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Drawing Competition - Kids for Human Rights

Global drawing competition celebrates Universal Declaration of Human Rights anniversary and prompts youth to action

06 June 2018

The United Nations Office is teaming up with Spanish artist Cristóbal Gabarrón and the Gabarrón Foundation to launch an international drawing competition to encourage young people to reflect on the importance of standing up for human rights.

The “Kids for human rights” international drawing competition invites young people aged 10 to 14 to produce creative artwork in three categories, urging them to reflect on a human right they feel strongly about defending; on someone they admire for their efforts in defending or promoting human rights; and on how they can defend or promote human rights in their own way.

This year’s 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights acts as a springboard for the global contest. The Universal Declaration is a milestone document in the history of human rights that set out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected.

Young artists have until 31 October 2018 to submit their artwork. The winners will be announced on 10 December, known worldwide as Human Rights Day.

“There is nothing as pure and innocent as a child’s creative imagination. Children are the future of our societies. We learn a lot from each other when interacting across generations and cultures on such issues that bind us together, such as human rights,” says Cristobal Gabarrón, who, to inspire young people, created 30 original artwork depicting his vision of each of the articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. These can be viewed on the contest website.

Winners’ creations will be exhibited and become part of the art collection of one of the first museums in the world dedicated to children’s art, set up by the Gabarrón Foundation. Headquartered in Valladolid, Spain, the Queen Sofia Children’s Art Museum houses a collection of some 50,000 artwork produced by children all over the world. A branch will soon open in Shanghai, China, in 2019.

Artist Cristóbal Gabarron is known for his work with the United Nations. Among other projects, in 2015 his “Enlightened Universe” sculpture, which he created for the 70th anniversary of the United Nations, was inaugurated in New York’s Central Park. It has since been exhibited in Geneva, Amsterdam and in Brussels (October 2018).

For more information about the contest, visit the Kids4HumanRights website.

Follow the contest on social media using the hashtag: #kids4humanrights.


  • I will respect your rights regardless of who you are. I will uphold your rights even when I disagree with you
  • When anyone’s human rights are denied, everyone's rights are undermined, so I will stand up
  • I will raise my voice. I will take action. I will use my rights to stand up for your rights.

people have stood up for human rights

We can all be Human Rights Champions

Tweet, Instagram or YouTube your action using the hashtag #Standup4humanrights.

Spread the word

#Standup4humanrights