PERSIST is a two-year project co-funded by the European Union under the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) programme. Bringing together eight partners from Belgium, France, Italy, Slovenia and Spain, the project works to protect human rights defenders (HRDs) and civil society organisations (CSOs) from the rapid spread of intrusive surveillance technologies, and to safeguard the civic space and fundamental freedoms on which democracy depends.
PERSIST responds to the growing use of mass surveillance, from facial recognition and predictive policing to algorithmic profiling, against civil society in Europe, and to the chilling effect this has on the right to protest and on the freedoms of assembly, association and expression.
The project speaks to four interconnected audiences: civil society organisations and human rights defenders; journalists and media outlets; policymakers at national and EU level; and the wider public.
Through monitoring, training, protection mechanisms, advocacy and awareness-raising, PERSIST builds civil society’s capacity to identify, document and challenge surveillance abuses, connects grassroots defenders with digital rights expertise, and amplifies the voices of those most exposed to surveillance and digital repression, including women defenders, LGBTQIA2S+ activists, racialised and migrant-led organisations, and climate justice movements.
Timeframe: July 2026 – June 2028
Region/countries: Belgium, France, Italy, Slovenia, Spain
Lead Partner: NOVACT (Spain)
Partners:
EUROPEAN CIVIC FORUM (France)
LIGUE FRANÇAISE POUR LA DÉFENSE DES DROITS DE L’HOMME ET DU CITOYEN – LDH (France)
ARCI APS (Italy)
HERMES CENTER FOR TRANSPARENCY AND DIGITAL HUMAN RIGHTS (Italy)
PIC – PRAVNI CENTER ZA VARSTVO ČLOVEKOVIH PRAVIC IN OKOLJA LJUBLJANA (Slovenia)
CLIMATE ACTION NETWORK EUROPE (Belgium)
MEDIA DIVERSITY INSTITUTE GLOBAL (Belgium)
Funding: Co-funded by the European Union (CERV programme)
