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Christophe Golay

Senior Research Fellow


International Human Rights Law / Economic, Social and Cultural Rights / Extraterritoriality / Right to Food / Food Sustainability / Rights of Peasants / Non-Discrimination / UN Human Rights Mechanisms / Access to Justice / Human Rights and Development

Dr. Christophe Golay is Senior Research Fellow at the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights.

His expertise and more than 80 publications relate to the right to food, peasants’ rights, the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment, human rights and sustainable development, the fight against hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition with human-rights based approaches, and the United Nations (UN) human rights bodies.

Since 2009, Dr. Golay has been providing legal advice in relation to the elaboration and implementation of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas (UNDROP).

Between 2015 and 2022, he supervised the legal dimension of two research projects on the right to food in Bolivia, Cambodia, Ghana and Kenya, jointly funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.

From 2001 to 2008, he was legal adviser to the first UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food and undertook missions with the UN in Brazil, Guatemala, Bolivia, Cuba, Niger, Ethiopia, Bangladesh, India and Palestine.

Dr Golay holds a PhD in International Relations (with a specialization in International Law) and a double Master’s in International Law and International Relations from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies.

Resources

New Research Brief Examines the Role of the UN Working Group on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas

We are pleased to announce the publication of a new Research Brief authored by Dr. Christophe Golay, which examines the role of the United Nations Working Group on the rights of peasants and other people working in rural areas.

New publications outline concrete recommendations to implement the right to food in Geneva

Research and Policy
The Geneva Academy has released one briefing in French and four research briefs in French, English, German, and Italian on the right to food in Geneva.

Research Brief – The United Nations Working Group on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas

December 2024

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Research Brief – Le groupe de travail des Nations Unies sur les droits des paysan.nes et des autres personnes travaillant dans les zones rurales

December 2024

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Research Brief – Grupo de trabajo de las Naciones Unidas sobre los derechos de los campesinos, de las campesinas y de otras personas que trabajan en las zonas rurales

December 2024

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Research Brief – Droit à l'alimentation à Genève

December 2024

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Research Brief – Recht auf Nahrung in Genf

December 2024

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Research Brief – Diritto All'Alimentazione a Ginevra

December 2024

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Research Brief – Right to Food in Geneva

December 2024

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Briefing N° 24: Le Droit à l’Alimentation à Genève

December 2024

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

The Human Right to a Clean, Healthy and Sustainable Environment: Understanding its Scope, States Obligations and Links with Other Human Rights

March 2024

Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay, Baïna Ubushieva

Le Droit aux Semences en Afrique

June 2023

Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay, Karine Peschard

The Right to Seeds in Africa

June 2023

Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay, Karine Peschard

Briefing N° 22: The Right to Seeds in Africa

February 2023

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay, Karine Peschard, Lulbahri Araya

Building Back Better with the Rights to Health, Food and Social Security

December 2022

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay, Steven L. B. Jensen and Amanda Lyons

The Rights to Food and Food Sovereignty in UNDROP

December 2022

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Agricultural Commercialization, Gender Equality and the Right to Food

September 2022

Taylor & Francis

Christophe Golay, Joanna Bourke Martignoni, Christophe Gironde, Elisabeth Prügl, Dzodzi Tsikata

Implementação do Tratado Internacional sobre Recursos Fitogenéticos para a Alimentação e a Agricultura (TIRFAA) à luz da Declaração das Nações Unidas sobre os Direitos dos Camponeses e Outras Pessoas que Trabalham em Áreas Rurais (UNDROP)

September 2022

APREBES and Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay, Karine Peschard, Olivier De Schutter, Hilal Elver, José Esquinas, Michael Fakhri

Implementing the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) in light of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas (UNDROP)

September 2022

APBREBES and Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Karine Peschard, Christophe Golay, Olivier De Schutter, Hilal Elver, José Esquinas, Michael Fakhri

Aplicación del Tratado Internacional sobre Recursos Fitogenéticos para la Alimentación y la Agricultura (TIRFAA) a la luz de la Declaración de las Naciones Unidas sobre los derechos de los campesinos y de otras personas que trabajan en las zonas rurales

September 2022

APREBES and Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay, Karine Peschard, Olivier De Schutter, Hilal Elver, José Esquinas, Michael Fakhri

