The CEELI Institute

Final call: Fundamental Strategic Litigation Training 📣

Applications are now open for the last Fundamental Strategic Litigation Training, taking place on 21–23 September.

The training is designed to strengthen the use of strategic litigation in defending fundamental rights, the rule of law, and democratic principles across the EU.

🔍Fundamental training sessions focus on
- How the EU law and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights can be utilized in both national courts and European courts.
- Strategic approaches, including the importance of case selection, framing legal arguments, and considering the broader implications for national and European legal systems.
- Legal remedies and redress mechanisms available under EU law, including how to seek reparations for violations of fundamental rights, file complaints with the EU courts, and leverage existing EU legislation to ensure the enforcement of rights.
- And more!

The trainings are meant for civil society organizations (CSOs), legal practitioners, and human rights defenders from EU Member States, in particular, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia. The CEELI Institute will arrange accommodation and reimburse travel expenses from EU countries for participants. [More details on our website]

📌 Apply now for the last fundamental training in the series and keep an eye out for the upcoming advanced training call: https://ceeliinstitute.org/course/trainings-on-strategic-litigation

The trainings are funded by the European Union’s Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme (CERV).

Strengthening resilience, skills, and community with immediate solutions.💡

From 21 to 24 April, the CEELI Institute assembled the growing alumni community of the Ukrainian Fellowship & Respite Program in Prague for four focused days of training, exchange, and practical problem-solving. The group included human rights defenders, activists, volunteers, journalists, and anti-corruption experts from 2024, 2025, and 2026 fellowship cohorts, highlighting the continuity and growing strength of the CEELI Fellows network.

We were honored to have Kate Davenport, Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of the United Kingdom in the Czech Republic, deliver welcoming remarks, and in flawless Ukrainian!

Main topics of the workshop were:
💻Cybersecurity and safe use of AI, presented by Anastasiia Apetyk, CEO of Apetyk Consulting and a leading voice in cybersecurity, digital rights, and ethical AI.
📖 Strategic advocacy, conducted by Alona Lunova, Advocacy Director at ZMINA Human Rights Center.
💪Burnout prevention and mental resilience, carried out by Daria Skalova, a psychologist and psychotherapist specializing in trauma and resilience in crisis contexts.

Participants shared that the workshop was packed with solutions they could use in their daily work. Several participants used the sessions to review real security risks, improve internal practices, and refine advocacy and campaign approaches for their organizations with the help of the trainers.

Beyond skills-building, the program offered reflection, peer exchange, and networking for professionals in justice and human rights. The calendar also included a visit to the Embassy of Ukraine in the Czech Republic, where participants met Ambassador Vasyl Zvarych and discussed the current pressures on Ukrainian civil society.

At a time when the wartime demands on civil society remain immense, investing in their security, well-being, and professional capacity remains essential. This is what sustained support for the rule of law and human rights looks like in practice.

Last week, Marek Svoboda, CEELI Institute’s Director of Programs, and Weronika Machała, CEELI Communications Officer, joined the INCEPT Project event and partners meeting in Poznań, Poland.

The international exchange focused on practical challenges and good practices in applying the European Investigation Order, particularly in cases involving the interception of telecommunications.

The discussion will continue through the INCEPT Project channels and later this year at CEELI’s own international gathering at Villa Grébovka in Prague.

Visit from the Judicial Training Institute of the Court of Justice of Thailand 🤝

On March 11, CEELI Institute welcomed a delegation from the Judicial Training Institute (JTI) of the Court of Justice of Thailand to Villa Grébovka in Prague.

During the visit, CEELI Institute’s Program Director Marek Svoboda introduced the Institute’s work over the past 25 years, highlighting our efforts in judicial training, anti-corruption, and support for lawyers and judges across Central and Eastern Europe, Asia, and Africa. 🌍

Mariia Kaplina, Program Manager for Ukraine, shared further insights into CEELI’s work in Ukraine, including trainings for Ukrainian judges and lawyers on the European Convention on Human Rights, the annual summer school Legal Skills in a Time of War, and the fellowship and respite opportunities for Ukrainian civil society representatives.

💬 The visit sparked a lively exchange, with the delegation asking many thoughtful questions about CEELI’s programs and experience. We were pleased to host this valuable meeting at Villa Grébovka and wish the delegation a successful continuation of their study visit, with Vienna as their next stop.

Meeting with Nobel Peace Prize Laureate- Ales Bialiatski 💡

The CEELI Institute was honored this week to welcome Ales Bialiatski, 2022 Nobel Peace Prize winner and Belarusian human rights defender, to the Institute during his visit to Prague.

🇨🇿 During his time in the Czech Republic, Ales met with President Petr Pavel, senior government ministers, members of parliament, and representatives from civil society.

Ales has been imprisoned twice in Belarus for his efforts to promote democracy, human rights, and peace in Belarus, and was released only in December 2025 as part of a negotiated deal by the United States.

The CEELI Institute is firmly committed to supporting a future Belarus where the rule of law and fundamental rights are fully respected, and working with its longtime partner, the Viasna Human Rights Centre, which Ales founded thirty years ago.🤝