Spark Newsletter
September 2025 | Vol 2 | No. 2
Spark is Amnesty International Canada’s monthly guide to activism and human rights in Canada (formerly known as the Activism Guide). From online petitions to events and important days of action, Spark is your resource for igniting change in your classroom or community, across Canada and around the world.
featured campaign
Say 'NO' to laws that fast-track corporate interests
Across Canada, politicians are fast-tracking laws that silence Indigenous voices and put profit before people and the planet. These development bills — Bill 5 (Ontario), Bill 15 (British Columbia), and Bill C-5 (Federal) — could strip away our rights, weaken environmental protections, and allow corporations to decide our future.
Imagine mega-projects forced through without proper consultation or environmental checks. Communities sidelined. Justice ignored.
As Amnesty’s Secretary General Ketty Nivyabandi reminds us, Canada is not immune to authoritarianism. Real progress must be built on equality, human rights, and the rule of law.
Canadians did not elect CEOs, and our future should not be built on exclusion or exploitation. Add your name to our petition today.
Take Action
Defend hope for human rights
Upcoming Events
Member Spotlight
Meet Aroni Nur Ahmed
What began as curiosity at a local event has grown into an impactful role helping young people take action for justice.
In early 2017, I attended an Amnesty International Toronto event and was struck by the idea of helping people facing injustices around the world. That inspired me to get involved.
Later that year, I became a National Youth Organizer for Amnesty International Canada, helping plan and facilitate events like film screenings and letter-writing sessions, and speaking to audiences to engage them in campaigns.
The initiative that has meant the most to me is starting an Amnesty club at my high school. We’ve hosted events, including our own Write for Rights, to educate peers and show them how to take action. Hearing students share their own experiences with activism motivates me to keep going. I believe change starts in communities, so I strive to create opportunities for others to get involved.
We’d love to hear from you too! Share your Amnesty journey with others in the movement by sending a short story to activism@amnesty.ca.
Get Involved
Write for Rights 2025
Get ready to take action, build community, and change lives.
Every year, on International Human Rights Day, December 10, people across Canada and around the world stand with those whose rights are being attacked.
Thanks to this global human rights campaign, Rocky Myers won clemency, Dorgelesse Nguessan was freed, and Sawyeddollah, a Rohingya refugee, began a new life as a student in the United States.
Nine more individuals and communities are counting on us this year. The campaign launches in October with new cases, letter-writing resources, and opportunities to host or join events in your community.
Start a Youth Group
Launch an Amnesty Youth Group or Campus Club
Join our National Youth & Student Groups Program and join our network of schools, campuses, and communities across the country doing human rights work! Setting up a group or club is easy, and Amnesty Canada will support you with tools, resources, and one-on-one guidance from our youth program staff. Get started by filling out this form or sending us an email at youth@amnesty.ca.
Sign up for the Spark Newsletter
Sign up and get the latest stories of courage, updates on urgent campaigns, and ways to connect with the wider Amnesty community, right to your inbox.
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Recommended resources
Check out some recommended Human Rights content curated by Amnesty members just like you.
Read
Read the latest Amnesty Book Club selection, Who We Are by the late Honourable Murray Sinclair, former Chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.
Watch
Watch our Secretary General and Amnesty directors from the Americas join the Red Dress Day Vigil on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
Learn
Learn about human rights activism and how to campaign for a better world from our interactive Amnesty Online Learning Centre.
Donate
Amnesty Canada doesn’t accept funding from the government. We rely solely upon the generosity of people like you to keep doing our crucial human rights work.
The Urgent Action Network
By becoming a member, you can help protect people at imminent risk
Amnesty campaigns for human rights in many ways, but when safety is a concern of the individual at risk, the best way to ensure their protection is the Urgent Action Network. Volunteers use letters, emails, and social media posts to urge authorities around the world to protect individuals and communities at risk of imminent human rights violations.
Over the past five decades, the Urgent Action Network has become one of Amnesty’s most effective campaign tools. Worldwide, more than 500,000 volunteers worldwide are standing by to take action. Want to join them? It takes just a moment to sign up. As a member of the Urgent Action Network, you’ll become a lifeline for those in immediate danger of human rights abuses.
hope in action
Stories to Energize and Inspire Your Activism
Thank you for supporting human rights
Sharing these success stories is only possible thanks to the continued generosity of donors like you.