Why the Second World Summit for Social Development in November can be a pivotal moment for CDWD

Why the Second World Summit for Social Development in November can be a pivotal moment for CDWD

The Civil Society Forum at the Second World Summit for Social Development (WSSD2), scheduled for November 4–6, 2025, will host a featured event focused on structural approaches to social development and leadership initiatives for women and girls. The session will examine how social development can be strengthened by addressing intersectional realities, particularly for women from…

World Social Summit (WSS), Doha 2025

World Social Summit (WSS), Doha 2025

The Second World Summit for Social Development provides a crucial platform for advancing the recognition and inclusion of Communities Discriminated on Work and Descent (CDWD), who continue to face systemic exclusion and marginalization. For CDWD, the Summit represents an opportunity to bring global attention to the structural discrimination inherited through birth, occupation, and community, and…

Bulgaria Faces Scrutiny Over Persistent Roma Rights Gaps Ahead of UPR Pre-Session

Bulgaria Faces Scrutiny Over Persistent Roma Rights Gaps Ahead of UPR Pre-Session

On Friday, August 26th, 2025, Bulgaria had its Universal Periodic Review Pre-session. A Pre-session is a meeting on the human rights situation in a specific UN Member State. Pre-sessions provide national human rights institutions (NHRIs) and civil society organisations (CSOs) with an international platform through which they can inform the representatives of the recommending States about…

Roma Inclusion in Greece: From Policy Promises to Measurable Action

Roma Inclusion in Greece: From Policy Promises to Measurable Action

The Roma population in Greece continues to face deep-rooted systemic discrimination and marginalization, a phenomenon widely recognized as antigypsyism. Despite decades of policy discussions, exclusion persists across multiple spheres—housing, education, employment, justice, and access to basic services—hindering the country’s progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). According to the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights…

Unequal Progress: Roma Inclusion in 2025 SDG Reviews Remains Incomplete Across Europe

Unequal Progress: Roma Inclusion in 2025 SDG Reviews Remains Incomplete Across Europe

Authored by Magdalena Sarandeva (Bulgaria), GFoD Intern; and Simona Torotcoi (Romania), GFoD Regional Coordinator for Europe. The principle of “Leaving No One Behind” is central to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Yet, for Europe’s Roma communities—among the largest and most marginalized ethnic groups on the continent—this commitment is still far from being realized. The…