La mise en œuvre du Traité international sur les ressources phytogénétiques pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture à la lumière de la Déclaration des Nations Unies sur les droits des paysans et des autres personnes travaillant dans les zones rurales

September 2022

APREBES and Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay, Karine Peschard, Olivier De Schutter, Hilal Elver, José Esquinas, Michael Fakhri

Le droit aux semences en europe

October 2021

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay et Fulya Batur

The Right to Seeds in Europe

October 2021

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Fulya Batur, Christophe Golay

El Derecho A Las Semillas En Europa

October 2021

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay and Fulya Batur

International And Regional Instruments To Defend And Promote The Interests And Rights Of Family Farmers

June 2021

The World Rural Forum; the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Instruments Internationaux Et Régionaux Pour Défendre Et Promouvoir Les Intérêts Et Les Droits Des Agricultrices Et Agriculteurs Familiaux

June 2021

The World Rural Forum; the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Instrumentos Internacionales Y Regionales Para Defender Y Promover Los Intereses Y Los Derechos De Los Agricultores Y Las Agricultoras Familiares

June 2021

The World Rural Forum; the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Briefing No°19: Practical Manual on the Right to Seeds in Europe

February 2021

Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law andf Human Rights

Fulya Batur, Christophe Golay

The Right to Land and the UNDROP

December 2020

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights; The International Land Coalition

Christophe Golay

LE DROIT À LA TERRE ET LA DÉCLARATION UNDROP

December 2020

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights; The International Land Coalition

Christophe Golay

EL DERECHO A LA TIERRA Y LA DECLARACIÓN DE UNDROP

December 2020

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights; The International Land Coalition

Christophe Golay

The Right To Seeds And Intellectual Property Rights

November 2020

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

El Derecho A Las Semillas Y Los Derechos De La Propiedad Intelectual

November 2020

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

The Right to Land and Other Natural Resources

November 2020

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

La politique extérieure de la Suisse et la Déclaration de l'ONU sur les droits des paysan.ne.s – ETUDE – 2020

August 2020

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay, Caroline Dommen

Switzerland’s Foreign Policy and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Peasants

August 2020

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay, Caroline Dommen

Briefing No°16: #ESCR AND #SDGs: Practical Manual on the Role of UN Human Rights Mechanisms in Monitoring the SDGs that Seek to Realize Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

July 2020

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

The Role of Human Rights Mechanisms In Monitoring The United Nations Declaration On The Rights Of Peasants

February 2020

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Briefing No°15: The Right to Seeds in Europe

April 2019

Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

The Implementation Of The United Nations Declaration On The Rights Of Peasants And Other People Working In Rural Areas

March 2019

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

La mise en œuvre de la Déclaration des Nations Unies sur les droits des paysans et des autres personnes travaillant dans les zones rurales

March 2019

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

La aplicación de la Declaración de las Naciones Unidas sobre los Derechos de los Campesinos y de Otras Personas que Trabajan en las Zonas Rurales

March 2019

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and Sustainable Development Goals

May 2018

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

The Rights to Food Sovereignty and to Free, Prior and Informed Consent

March 2018

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Briefing No°11: No One will be Left Behind – The Role of UN Human Rights Mechanisms in Monitoring the SDGs that Seek to Realize ESCR

January 2018

The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Large-Scale Land Acquisitions – Focus on South-East Asia

October 2015

Brill Nijhoff

Christophe Golay, Christophe Gironde, Peter Messerli

Negotiation of a United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas

January 2015

Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Christophe Golay

Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights in International Law. Contemporary Issues and Challenges

March 2014

Oxford University Press

Eibe Riedel, Christophe Golay

The Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Econimic, Social and Cultural Rights

July 2013

Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Irene Biglino, Christophe Golay

The right to food and global strategic frameworks

March 2012

FAO

Christophe Golay, Michaela Büschi

The Fight for the Right to Food: Lessons Learned

October 2011

Palgrave Macmillan

Christophe Golay, Jean Ziegler, Claire Mahon

Droit à l'alimentation et accès à la justice

October 2011

Bruylant

Christophe Golay

The Right to Food and Access to Justice: Examples at the National, Regional and International Levels

March 2009

FAO

Christophe Golay