The Villarceaux Declaration denounces the structural causes of poverty and calls for responses based on human rights, peace, and justice. This article highlights its key messages to help prepare for the 17 October 2026 commemoration.

The International Committee for October 17 met from 2 to 6 June in Villarceaux (France) and has now released the Villarceaux Declaration, which calls for people to continue working for peace, justice, and the protection of our planet. It prioritises people who are trapped in poverty and suffer most acutely the consequences of the multiple crises facing humanity today.

The Declaration reaffirms that working against poverty is not only a matter of income, but also of human rights. It maintains that poverty is not inevitable, but rather the result of political decisions, structural inequalities, and discrimination, and it calls for action to address the root causes of poverty.

It warns of the impact of the climate crisis, wars, austerity policies, and the growing use of artificial intelligence without safeguards to ensure fairness. It also asserts that people living in poverty must be involved in shaping public policy — the only way to ensure that any measures proposed have a positive impact on their lives.

A call to make people the priority

At a time marked by profound crises and enormous challenges, the Villarceaux Declaration invites us to go back to the basics, to devise responses to today’s problems from an approach centred on people’s lives and not on a logic dominated by economic and political power that deepens inequality and instability and condemns millions of human beings to a life of poverty and exclusion, wholly denying them their right to make their home on Earth.

The Villarceaux Declaration concludes with a call to commemorate 17 October, the World Day for Overcoming Poverty, in a more inclusive way, and to act in solidarity, especially alongside young people and people living in poverty, in order to create societies in which all people can live in peace, security, and dignity.

We invite you to read and share the Villarceaux Declaration to prepare for the 17 October commemoration and to continue working for a fairer, more inclusive world where everyone has a right to a life of basic dignity.