Birgit Kainz-Labbe

Birgit Kainz-Labbé is Coordinator of the Civic Space Unit at the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). Based in Geneva, she leads global strategies to expand civic space and protect those who defend human rights, with a particular focus on digital threats and transnational repression. Her work spans policy, advocacy, and cross-sector collaboration to safeguard freedom of expression, assembly, and association. Birgit regularly engages in high-level dialogues on defending civic freedoms in the digital age and emphasizes the importance of systemic support for human rights defenders.