ICAAD was founded in 2012 by international human rights lawyers Hansdeep Singh and Jaspreet K. Singh. They shared a desire to expose entrenched forms of discrimination that drive violence and undermine people’s “right to life” under international law. Both founders shared a vision that data was critical in building the evidence base needed to change policies and practices that harm women, girls, and marginalized communities. Shaped by personal and intergenerational experiences of discrimination, the founders set out to build an organization designed to address systemic discrimination while consistently scanning the horizon to prepare the communities we serve for future human rights harms.

ICAAD is multidisciplinary, integrating law, advocacy, technology, data, and the arts to build the capacity of local actors to push for reform. This approach enables ICAAD to translate community knowledge into evidence, influence policy and legal systems, and develop low and high tech tools that strengthen accountability. Rather than working in isolation, ICAAD partnered with local advocates, government institutions, and global mechanisms to ensure solutions were both grounded and durable.

In 2017, Erin Thomas and Jyoti Diwan joined the organization, marking a key moment in its institutional evolution. Erin helped guide ICAAD’s strategic direction and partnerships in Oceania, ensuring that community-led priorities remained central to its work. Jyoti further deepened ICAAD’s use of data and emerging technology, leading efforts to build tools that make patterns of harm visible and actionable for communities, courts, and international bodies. Together, this expanded leadership helped ICAAD evolve from a founder-led initiative into a resilient, collaborative institution.

Today, ICAAD advances gender justice, climate justice, inclusive technology, and systems change across local and international contexts. ICAAD’s work starts with impacted communities at the center. That commitment to localization shaped everything we do. We listen, build relationships, and bring what’s needed. By offering multidisciplinary expertise and investing in innovation, ICAAD helps transform how justice is delivered.