In June of 2018, the Basque group Gure Esku Dago (In Our Own Hands) created a 200-kilometer long human chain beginning in San Sebastiàn with nearly 200,000 members to demonstrate for political self-determination. Due to the simplicity of the tactic and lack of barriers to entry, the protest nearly doubled the anticipated amount and protested the "common and indivisible" Constitutional precedent for Spain post-Franco. Following the disbandement of ETA, the militant Basque independence group, Gure Esku Dago decided to take a nonviolent struggle towards autonomy and internal pension control. In 2018, partially resulting from how the Spanish government handled the Basque and Catalan independence movements and nationwide nonviolent protests such as the human chain in San Sebastiàn, the Spanish Parliament passed a motion of no confidence in the Rajoy government.

Following in the footsteps of similar protests in support of Bihari Minister Nitish Kumar's environmental conservation efforts, in January of 2020 nearly 50 million Indians formed a 18,000 kilometer-long human chain, featuring many lead environmentalists standing in place for over 30 minutes. The human chain was widely shared across international news organizations, particularly featuring images of the chain using rafts to cross rivers or shots of the chain traversing hills and valleys. Politically, the chain demonstrated fractures in the ideologically similar JD(U) and RJD parties, where the lack of RJD support for the human chain led to large amounts of criticim leveled at the party. The human chain also resurfaced larger issues among environmentally-concious parties in India, namely the integration of the JD(U) into the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance that had been accused of climate denial. However the human chain impacts India's political structure, the popular demonstration displays the desire that Bihari have for climate justice.