Holistic Security

Holistic Security is a strategy manual to help human rights defenders maintain their well-being in action. The holistic approach integrates self-care, well-being, digital security, and information security into traditional security management practices.

This manual is the first to adopt an explicitly 'holistic' approach to security and protection strategies for human rights defenders. This means that rather than looking separately at the importance of our digital security, psycho-social well-being and organisational security processes, it attempts to integrate them and highlight their inter-relatedness.

The Holistic Security Manual is founded on the understanding that 'security' is a deeply personal, subjective and gendered concept. When we work to bring about positive social change, we can face persistent threats and attacks which impact upon our physical and psychological integrity, and often affect our friends and families. However, taking an organised approach to security can help us to sustain ourselves and our work.

The manual is the result of a project that spanned three years and involved over 40 trainers, human rights defenders and practitioners, each one contributing valuable expertise and experience.