The Faces of Human Rights was conceived both as a celebration of the UDHR and a tribute to those individuals who laid the groundwork for that document and, more generally, developed our current conceptions of human rights through their various distinguished contributions to the field: as academics, civil servants, civil society activists, judges, lawmakers, philosophers, politicians, and so on.

Through these pages, we seek to recall the reasons why human rights are so essential to the post-Second World War peace and how the flame that is human dignity continues to burn and move individuals to act in its pursuit. It is through this reflection that we recall that behind the UDHR, the many additional human rights treaties, the bureaucracy, the struggle and the heartbreak are the people who have fought to maintain the inherent self-worth and freedoms of every human, and continue to do so, one cause, one speech, one article, one conversation, one kind word at a time.

These chapters also serve as a witness to the many varied ways in which each person can contribute to the recognition of human dignity, from small actions close to home to grand interjections into the international framework. While everyone chooses to interpret the actions and contributions of the individuals we celebrate here, it is our utmost hope that our underlying concept is conveyed: at the heart of human rights are humans, and we all have a role to play in fulfilling the promise of a future where dignity is at the core of all action.