The Right Side Human Rights Defender NGO with the financial support of the Swedish Federation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Rights (RFSL) held a meeting with the participation of the organization’s employees and activists of the LGBTIQ community. The purpose of the meeting was to review and improve the policies of the organization through discussions and equip the staff with the skills to respond to crises and effectively fight against them.

During the meeting, the NGO’s staff and volunteers reviewed the policies of the Right Side Human Rights Defender NGO followed by a crisis response course, which aims to help the team prepare for unexpected situations and respond quickly to crises.

Participants conducted a comprehensive review of the organization’s structure, conflict of interest policy, advocacy program, strategy, and security. They examined the organization’s strategy, identifying its strengths and weaknesses, seeking to highlight opportunities for improvement and innovation that would ensure the organization’s continued progress. Through brainstorming and teamwork, the team developed new approaches to address challenges more effectively and efficiently.

Crisis response training enables each team member to know their role and responsibility in the event of a possible crisis, be prepared for various scenarios, master a clear sequence of steps, and be able to confidently take action in accordance with the organization’s mission and goals.

The crisis response training consists of the following stages:

1. Test, re-evaluate, and improve the organization’s anti-crisis policy.
2. Assess the organization’s crisis prevention and response actions.
3. Identify gaps and strengths.
4. Build experience and muscle memory of anti-crisis operations among team members.
5. Develop crisis recovery policies.

The Right Side Human Rights Defender NGO, assessing the existing risks in the Republic of Armenia and taking into account the many cases of violence and discrimination registered during the last year, gives great importance to review the policies of the organization and the implementation of regular trainings for effective response to crises, so that the staff is equipped with the necessary knowledge and abilities.

Jul 6, 2023 Armenia, Yerevan