World Cafe Session 

Concept Summary  

World cafe session will host group dialogues that encourage open and creative conversations on a range of topics related to the activities and achievements of co-organizing partners and UNDP country offices. With small group conversations, the session aims to provide a welcoming and inclusive environment, which will foster collaborative dialogue and promote sharing of diverse ideas, knowledge, and best practices. Additionally, this session will create valuable possibilities for networking among participants, enabling connections that could lead to future collaborations.    

With total duration of 1 and a half hours, 10 round tables will be set with presenters from UNDP and partners. Participants are free to choose their seats based on their interests, and at each round table, lead agencies will take opportunities to spotlight their work, share insights, and invite questions to stimulate interactive discussions.  By welcoming contributions from all attendees, this session will provide a collaborative space to inspire ideas and solutions.    

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Asia and the Pacific

UNEP Online tools and resources to advance environmental rule of law and access to justice 

Facilitator and presenter: Dr. Georgina Lloyd Rivera, the Regional Coordinator (Asia and the Pacific) of Environmental Law and Governance for the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) 

 

With the digital transformation, we often have information at our fingertips, but it is essential that sources of information are evidence based, verified and draw on deep subject matter and technical expertise. UNEP has a number of tools that provide such information to build capacity and support decision makers and all stakeholders to have access to information on environmental law. These tools enable improved ability to support the implementation and enforcement of environmental law and ability to participate in environmental decision-making processes. This world café will showcase the United Nations Information Portal on Multilateral Environmental Agreements (InforMEA) and UNEP's Law and Environment Assistance Platform (UNEP-LEAP) which provide a myriad of valuable learning tools and resources for judges, lawyers, policy makers, negotiators, affected communities, students and many others. The session will provide space to share similar resources and discuss how to leverage digital learning tools to scale up access to justice. 

 

Guiding questions: 

•  How do online resources and learning tools support access to justice? 

•   What are barriers that need to be addressed to make resources have greater uptake and impact to support access to justice? 

•   What are other platforms that can be used to support environmental rule of law and access to environmental justice? ​

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TIJ and Yunus Thailand Supporting innovation for people-centered justice  

Facilitator and presenter:

•     Mr. Callum Mackenzie, Co-Founder & Managing Director, Yunus Thailand
•  Mr. Jonathan Brenes, Director of Programs, Yunus Thailand
•  Dr. Prapin Nuchpiam, Associate Dean for Academic & International Affairs, Graduate School of Law, National Institute for Development Administration, Thailand                

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Justice innovation is an emerging topic in Southeast Asia and can benefit from collective action by regional pioneers sharing a common vision, knowledge exchange, and resource development to support innovation. Engagement of various groups of stakeholders in Southeast Asia is an important factor in understanding existing support and needs for people-centered justice innovation in the region. By drawing links between actors to increase the reach and impact of activities, fill gaps, and meet the needs of innovators, a roadmap to foster collaboration in the sector can begin to emerge. 

Project: Catalyzing a Justice Innovation Ecosystem in Southeast Asia (JIECO)   

 

Guiding questions 

• What are the key strengths and weaknesses of the current justice system in your country (and Southeast Asia at large) to stimulate and support justice innovation?  

• Cultivating talent for justice innovation is key to building a culture of justice innovation. How would you envision actors in the region working to cultivate and identify talented innovators, entrepreneurs, and changemakers for justice innovation in your country and Southeast Asia? 

• What key challenges and threats can you identify in the short term toward building an ecosystem and culture of justice innovation in your country and Southeast Asia at large? 

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UNWomen  Regional Framework Towards Peaceful, Inclusive Societies Advancing the Women, Peace and Security Agenda and Inclusive Governance in the Asia-Pacific Region. 

Facilitator and presenter:                

 

Focusing on UN Women’s Regional Framework Towards Peaceful, Inclusive Societies Advancing the Women, Peace and Security Agenda and Inclusive Governance in the Asia-Pacific Region (2023-2027), the session aims to increase awareness of the Regional Framework's objectives, distinct strategies, and impact to date by offering an in-depth understanding of its key inter-connected pillars on: (i) Women, Peace and Security; and (ii) Inclusive Governance.  

The session Highlights: 

• why and how the design of the Regional Framework meets evolving challenges to achieving women’s meaningful participation and leadership in governance, including from an intersectional perspective and how this approach produces results including driving forward gender-inclusive systems, including justice institutions. 

• Innovative approaches to addressing non-traditional security risks, such as climate security, and digital security. 

• Collaborative platforms between governments, civil society, and regional partners to realize the objectives of the Regional Framework. 

 
Guiding Questions 

• How can the Regional Framework support national and regional level inclusive governance and WPS initiatives in the Asia-Pacific? 

• What are the challenges to creating inclusive and representative institutions, including justice intuitions? 

• How can civil society and governments collaborate to address emerging security threats? ​

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Cambodia

ThisLife Creating Child-Friendly Spaces in Prisons: A Holistic Approach to Supporting Incarcerated Mothers and Their Children in Cambodia 

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Facilitator and presenter: Billy Gorter, Executive Director of This Life 

The Child-Friendly Spaces program in Siem Reap Prison addresses the complex needs of incarcerated mothers and their children through a comprehensive approach. The initiative creates safe, nurturing environments where children can engage in early childhood development activities while maintaining strong bonds with their mothers. The program provides vocational training and reintegration support for mothers, ensures appropriate care for children over three years old, and implements child-friendly procedures within the prison setting. Through collaboration with prison authorities and other stakeholders, the project has successfully supported 64 mothers, 73 children within prison, and 119 children outside prison, demonstrating how institutional environments can be transformed to prioritise child wellbeing and development while supporting maternal rehabilitation. 

