Language: English
María José Rodríguez González is an Intern at the Institute for Integrated Transitions (IFIT) in Mexico City, Mexico.
María José is currently finishing her bachelor’s degree in International Relations at El Colegio de México, writing her thesis on the oppression faced by Afghan refugee women during their asylum application process. She is also a student associate at the Mexican Council of International Affairs (Comexi).
Her areas of interest are international peace and security, migration, construction of identities and nationalisms, and political philosophy.
Working languages: English, Spanish.
You may also be interested in
Elections and Narratives: Ways of Containing Polarisation
In this 40-minute video, Research Associate Jasmina Brankovic leads a discussion on the links between narratives and polarisation during election periods, hosted by IFIT’s Narrative Peacebuilding Hub. Jasmina is joined by two members of IFIT’s Inclusive Narratives Practice Group, Thinking and Working Politically Community of Practice Director Alina Rocha Menocal and George Mason University Professor of Conflict Analysis and Resolution Solon Simmons, as well as Electoral Institute of the State of Mexico President and IFIT Mexico Peacebuilding Support Group member Amalia Pulido Gómez.
Reflecting on the range of significant elections occurring in 2024, particularly in Latin America and Europe, Alina notes that narratives have increasingly been used to contribute to divisive identity politics in election periods. Political actors tactically draw on demographically linked grievances to galvanise support, thereby feeding and escalating polarisation, fragmentation and anger. Alina stresses the role of leadership in fostering a feeling of unity and encouraging conversation across divides, while acknowledging how grievances are mobilised and manipulated. She proposes ways of finding common ground to address the needs of different social groups.
Focusing on the case of Mexico and Latin America more broadly, Amalia brings attention to the growing lack of trust in electoral bodies and the negative consequences for democracy. Narratives around elections being a facade have the power to sway public opinion and nourish polarisation. Amalia raises awareness around gender-based violence in politics in particular. She advises investing in candidates maintaining integrity and encouraging authorities to intervene when a candidate’s behaviour incites violence. She recommends practical strategies for increasing election-related regulation.
Drawing on narrative theory, Solon highlights the fundamental tension in narrative techniques used to win elections: while elections can be a tool of peace in the transfer of power, they can also increase polarisation around identity and cultural issues. Using examples from the United States, he argues that narratives about identity politics often serve to obscure inequality and demonise demands for basic economic needs, such as housing, education, health and transportation. Solon shares approaches for ensuring a shift from the usual ‘black-and-white’ narratives used during elections to narratives with greater moral complexity.
Rev. Dr. Samuel Kobia is the Chairman of Kenya’s National Cohesion and Integration Commission: a unique statutory body and institution to promote national identity and values; mitigate ethno-political competition and ethnically-motivated violence; eliminate discrimination on an ethnic, racial and religious basis; and promote national reconciliation and healing.
Previously, he served as Senior Advisor on Cohesion, Peace and Conflict Resolution in the Executive Office of the President and Cabinet Affairs of Kenya. From 2007-2018, he was Chancellor of St. Paul’s University. From 2011-2015, Dr. Kobia also served as a Commissioner in the Judicial Service Commission, which recruits Kenyan judges and oversees the judiciary. In addition, from 2010-2012, he served as Ecumenical Special Envoy for Sudan and South Sudan. He also served from 2004-2009 as General Secretary of the Geneva-based World Council of Churches, having been the General Secretary of the National Council of Churches of Kenya at an earlier stage in his career.
Dr. Kobia holds a Master degree in Urban Planning from MIT, a doctorate in International Relations from Geneva School of Diplomacy, and a doctorate in Theology from the Christian Theological Seminary. He is a visiting Professor to Wesley Colleges in USA and UK. He has previously held a fellowship at Harvard Divinity School and a visiting professorship at Cambridge University. He is the author of several books, including Dialogue Matters.
You may also be interested in
Andrés Sánchez Sarmiento is a Research Officer at the Institute for Integrated Transitions (IFIT) and is based in Bogotá, Colombia.
He is a law graduate from Universidad del Rosario (Bogotá, Colombia) with a concentration in Human Rights and Constitutional Law, and he also holds a postgraduate degree in Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law from Universidad Nacional de Colombia.
Prior to joining IFIT, he worked as a researcher at the Faculty of Law of Universidad del Rosario, where he focused on a wide range of public international law topics. He also worked in the office of Judge Marcela Giraldo Muñoz, assisting in the Chamber for Recognition of Truth, Responsibility and Determination of Facts and Conduct (Sala de Reconocimiento de Verdad, de Responsabilidad y de Determinación de los Hechos y Conductas) of Colombia’s Special Jurisdiction for Peace, in Macro-case No. 10.
Working languages: English and Spanish
You may also be interested in
Laura Maria Manrique is an intern at the Institute for Integrated Transitions (IFIT) and is based in the Bogotá office where she works with the transitional justice team.
Before joining IFIT, Laura worked on a range of projects in Colombia related to political strategy, international law and gender-focused education.
Laura is a law and literature student at Universidad de los Andes, Colombia. Her areas of interest include transitional justice, human rights, and women’s sexual and reproductive rights.
Working languages: English and Spanish.
You may also be interested in
Narrative Peacebuilding in Practice: Reflections from IFIT’s Hub Launch
In this 30-minute video from the launch of IFIT’s Narrative Peacebuilding Hub, IFIT founder and executive director Mark Freeman talks to narrative expert and IFIT Inclusive Narratives Practice Group member Dr. Sara Cobb, Kenya National Cohesion and Integration Commission researcher Jescah Otieno, and IFIT Colombia Brain Trust coordinator Alejandra González Ferro about the practice of using narrative strategies to strengthen peacebuilding efforts.
Sara highlights that narratives create meaning, which shapes our lives, influences our understanding of ourselves in relation to others, and drives our actions. Summarising IFIT’s narrative peacebuilding approach, Sara notes that the standard peacebuilding practice of promoting a unifying narrative is ineffective against the deeply-rooted divisive narratives that characterise polarised contexts. Instead, she advocates for using tailored strategies and tools to help people transform their own narratives from within, while amplifying smaller stories that enrich the national narrative landscape and promote engagement among individuals and groups in conflict.
Describing initiatives to address ethnic divisions and electoral violence Kenya, Jescah argues that mapping national narratives and implementing contextualised narrative interventions is key to addressing the roots of conflict to enable sustainable peacebuilding. She shares several lessons learnt, including that people find it easier to tell stories that stereotype the ‘other’ than to see themselves clearly, which makes narrative work central to helping social groups take shared responsibility for resolving conflict. Jescah also emphasises that narrative work in countries marked by divisions requires trauma sensitivity, and often the provision of psychosocial support.
Reflecting on IFIT’s work in Colombia, Alejandra shares strategies for identifying openings for applying a narrative lens and integrating narrative tools into ongoing peacebuilding activities as the national context evolves. She reflects on lessons learnt using narrative tools in meetings with actors who are on opposing sides or who rarely engage with each other, with the aim of avoiding divisive language and finding common ground. She notes the value of acknowledging the legitimacy of participants’ emotions to enable engagement, starting narrative efforts with those closest to us and expanding to other networks, and consulting with experts in diverse fields for a fuller understanding of the narrative context, particularly writers, artists and other creatives.
Camila Pérez Chávez is an intern at the Institute for Integrated Transitions (IFIT) in Bogotá, Colombia.
Before joining IFIT, Camila worked on research projects on land grabs and land conflicts in the Altillanura region and the national programme on underage demobilisation and reintegration into civilian life in the context of the Colombian internal armed conflict.
Camila is completing her final year as an anthropology student at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, in Bogotá, Colombia. Her areas of interest are state power, children and childhoods, and peacebuilding.
Working languages: English and Spanish.
You may also be interested in
Vacante de Pasantía Justicia Transicional – IFIT América Latina y a nivel global (Bogotá, Colombia)
IFIT está buscando un pasante para el equipo de Justicia Transicional. Las tareas específicas serán definidas por la Directora de proyectos para América Latina y el/la supervisor/a de la pasantía. Sin embargo, las responsabilidades del pasante serían: 1) apoyar al equipo con tareas de investigación y síntesis; 2) a al equipo con los diferentes requerimientos sustantivos, logísticos y administrativos; 3) acompañar las reuniones que se requieran, tomando notas y elaborando relatorías; y 4) demás tareas relacionadas con los presentes términos de referencia y que sean requeridas por IFIT.
Acerca de IFIT
El Instituto para las Transiciones Integrales (IFIT, por sus siglas en inglés) es una organización no gubernamental internacional con sede en Barcelona (España) y su oficina regional en Bogotá (Colombia), dedicada a ayudar a los estados frágiles y afectados por conflictos a lograr negociaciones y transiciones más efectivas para salir de la guerra, la crisis o el autoritarismo. El trabajo principal del IFIT es servir como recurso experto para ofrecer soluciones políticas integradas que contribuyan a los esfuerzos liderados localmente para reducir la polarización y romper ciclos de conflicto o represión.
Acerca del trabajo de IFIT en Colombia
IFIT ha consolidado experiencia y experticia en Colombia, tanto a nivel nacional como local. Ha acompañado, impulsado y puesto a disposición de los tomadores de decisiones, el conocimiento técnico y práctico de décadas de esfuerzos de negociación y justicia transicional, principalmente a partir de la negociación e implementación del Acuerdo de Paz de 2016. Esto se ha llevado a cabo a través de sus dos ‘grupos de expertos’, el Fondo de Capital Humano y el Fondo Territorial de Capital Humano. El primero está compuesto por 18 expertos, en su mayoría miembros del equipo de negociación que estuvieron presentes en el proceso de paz entre el gobierno y la guerrilla de las FARC en La Habana. El segundo está formado por 12 expertos territoriales provenientes de 10 de las regiones más afectadas por el conflicto en Colombia, quienes cuentan con un liderazgo reconocido en sus respectivos territorios y un profundo conocimiento de las dinámicas regionales y los procesos sociales y políticos locales. Adicionalmente, IFIT cuenta con Programa Regional para América Latina y el Caribe.
Acerca del equipo de Justicia Transicional en Colombia
Este equipo técnico de IFIT trabaja de forma técnica e imparcial para apoyar los esfuerzos de justicia transicional en el país. Se da a través de dos modalidades:
- Usando la metodología de IFIT para tender puentes entre diferentes actores involucrados en la política de construcción de paz del país.
- Haciendo diagnósticos de los principales retos y cuellos de botella que existen en el marco de las políticas de justicia transicional y planteando alternativas prácticas para hacerles frente.
Descripción de la vacante
En el marco del programa de pasantías de IFIT, la persona se integrará al staff como pasante en estrecha colaboración con el equipo de Justicia Transicional y con el equipo regional de América Latina.
Responsabilidades
- Apoyar al equipo con tareas de investigación y síntesis.
- Apoyar al equipo con los diferentes requerimientos sustantivos, logísticos y administrativos.
- Acompañar las reuniones que se requieran, tomando notas y elaborando relatorías.
- Demás tareas relacionadas con los presentes términos de referencia y que sean requeridas por IFIT.
Cualificaciones requeridas
- Pregrado en Derecho.
- Estudiantes de último semestre de pregrado podrán ser tenidos en cuenta, siempre y cuando tengan una carga académica de máximo de 2 clases o que se encuentren en proceso de tesis y/o consultorio jurídico.
- Interés por la justicia transicional, derechos de las víctimas, derecho internacional, derecho penal internacional, derechos humanos y derecho internacional humanitario.
- Interés por la realidad nacional y conocimiento del contexto del Acuerdo de Paz de 2016, la política de Paz Total y sus debates relacionados.
- Habilidades para la investigación, comprensión de lectura, capacidad de análisis y síntesis.
- Actitud flexible, proactiva, creativa y versátil.
- Excelente dominio del español e inglés (oral y escrito).
- Manejo de Word, Excel, Powerpoint y Zoom. El manejo de Canva será valorado positivamente.
Condiciones de la pasantía
- Lugar: Oficina Regional de IFIT en Bogotá-Colombia.
- Jornada: Tiempo completo.
- Duración del acuerdo: 3 meses con posibilidad de prórroga de 3 meses más (inicia el 10 de junio de 2024).
- Apoyo: La pasantía no es remunerada. IFIT ofrece un auxilio de conectividad, energía y transporte mensual para cubrir costos de electricidad, internet, y desplazamiento a reuniones de trabajo del equipo, o asistencia a eventos relacionados (COP 600,000).
IFIT está comprometido en la construcción de un lugar de trabajo racialmente diverso y culturalmente inclusivo, así que recomienda encarecidamente las solicitudes de candidatos de grupos subrepresentados.
¿Cómo aplicar?
Por favor envíe su hoja de vida a Valentina Andrade ([email protected]), indicando “Aplicación para pasantía JT IFIT LATAM” en el asunto. El plazo para enviarla será hasta el viernes 17 de mayo.
You may also be interested in
