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Leon returns from the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva with a concerning update: so-called efficiency measures are cutting special rapporteur reporting with a blunt, one-size-fits-all approach that threatens the most urgent human rights mandates. He also shares news of a landmark European Court of Human Rights case on religious symbols in Greek courtrooms and his published response to Alliance Defending Freedom International in the Oxford Human Rights Hub.

Then Gary speaks with two humanist legislators: Lizzi Collinge, Labour MP and chair of the UK All Party Parliamentary Humanist Group, and Heidi Nordby Lunde, Director of Politics at the Norwegian Humanist Association and former Conservative MP for 12 years — on what it means to legislate by humanist values, and how to meet rising religious nationalism with firmness and kindness.

In this episode we cover

• Leon's Human Rights Council debrief - worrying trends in special rapporteur reporting
• The Greek courtroom icons case at the European Court of Human Rights
• What it means to be a humanist legislator
• Humanists as a political constituency - and why the "belief" in freedom of religion or belief keeps getting forgotten
• The rise of religious nationalism in the UK, Norway, and beyond
• How well-funded lobbying groups are deliberately sowing division in democratic societies
• Why progress isn't inevitable - and why humanists need to keep showing up
• Join Lizzi & Heidi at the World Humanist Congress 2026 in Ottawa

References

• Civil society urges UN member states to strengthen the Human Rights Council — ISHR: https://ishr.ch/latest-updates/civil-society-urges-un-member-states-to-strengthen-the-human-rights-council-during-discussion-on-the-2026-status-review/
• Leon's blog — An Alternative View on Union of Atheists v Greece: https://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/an-alternative-view-on-union-of-atheists-v-greece/
• UN Special Rapporteurs and Special Procedures: https://www.ohchr.org/en/special-procedures-human-rights-council
• Conway Hall — home of free thought in the UK: https://conwayhall.org.uk

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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.