TUSHAR KANTI BAIDYA

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Tushar Kanti Baidya (he/him) is an educator, peacebuilder, and human rights advocate with more than 15 years of experience advancing the dignity, equality, visibility, and human rights of LGBTIQ+ people in Bangladesh and internationally. He is the founder of Inclusive Bangladesh and Dhaka Pride, two community-led initiatives established to strengthen LGBTIQ+ advocacy, human rights documentation, public engagement, and community participation.

Tushar’s academic journey includes affiliations with BRAC University and the University of Dhaka in Bangladesh, the University of Roehampton in the United Kingdom, and the University of Technology Sydney in Australia. His multidisciplinary academic and professional experience informs an approach to human rights work that connects community knowledge, research, policy engagement, education, peacebuilding, and international human rights mechanisms.

Throughout his advocacy, Tushar has focused on developing creative, community-led, and sustainable approaches to identifying human rights challenges and advancing locally grounded solutions. His work spans LGBTIQ+ rights, peacebuilding, interfaith dialogue, social inclusion, equality, and the strengthening of civic participation for communities experiencing discrimination and marginalisation.

A significant part of his work is directed towards achieving systemic change in hostile and restrictive environments for LGBTIQ+ people. His advocacy has included engagement with United Nations human rights mechanisms, policy and legal advocacy, public campaigning, community mobilisation, research, documentation of human rights violations, and engagement with policymakers and international stakeholders. Through these approaches, he works to ensure that community evidence and lived experience inform wider discussions on accountability, public policy, institutional reform, good governance and the protection of fundamental rights.

As the founder of Inclusive Bangladesh, Tushar has contributed to building community-led structures for human rights monitoring, research, advocacy, education, and international engagement. Through Dhaka Pride, he has also developed an approach to Pride that extends beyond celebration and visibility. He views Pride as a platform for social and narrative change, particularly in conservative contexts where public discourse around sexual orientation, gender identity and expression can remain highly restricted.

Tushar has been actively engaged with the international Pride movement through InterPride. He previously served as a Regional Representative of InterPride and currently contributes through membership in various InterPride committees. His work within the global Pride movement reflects a strong commitment to strengthening locally relevant Pride organising and exploring how Pride can be used to shift public narratives, build solidarity, encourage dialogue, and create greater space for LGBTIQ+ communities within conservative societies.

His contributions to human rights, peacebuilding, and social inclusion have received international recognition. In 2019, Tushar received the Faith in the Commonwealth Peace Award for his work in peacebuilding, interfaith dialogue, and social inclusion. In 2021, he was named an APCOM Hero Award Honouree in the Young Achiever category, recognising his contribution to LGBTIQ+ rights advocacy in Asia and the Pacific. In 2026, he received the Troy Perry Legacy Award, recognising his outstanding human rights leadership and his sustained contribution to Pride organising, equality, and the advancement of LGBTIQ+ communities.

Tushar is a Fellow of the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the Commonwealth, the International Service for Human Rights (ISHR), the Swedish Institute (SI), Equitas–International Centre for Human Rights Education, the Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers, KAICIID, UNESCO Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development (UNESCO MGIEP), iDove–Interfaith Dialogue on Violent Extremism, Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) and the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC). These fellowships have contributed to his experience across human rights advocacy, peacebuilding, interfaith dialogue, leadership, movement-building, international policy engagement, and social change. He has also had engagements with Bangladesh Scouts, Dialogue Perspectives, Commonwealth Youth Peace Ambassadors Network (CYPAN), Commonwealth Youth Gender & Equality Network (CYGEN) and the Royal Commonwealth Society, contributing to wider Commonwealth-focused dialogue and international networks.

Across his work, Tushar places particular importance on ensuring that human rights advocacy is evidence-based, community-led, intersectional, and responsive to the realities of those most affected by discrimination. He advocates for approaches that move beyond visibility alone towards long-term social, narrative, and institutional change, including stronger human rights protections, meaningful participation, accountability, and greater recognition of LGBTIQ+ people within public policy and civic life.

As Program Director and Public Officer of the Global Centre for Rights, Tushar contributes to the organisation’s strategic direction, governance, program development, research, partnerships, public engagement, and human rights advocacy. His work is guided by a commitment to connecting grassroots communities with civil society, policymakers, researchers, Pride movements, and international institutions, while ensuring that people with lived experience remain central to efforts for lasting social and systemic change.