 

Guiding questions: 

• What are effective strategies for creating child-friendly environments within institutional settings? 

• How can we better support the mother-child bond during incarceration while ensuring the best interests of the child? 

• What role can multi-stakeholder partnerships play in implementing and sustaining such programs? 

• What alternative approaches could be considered for mothers with young children who come into conflict with the law? 

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Lao PDR

UNDP Advancing Gender Equality in Lao PDR’s Judiciary: Insights from the JIN ASEAN Gender Audit 

​Facilitator and speakers

1. Ms. Laura Fragiacomo, Head of Governance UNDP

2. Ms. Sommany Sihathep, Programme Analyst, UNDP

3. Mr. Anousith Soukhathammavong, Director General, Department of International Cooperation, People's Supreme Court of Lao PDR

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The regional Judicial Integrity Network (JIN ASEAN) project, jointly implemented in Lao PDR with the People’s Supreme Court (PSC), is designed to strengthen judicial integrity and capacity across ASEAN. Activities include a Gender Audit of the court, a Judicial Knowledge Exchange in Thailand, and Environmental Justice Training. Lao PDR is the first country within the JIN ASEAN network to conduct a gender audit, marking an important step in addressing gender-related challenges within the judiciary. The audit has set the groundwork for enhancing gender equality in courtrooms, identifying areas for reform, and ensuring equitable access to justice. 

As a pilot, this audit provides a model for judicial systems across ASEAN to explore similar initiatives aimed at improving gender equity within their courts. Lao PDR will scale this initiative up into a full gender action plan as part of the upcoming regional project, ‘Women’s Leadership in the Judiciary’ which will commence in 2025. 

Guiding questions: 

• What have been your experiences with incorporating gender sensitivity in the judiciaries in your countries?  

• How to break through the barriers and empower the women judges?  

• What are the key elements that should be considered when designing gender-sensitive judicial reforms? 

• What role can courts play in advocating for gender equality both within their structures and in the wider community? 

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USAID Promoting the Rule of Law and Access to Justice in Laos 

Facilitator and presenter:  

• Lillian Dang, Chief of Party, Legal Aid Support Activity of The Asia Foundation in Laos    

• Lothchana Khemthong, Head of Legal Aid Division of the Ministry of Justice, Laos      

• Inthana Bouphasavanh, Director of Association for Development of Women and Legal Education (ADWLE) 

 

The USAID Legal Aid Support Program implemented by the Asia Foundation aims to promote the rule of law in Laos through strengthening the provision of legal aid services and community mediation for vulnerable people – including the poor, women and girls, survivors of gender-based violence, survivors of trafficking. The program seeks to increase legal aid provision by the Ministry of Justice, the Laos Bar Association, non-profit associations, and universities. The program further aims to increase sensitivity to women’s rights and empowerment in law related profession.  

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Guiding questions 

• What are effective strategies to improve the quality of legal aid service delivery to vulnerable people?  

• What are effective approaches to promoting gender-sensitive community mediation?  

• What are comparative models of legal aid that Laos can reference?  

• What are comparative models of community mediation that Laos can reference? 

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Myanmar

Promoting People-Centered Justice in Fragile Contexts with Multiple de facto Providers. 

 

Zaw Min Htet, Project Manager of UNDP Myanmar 

Jose Arraiza, HLP Advisor of UNDP Myanmar 

Ingrid Quinn, GESI Advisor of UNDP Myanmar 

 

The Civil Society Project in Myanmar seeks to support access to justice at the community level in a context of the 2021 military takeover and ensuing civil war. There is a multiplicity of actors providing justice in their areas of control, including the Ethnic Armed Organizations, the military-controlled State Administration Council and the People Defense Forces. The complexity of the scenario is increased by the longstanding customary justice institutions which operate at the community level, following their own community-based traditional rules. The CSP has adapted its programming to the conflict context by focusing on village-level justice, supporting civil society actors and using innovative approaches, including Collaborative Dispute Resolution and an interim Housing, Land and Property rights protection approach. This operating context, which is both unique but also has certain similarities to other country scenarios in the region and abroad (e.g., Afghanistan, other countries under military rule) is the departure point for this roundtable, which will cover the following general topics:  

 

• How can UNDP adapt its support to access to justice to situations of multiple justice providers (including non-state actors)? 

 

• What works and what does not work in supporting dispute resolution processes at the village level in fragile and conflict contexts? 

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• What kind of best practices have been identified in identifying and mitigating risks for both civil society actors, people assisted and UNDP itself? 

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Pakistan

UNDP Promoting Access to Environmental Justice in Pakistan 

Facilitator and presenter: Khushbakht Sohail from UNDP/ Zoha from UNDP 

 

The "Initiative on Access to Environmental Justice" in Pakistan aims to protect vulnerable populations who face barriers in accessing environmental justice, the rule of law, and human rights. It focuses on building capacity and developing legal frameworks to ensure environmental rights, while fostering collaboration between civil society and relevant stakeholders, including NHRIs, to improve access to justice for marginalized communities. 

Key efforts under this Project include strengthening legal mechanisms, enhancing institutional capacity, and promoting environmental and gender justice. The initiative engages government bodies, regulatory actors, and civil society to drive lasting change in advancing environmental justice and empowering vulnerable groups. 

 

Guiding questions 

• In addition to capacity building, what activities can be undertaken to promote access to environmental justice? 

• What are some best practices to engage the judiciary and national human rights institutions in such an initiative? 

• Globally, how have businesses been engaged to ensure improved access to environmental justice? 

• How does access to environmental justice become restricted in conflict settings and what can be done to minimize this? 

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Speakers

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