Article 36 is a specialist non-profit organisation, focused on reducing harm from weapons.
A small and effective team of advocacy and policy experts based primarily in the UK, we work in coalitions for new international legal and policy agreements. We bring our expertise and creativity to briefings, negotiations and strategically convened discussions.
We work together with civil society partners and governments to develop new policies and legal standards that prevent civilian harm from existing and emerging weapons technologies.
Our work
is underpinned by rigorous, transparent and independent analysis of how weapons harm civilians, and how to reduce and prevent such harm.
Our team
has more than a decade of experience in diplomatic negotiations and in developing practical, actionable policies.
We believe
that international standards can respond to humanitarian concerns, and we recognise the power and importance of legal, political and social norms in influencing behaviour. From framing humanitarian issues and shaping civil society responses, to convening key political meetings and presenting as experts in international treaty negotiations, we provide a critical voice on the role of weapons in our world.
How we work
Developing international laws and standards takes time: the adoption of a treaty is typically the result of a decades work through close partnerships and collective mobilisation. Agreements also require effective support after they have been signed.
Organisational commitments
Article 36 has an organisational policy not to organise or participate on all male panels. We host the Say No To #Manpanels list of individuals who benefit from their male gender and have committed not to speak on panels that include only men. We work to improve our internal policies and reflection in other areas, and our current policies on equality, diversity and inclusion, parental leave, safeguarding as well as our ethical image usage policy are available on request. This website is built to WCAG 2.0 (AA standard) accessibility, audited by Lighthouse.
Organisational achievements
Safe schools declaration
Ongoing attacks on education are resulting in the death, injury or abduction of children and the destruction of educational facilities. Article 36 worked closely with the key state and civil society stakeholders involved in the development of the Safe Schools Declaration, and are now focused on strengthening the initiative – as well as identifying the lessons learned from its development and operationalisation for this and other initiatives.
The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW)
The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) was adopted on 7 July 2017, with 122 countries in favour. On its first day fifty states from across the world signed the treaty. The TPNW makes nuclear weapons illegal for its states parties, and also obliges them to assist the victims of nuclear weapons use and testing and take steps to remediate environments affected by these horrific weapons of mass destruction
EWIPA declaration
Civilian suffering in modern conflicts remains unacceptably high, driven in large part by the widespread use of explosive weapons in towns and cities. These weapons, particularly those with wide-area effects, cause predictable patterns of harm: death and injury, displacement, psychological trauma, and the destruction of homes, hospitals, water networks, power systems, and other essential infrastructure.
To address these humanitarian consequences, a new Implementation Toolkit has been developed by Article 36 and Airwars to help states and armed forces operationalise the commitments of the 2022 Political Declaration on Strengthening the Protection of Civilians from the Humanitarian Consequences of Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas.
Article 36’s work has been supported by:
Our main current projects and work focus on: