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TODD HOWLAND
editTodd Howland is the Chief of the Development, Economic and Social Rights Branch of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), where he oversees several human rights issues such as economic, social, and cultural rights, sustainable development, right to development, human rights and business, environment and climate change, International Financial Institutions (IFIs) and human rights, as well as our work related to traditionally marginalized populations (people with disabilities, migrants, older persons, youth and children and activists).[1].
Early Life
Todd Howland grew up in Rochester, Minnesota, in a small family consisting of his parents and himself. His parents were dedicated farmers who managed a small farm, instilling in Todd a strong work ethic from an early age. He attended high school in Rochester, where he developed a passion for skiing and soccer, becoming an avid participant in both sports.
A significant event in Todd's early life was the tragic loss of his elder brother, Jay Howland, in a car accident during Todd's teenage years. This loss had a profound impact on him and his family. In a conversation with an interviewer, he talked about how one of his best friends had died from an environmentally caused form of cancer. His friend’s death led him to begin research on environmentally caused diseases at age 14. He found out that this type of cancer was caused by toxics put into the environment by someone who valued money over the lives of others. This personal experience helped him see the multiple injustices around him and motivated him to get the skill set to address them.
Education and Professional Qualifications
He had his Bachelor of Arts in Economics (focus on comparative economic systems and economic history) and Bachelor of Business Administration (focus on alternative organizational structures and personnel motivation), Boise State University, 1983, Also in the same year, he studied German Language and Literature at the Dekanants Pruefung, University of Salzburg, Austria to the language studies, Todd chose Salzburg due to his love for skiing and used the opportunity to learn about the local culture, people, politics, and human rights realities.
He attended Hague Academy of International Law, 1985. This experience deepened his understanding of international law and its implications for human rights. In the same year he also attended the Inter American Comparative Law Institute, University of Havana, Cuba where he explored comparative law with a focus on the human rights situations in different legal systems.
In 1986, Todd earned his Juris Doctorate from the University of Denver College of Law. He graduated in the top 10% of his class, was inducted into the Order of the Coif, and focused his studies on international human rights law.
In 1987 he pursued his Master of Arts in Political Economy, University of Denver and his studies included a critique of neoclassical economic assumptions and their impact on social processes and human rights. He was admitted to the Colorado Bar, 1987 solidifying his commitment to legal advocacy and human rights.
Career
Todd Howland has an extensive practical experience in a wide range of human rights and international issues, having worked in or related to over 30 countries. He has also worked as an NGO advocate, attempting to induce governments and other powerful entities to change their policies. He has worked in numerous UN posts, where he was involved in a significant number of capacity building and educational projects designed to increase the level of compliance with human rights standards.
Todd served in the Carter Center as the International Legal Adviser to the SPO Transitional Government of Ethiopia between 1993-1994[2].
Most of Todd Howland’s human rights career has taken place in the country's presences of the United Nations. In 1994, after the Rwandan genocide, he was appointed the Officer in Charge of the Human Rights Promotion Unit. Later, he was promoted to Chief of Unit. This was the first country-wide presence of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights(OHCHR). Todd's involvement with the UN human rights system began when he arrived in Rwanda at the end of the genocide. He was given the task of being in charge of OHCHR’s contribution to rebuild the institutions needed to uphold human rights[3].
From 1997 - 1998, he worked as a Visiting Fellow of the Harvard Law School Human Rights Program. In 1996, Howland was in Luanda, Angola during the as the Officer in Charge of the Human Rights Division. After which he was the Director of the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights for six years. He co-founded the International Rights Advocate and held the role of Director of Global Programs[4].
In 2008, he headed out to Seoul, Korea where he was a professor of Human Rights Law in the dual degree program of the UN University of Peace and Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Seoul, Korea. Todd says that teaching in Korea gave him the opportunity to teach students who according to him, had an intense desire to contribute to making the world a better place. Todd Howland believes so much in giving the youth an opportunity in the field of human rights because according to him, “it will take generations to achieve the positive changes we seek.”
Later that year, Howland directed the Joint Human Rights Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN peacekeeping mission to Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC)[5]
From 2012 to 2018, Howland acted as the UN OHCHR representative in Colombia. During his time in Colombia, he took part in the peace negotiations with the FARC, which ended the continent’s longest civil war.
In 2018, he went to Geneva, Switzerland to act as the Principal Officer of the Research and Right to Development Section of the OHCHR. A year later, he was promoted to Chief of Branch, Development, Economic and Social Rights. There, he oversees several human rights issues such as cultural rights, social security rights, the rights of people with disabilities, minorities, women, older people, migrants and other rights.
Family and Early Life
Todd Howland grew up in Rochester, Minnesota, in a small family consisting of his parents and himself. His parents were dedicated farmers who managed a small farm, instilling in Todd a strong work ethic from an early age. He attended high school in Rochester, where he developed a passion for skiing and soccer, becoming an avid participant in both sports.
A significant event in Todd's early life was the tragic loss of his elder brother, Jay Howland, in a car accident during Todd's teenage years. This loss had a profound impact on him and his family. Additionally, Todd's passion for human rights was sparked at a young age after a close friend died of an environmentally induced cancer. This experience deeply influenced his commitment to advocating for human rights.
Todd currently resides in Geneva, Switzerland, with his wife, Adela Carrasco. He commutes to work by bicycle and is an everyday advocate for human rights, integrating his beliefs into his personal and professional life.
Awards
Leonard v. B. Sutton Writing Competition – 1985 – Todd Howland – Can International Law Prevent Another Bhopal Tragedy. [1]
Harvard Law School Wasserstein Fellow 1996-97 [2]
Visiting Fellow, Human Rights Program Harvard Law School 1996 [3]
COX PRICE Human Rights Award (Cox Price Lecture, “Human Rights Change via UN Human Rights Field Operations and International Human Rights Law”) 2017 [4]
Procuraduría General de la Nación Colombia [5]
La primera moneda conmemorativa al trabajo y la defensa de los derechos humanos. el Defensor del Pueblo de Colombia, 2018 [6]
Further reading
Todd Howland LinkedIn [7]
Todd Howland Post Bulletin [8]
Todd Howland Google Scholar [9]
References
- ^ "The First Session of the Expert Mechanism on the Right to Development - Opening statement by Mr. Todd Howland, Chief, Development, Economic and Social Issues Branch". United Nations. 23/06/2020. Retrieved 22/07/2024.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|access-date=and|date=(help) - ^ "Ethiopia". The Carter Center. Retrieved 2024-07-22.
- ^ News, Younglee Han, Gwangju (2020-11-03). "Addressing Human Rights: From Gwangju to the UN". Gwangju News. Retrieved 2024-07-22.
{{cite web}}:|last=has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "IRAadvocates". IRAadvocates. Retrieved 2024-07-22.
- ^ says, Giovanna Robinson Rangel (2017-03-21). "Más de 280 organizaciones sociales solicitamos que Todd Howland se quede en Colombia". Coeuropa (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-07-22.