Toward a More Inclusive Commonwealth

This project aims to promote the human social and economic rights of lesbian gay bisexual and transgender (LGBT) persons in Commonwealth countries. It is designed to identify the types of legal tools that could be used to assist interested Commonwealth governments with reforms to improve the legal standing and the lives of LGBT persons. Project activities include: (1) research; (2) expert consultations; (3) the development of a roadmap on specific types of legal tools that could be developed and used to assist with decriminalization; and (4) dialogue events with representatives from Commonwealth member countries to share best practices and to discuss possible areas for reform.

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) increased knowledge among Commonwealth governments and experts of legal tools suitable for reforming legislation to decriminalize consensual same-sex activity in the Commonwealth jurisdictions; (2) increased knowledge of existing global particularly southern-led efforts to advance LGBTI persons’ rights and the potential support offered by Commonwealth networks for further reform; and (3) increased use by Commonwealth governments of technical assistance and information to undertake legal or policy reform aimed at improving the legal standing and lives of LGBTI people.