Apply to Shelter City

Apply to Shelter City

Human rights defenders that could benefit from temporary relocation can apply to Shelter City.

What we offer for human rights defenders at risk

What does Shelter City do?

Shelter City provides human rights defenders at risk a temporary place for three months where they are safe, can rely on solidarity and receive support tailored to their needs. We enable them to re-energize, engage with allies and develop their skills, knowledge and resilience.

Where is Shelter City located?

Each country that Shelter City is located has its own application process. There are currently 13 Shelter Cities in the Netherlands. The Netherlands provides safe spaces to human rights defenders from all around the world two times per year. There are two open calls for applications for Shelter City in the Netherlands annually – one published around March/April for the September-December period, and one published in August/September for the April-July period.

There are also 8 international Shelter Cities in Georgia, Costa Rica, Tanzania, Benin, the United Kingdom, and Nepal. To find out more about their application processes, visit their Shelter City pages.

  • Safe space for three months
  • A space to rest and re-energize
  • Tailormade support
  • Security training
  • Wellbeing activities
  • Skills and knowledge development
  • The opportunity to network with allies

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