• # ‘Bitcoin as infrastructure, not investment’
• # Defining the problem
• From principle to practice
• Tools under pressure
• Learning in context and real-world outcomes
• The next session

§The Democratic Republic of Congo. Human Rights Foundation; Unsplash / Johnnathan Tshibangu

In Iran, authorities have combined asset freezes targeting citizens abroad with more than 2,000 hours of internet shutdowns, limiting access to communication, information and financial tools.

In El Salvador, authorities have frozen the assets of journalists connected to independent media outlet El Faro following a documentary on alleged negotiations between government officials and gangs.

These are the kinds of conditions that shape the thinking behind a Bitcoin training programme run by the Human Rights Foundation (HRF).

Its Financial Freedom Bitcoin webinar is designed for non-profit leaders, activists and educators operating in these environments — and unusually for a structured technical course, it is free to attend, with the participant cap fixed high at 21 million: “What’s the max ceiling of BTC?” jokes instructor Win Ko Ko Aung.

Interest has grown steadily across each session, with more than 130 non-profit leaders from over 50 countries joining the most recent cohort.

“We welcome everyone to join,” says Aung. “This webinar is specifically designed for non-profit leaders who want to learn Bitcoin 101.”

A new session is scheduled for June 22–24, running daily from 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM EDT.

§Iran’s regime-imposed internet blackout has now lasted more than 2,064 hours, according to reports from NetBlocks, a global internet observatory. Unsplash / Kevin Martin

§# ‘Bitcoin as infrastructure, not investment’

For past student Destiny Smart, founder of Bitcoin Africa Story and project lead at Bitcoin Ikorodu in Nigeria, the motivation for joining was tied to how Bitcoin is being used in practice.

“I was interested in how Bitcoin is being positioned specifically for nonprofits and financial freedom use cases,” he says. “The focus of the program aligned with the kind of impact-driven work I’m already engaged in.”

For Grayson Heaven, Bitcoin Safari in Tanzania, the goal was broader exposure. “I wanted to deepen my understanding of Bitcoin beyond the basics, especially its role in financial freedom and real-world impact in emerging markets like Africa,” he says.

And for creative strategist Desiree Rexach, founder of Microcosma Studio in Puerto Rico, the entry point was business focused.

“I wanted to move beyond the investment hype and understand Bitcoin as a functional tool for global commerce and genuine financial independence,” she says. “Not just theoretically, but practically.”

§Bitcoin Africa Story founder Destiny Smart attended the last session and would recommend to others

§# Defining the problem

“Financial repression means when authoritarian regimes weaponize banks and finance to surveil, censor, freeze assets or cut off funding to silence dissent,” says instructor Win Ko Ko Aung, Head of Non-profit Bitcoin Education at HRF.

That framing appears repeatedly in HRF’s broader reporting. In Yemen, currency controls are forcing cash shortages, with daily limits leaving businesses closed and salaries paid in bundles of low-value notes.

In Myanmar, a new anti-money laundering law expands military control over digital assets and gives authorities broader powers to seize funds and conduct searches.

The point, Aung says, is not abstract policy — it is operational reality. “Traditional money fails freedom fighters,” he says. “Bitcoin’s censorship resistance becomes a powerful defense.”

§A new anti-money laundering law in Myanmar expands military control over digital assets. Unsplash / Alexander Schimmeck

§From principle to practice

The three-day structure moves from fundamentals to applied use.

Day one covers Bitcoin basics, wallets, and self-custody. Day two focuses on secure transfers, backups and privacy. Day three shifts into real-world systems: donations, payroll, and tools like BTCPay Server.

For Rexach, that structure stood out for its practical focus. “We covered Bitcoin basics and the role it plays in human rights and financial inclusion, how to exchange Bitcoin into local currency with a live P2P demo, Bitcoin crowdfunding including setting up your own donation page, hardware wallets and secure storage, BTCPay Server setup and Nostr,” she says.

She describes the balance as deliberate. “A healthy balance. The course grounded us in first principles, but roughly 70% of the focus leaned toward practical application.”

In Democratic Republic of the Congo, the central bank plans to ban cash transactions in foreign currencies, limiting how people protect themselves from a weakening local currency.

§BTCPay Server is among the tools and services taught to the participants

§Tools under pressure

Much of the course is built around specific tools designed to function outside traditional financial infrastructure.

Participants work through non-custodial wallets, peer-to-peer exchanges and donation systems that do not rely on banks.

Rexach’s favourite parts were the hands-on wallet walkthroughs, particularly Bull Bitcoin and the features it offers, while Smart liked Hodl Hodl, “especially its non-custodial, no-KYC model,” he says. “For many nonprofits, minimizing reliance on third parties and protecting sensitive information is critical.”

These tools are framed in contrast to environments where access is increasingly conditional.

In China and Rwanda, central bank digital currency pilots raise questions about programmable money and transaction visibility. In Cambodia, transfer limits effectively restrict access to savings. In Turkey, informal currency channels are being squeezed by enforcement measures.

§Hodl Hodl’s non-custodial, no-KYC model is former student Destiny Smart’s top pick

§Learning in context and real-world outcomes

The course is shaped by the same conditions tracked in the Human Rights Foundation’s Financial Freedom Reports, which document how financial systems are increasingly used as tools of control.

Recent examples include exiled citizens losing access to funds and entire pension records erased from state systems in Nicaragua, social media restrictions limiting coordination in Gabon and financial laws being used to target activists and their families in Hong Kong.

For participants, these are not abstract case studies but real operating environments. Heaven points to “how powerful Bitcoin is as a tool for financial inclusion in places with limited banking access,” while Smart highlights the value of seeing “how Bitcoin is actively used to navigate financial restrictions.”

“Past participants report successfully receiving donations that would have been blocked,” Aung says. “Many nonprofits now integrate Bitcoin and say it made their work truly unstoppable.”

§In Nicaragua, exiled citizens have lost access to funds with entire pension records erased from state systems. Unsplash / Caitlyn Wilson

§The next session

The upcoming webinar will follow the same structure, with updates based on participant feedback and changing global conditions.

“Expect the same practical, hands-on training with live guidance, updated real-world examples and stronger focus on privacy tools,” Aung says.

The underlying theme remains consistent: in some environments, financial access is becoming more conditional — and in others, actively restricted.

The course does not claim to solve that. It focuses on what can still be done within it.

Join the HRF Financial Freedom webinar June 22–24 from 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM EDT daily. Registration is free through this form on the Human Rights Foundation website.