Participants identified many challenges during the Congress. We highlight a few here – not because we necessarily want them to become policy positions but to remind ourselves that, more than ever, it is important to keep our eyes and minds open.

The political, social and economic environment is transforming around us. Legal, social, communications and security policies are changing in response. To stay effective, we have to change too. We need to check our assumptions and methods. They may be out of date.
• Who are our allies?
• Which people and institutions do we most need to influence?
• What methods of advocacy still work?

We campaign to stop Governments putting detainees on death row or executing them. If we are successful, however, many more prisoners may be sentenced to life imprisonment – which is itself cruel and causes enormous suffering for both detainees and their families. We are going to need to develop stronger positions on sentencing and on alternatives to the death penalty.

How can we involve more young people?

Where a long moratorium has been in place, how do we sustain advocacy for abolition?

We know how to increase audiences using social media. We know less well how to use e-tools to persuade people to act.
How do we keep e-safe? What more must we do to make sure that e-insecurity is not putting those who work with us at risk?

We have no effective strategy for influencing China.