On this page
Explore the guidance
- Introduction to the guidance
- Thinking like your audience – the springboard for effective communication
- How can we best communicate the role and mandate of NHRIs?
- How can we best communicate on the environment that NHRIs need to thrive?
- Materials and/or formats for presenting your messages
As NHRIs and those working on human rights, we are aware of and convinced by the value and necessity of what we do. However, that may not be the case with national authorities. How can we go about explaining the value of human rights?
Putting yourself in your audience’s shoes
Given effective communication rarely comes from only considering your own point of view, it is important to place yourself in your audience’s shoes. By framing what you communicate with their perspective (i.e. their goals and behaviours) in mind, you increase your chances of connecting with – and ultimately convincing – them.
This guidance was developed with this in mind and has these two questions at its heart:
- Why should I (as a national authority) care about NHRIs and human rights?
- How can you (as an NHRI) help me in advancing my work?
Try to ensure that you are addressing or at least linking back to these questions when interacting with national authorities. It may also be useful to develop answers to these questions at your institution based on previous experiences and interactions with national authorities.
Something to consider – expressing complex mandates concisely and accessibly
Here is a technique that can help you deepen your exploration and considerations of your audience:
- These mini biographies describe someone representing your target audience(s). Ideally, it is based on real interactions with your target audience(s) – be it user research or other professional interactions (meetings, emails, etc.) – and what you know about them. Questions to consider from their perspective are:
- What do I want to achieve/are my goals in my role?
- What/who influences my (ability to make) decisions?
- What do I need to do in my daily role/to achieve my goals?
- What obstructs or prevents me from doing my job?
- It is also vital to be aware of the limitations of personas. While a good entry point, they are still a static representation of a group. To limit this, consider leaving out details such as age and gender that might trigger subconscious biases and relate to stereotypes.
