Hello, this is Michelle. Defending human rights in today’s hostile political climate can feel like a Sisyphean task. Still, it is one Philippe Bolopion intends to embrace as he takes over the helm of Human Rights Watch, one of civil society’s mainstays.

During a visit to Geneva, he spoke to our colleagues at Le Temps about his plans to steer the 500-staff strong organisation through what he calls "a perfect storm".

Michelle Langrand

06.02.2026

On our radar

Photo article

Philippe Bolopion, executive director f Human Rights Watch. Paris, 30 January 026. (Delphine Blast/Le Temps) Philippe olopion, executive director of Human ights Watch. Paris, 30 January 2026. Delphine Blast/Le Temps)

World in 'democratic recession' since 1985, warns Human Rights Watch new chief Philippe Bolopion. Philippe Bolopion took charge of one of the world’s leading human rights organisations on 1 December 2025. He faces a daunting task as the world order falters.

Le Temps via Geneva Solutions

🧪Solutions lab

When cities stick with multilateralism. When a government questions multilateralism and pulls the plug on key pillars of global cooperation, its citizens are left to deal with the fallout. In the United States, some local authorities are now hunting for workarounds to remain plugged into the World Health Organization.

Against the tide. New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani and Illinois governor JB Pritzker announced this week they are joining the WHO's Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network – a technical partnership of more than 360 institutions that deploy expertise and resources during disease outbreaks – in open defiance of the Trump administration’s rebuke of the UN health agency.

They follow in the footsteps of California governor, Gavin Newsom, who met with WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus last month in Davos.

Quotable. "Infectious diseases know no boundaries, and nor should the information and resources that help us protect New Yorkers," said New York City acting health commissioner and chief medical officer Michelle Morse.

Here's what else is happening

💵UN rights chief appeals for $400 million as crises mount and funding shrinks. This year’s appeal is $100m lower than 2025, reflecting a scale-back of operations following a sharp decline in donations from the US and other western states.
Reuters (EN)
💾As WHO debates global AI regulation, states clash over ‘data sovereignty’. A stark debate over who owns the data in the future of AI and digital health emerged at the World Health Organization's Executive Board on Wednesday.
Health Policy Watch (EN)
🤖UN names independent global AI science panel amid funding strain. UN secretary general António Guterres has proposed to the United Nations General Assembly a slate of 40 members for a new independent scientific body created under the Pact of the Future, tasked with assessing the impacts of artificial intelligence.
Arete News (EN)
✅️US greenlights $9.42bn for global health as foreign aid bill goes through. The package agreed by Congress and signed into law by the president is lower than previous years but still substantially higher than the cuts initially sought by the Trump administration. The bill preserves allocations to flagship global health programmes like Pepfar, the Global Fund to Fight TB, Aids and Malaria and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.
Health Policy Watch (EN)

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