Contemplative praxis for a healthier and more holistic human rights practice
June 17, 2026 Ivana Radačić, William Paul Simmons
Integrating contemplative praxis into human rights work can transform the dominant separation paradigm rooted in dualisms that separate political from spiritual, individual from community, and humans from nature. Drawing on feminist, Indigenous, and decolonial thought and empirical research on the mental health of human rights defenders, the authors argue that this oppositional framework fuels burnout, trauma, and infighting, threatening activism's sustainability. They propose contemplative praxis—embodied, reflective, and relational practices cultivating presence, compassion, and interconnectedness—as a transformative tool. Such integration can foster awareness of interconnection, enhance resilience, shift advocacy from reactivity to creativity, and replace retributive approaches with compassion-centered, healing-oriented approaches, reframing activism as sacred, joyful, and healing.