Iryna Vyrtosu

Author of human rights texts, human rights trainer and facilitator.

Since 2012, she has worked as a journalist for the Information Centre for Human Rights (now ZMINA), and later as an editor of the website.

The author of the book “Crimean album: stories of human rights defenders” – about the fight for human rights under occupation https://zmina.ua/publication/krymskyj-albom-istoriyi-pravozahysnykiv/ 

Over the ten years of cooperation with the Human Rights Centre ZMINA, she implemented a dozen campaigns to protect women’s rights. In particular, “The War Which Doesn’t Let Go” – a campaign to combat domestic violence in the families of ATO participants, “The Convention as a Gift”, “We Can’t Be Silent”, “Open the Truth Against Violence” – campaigns to support the ratification of the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, and others. She also led information campaigns supporting women during the COVID-19 pandemic. These efforts contributed to the Convention’s ratification by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine in 2022.

Author of more than 400 texts on human rights. Focuses on anti-discrimination, gender equality, inclusion and acceptance of diversity.

In 2017, she won the All-Ukrainian journalism competition “The Honor of the Profession” in the nomination “Best Presentation of a Complex Topic” for her article “The War Which Doesn’t Let Go: Violence in the Families of ATO Participants” for L`officiel (online).

In 2025, she became a laureate of the same competition in the special nomination “Best Material on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality” from the NGO Women in Media for her article “How to Help a Mother Who Has Lost a Child” for Divoche.media.

From 2017 to 2021, she was the coordinator of the Human Rights Academy for Journalism Professors. During this period, more than 70 journalism professors from around 40 journalism departments completed training, amended curricula with a human rights focus, or offered separate human rights courses for journalism students. During this time, she also coordinated three media festivals “Human Rights” for journalism professors and students.

Since 2021, she has been co-author of a series of educational programmes on accessibility on Diia. Education platform, as well as on media literacy (EdEra, Prometheus, etc.).

• Very Verified 2.0: Online Course on Media Literacy (2025) https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1Bnk218u4L/ 
• Democracy through actions. Module 1 (2023) https://osvita.diia.gov.ua/courses/democracy-through-actions-module-1
• Democracy through actions. Module 2 (2023) https://osvita.diia.gov.ua/courses/democracy-through-actions-module-2
• Communication on national minorities for the press-officers of law enforcement agencies and the prosecutor’s office (2022) https://www.coe.int/uk/web/kyiv/-/the-online-course-communication-on-national-minorities-for-the-press-officers-of-law-enforcement-agencies-and-the-prosecutor-s-office-was-launched
• A state without barriers (2022) https://osvita.diia.gov.ua/courses/barrier-free-government
• Barrier-Free Literacy (2021) https://osvita.diia.gov.ua/courses/barrier-free-literacy

She is the compiler of manuals, including “Universal Design. Lecture notes” (UNDP, 2025) https://shorturl.at/8mQPt , “Disability equality in the media: representation, accessibility, management; practical manual” (UNESCO, 2024) https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000391556, “Barrier-Free Public Service” (UNDP, 2024)

https://www.undp.org/sites/g/files/zskgke326/files/2024-10/barier-free-public-service.pdf

Iryna Vyrtosu is a co-founder of the Fight For Right, an organisation for people with disabilities, and the “Buty” (“To Be”), a bereavement support organisation.

She has worked and continues to work with international organisations such as the British Council Ukraine, UNESCO, the Council of Europe, the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), the United Nations Development Programme in Ukraine, and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Oleksandra Matviichuk.

He holds a Master’s degree in International Journalism from the Institute of Journalism of the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv.

She completed the International Visitor Leadership Programme (IVLP) in the United States and Understanding Human Rights (Ukraine/Lithuania, certified human rights trainer), as well as the Council of Europe’s Compass Long-Term Training Course for Trainers on Human Rights Education with Young People (Ukraine/Hungary, certified trainer of this course).