Transitional justice processes are politically sensitive and complex, and do not develop in a linear fashion. They present unique theoretical and practical challenges for measuring results, including on gathering data, registering unintended outcomes, reporting progress, providing feedback on interventions, and extracting useful information to assess impacts or establish counterfactuals. At the same time, donors in the peacebuilding field increasingly demand evidence of success and good practices to help to inform their funding decisions. Actors in the transitional justice sector face the challenge of producing this evidence, even though there is little agreement among practitioners, donors, and stakeholders on the right approach and means to do so.

In this virtual Brown Bag Lunch discussion, the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) and the Leuven Institute of Criminology (LINC) will address these crucial questions. Mateo Porciuncula will present the results of ICTJ’s recent research on how to collect meaningful data via a user-centered approach, address power dynamics in evaluation, collaborate with researchers, manage donor expectations, and link transitional justice data with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Following the presentation, Professor Stephan Parmentier from LINC will comment on the report’s findings along with two practitioners: Devota Nuwe from Refugee Project and Mariana Akumu from ICTJ Uganda. The speakers will share their assessments, analyses, and practical experiences in monitoring the progress of transitional justice processes.
Marianne Akumu is Program Associate at ICTJ’s office in Uganda. Before joining ICTJ, she served as Transitional Justice Coordinator with the Agency for Cooperation and Research in Development (ACORD) and as Legal Research Officer with the Supreme Court of Uganda. She was a recipient of an Obama Foundation Scholarship at the University of Chicago where she completed an M.A. in International Development and Policy. She also holds an LL.M. in International Development and Human Rights from the University of Warwick and an LL.B. from the University of Reading.

Devota Nuwe is Head of Programs at Refugee Project. She has worked with refugees and in the humanitarian sector for the past 15 years. Devota is a member of the World Refugee Council. Previously, she worked at Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). She holds an LL.B. from Makerere University, Uganda, and an LL.M. in Criminal Justice from the University of Kent.

Prof. Stephan Parmentier teaches at the University of Leuven and coordinates the Research Line on Human Rights and Transitional Justice at LINC. He is the founding general editor of Series on Transitional Justice. During his career, he has served as an advisor and consultant to several institutions and non-governmental organisations.

Mateo Porciuncula is a development practitioner and researcher and ICTJ’s resident design, monitoring, and evaluation expert. He helps ICTJ to build a common understanding of the most appropriate methods and instruments for getting results and assessing programme impacts. Before joining ICTJ, he worked for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO), and the Development Aid Agency of Uruguay.