes and Accountability: Excellent understanding of international criminal law (incl. extraterritorial cases before national courts) as well as the current legal and political debates on international criminal jurisdiction. Background knowledge of sexualized violence in international criminal law is a plus.
Border Justice: Good knowledge of European and public international law as well as the relevant fundamentals of refugee law, ideally also practical experience in migration law or refugee protection.
Institute for Legal Intervention: Very good knowledge of critical theories of international law and international human rights, e.g. in the areas of intersectionality, postcolonial, Marxist, feminist theory; or interest/practical experience on the role and impact of art and activism in advancing human rights.
It is expected that the successful candidate will be based at ECCHR for 4 days per week during this period working on ECCHR projects and taking part in their Critical Legal Training. However, some flexibility may be possible depending on individual circumstances.
About the Bonavero Fellowship at ECCHR
The successful candidate will receive an award to assist with travel, accommodation, living, and other reasonable expenses associated with the internship. In determining the amount to be awarded, other sources of funding will be taken into account.
The candidate will also be expected to provide a full report on their work at the end of their internship.
Please refer to the overview page referring specifically to the application process and eligibility criteria.
This Fellowship is made possible by generous gifts from the AB Charitable Trust and Eric Lewis.