We are proud to share the inaugural edition of the Connect, Defend, Act! (CDA!) program’s Year in Review. For a program like ours, that advances civil liberties and fights efforts to restrict (digital) civic space, 2025 was a year of great risk and pressure brought by profound global shifts in civic space. 

In Colombia, being a human rights defender is very risky business. Those who defend the land, natural resources, and rights of Afro-Colombian and Indigenous communities face constant threats that undermine their right to participate, express their opinions, and decide on their future. This study names and quantifies the problem, identifies patterns, recognizes gaps, and sheds…