Core Research Team
Brunilda Pali
University of Amsterdam, NL | Project Leader
Brunilda is Assistant Professor of Conflict Dynamics and Governance in the Department of Political Science at the University of Amsterdam. She serves as Chair of the European Forum for Restorative Justice and is co-founder of the multidisciplinary collective Natural Contract Lab. She researches, teaches and publishes largely on restorative justice and criminalization of activism. She is co-editor of The Palgrave Handbook of Environmental Restorative Justice (Palgrave, 2022), Restorative Justice at a Crossroads: Dilemmas of Institutionalisation (Routledge, 2024), The Handbook on Methods in Restorative Justice Research (Brill, 2025), and Widening the Restorative Lens (Brill, 2025).
Albert Dzur
Bowling Green State University, USA
Albert is a democratic theorist interested in citizen participation and power-sharing in criminal justice, public administration, and education. Recent books include Democracy in Action: Collective Problem Solving in Citizens’ Governance Spaces, co-authored with Carolyn Hendriks (Oxford, 2025), and Democracy Inside: Participatory Innovation in Unlikely Places (Oxford, 2019). His interviews with innovative professionals appear in Boston Review, The Good Society, International Journal of Restorative Justice, where he is an associate editor, and National Civic Review, where he is a contributing editor. He also serves on the editorial boards of the Howard Journal of Crime and Justice, and Democratic Theory. He is a Distinguished Research Professor at Bowling Green State University.
Jesse Laurie
University of Amsterdam, NL | Research Assistant
Jesse holds an MSc in Conflict Resolution and Governance from the University of Amsterdam where she wrote her Master’s thesis based on field research conducted in the Basque Country, examining the role of restorative justice and restorative based practices in post-conflict reconciliation and coexistence. She previously worked in the international development sector and currently serves as a policy intern with the European Forum for Restorative Justice, supporting the orgainsation’s policy and advocacy work. Her research interests centre on restorative and community-led responses to political violence, social polarisation, and contested narratives.
Research Hub
Sebastian Abdallah
University of Humanistic Studies, NL
Sebastian is a sociologist and Arabist with a background in community work. He is currently an Assistant Professor of Social Work at the University of Humanistic Studies in Utrecht, the Netherlands.
Emanuela Biffi
European Forum for Restorative Justice, BE
Emanuela is the Programme Coordinator at the European Forum for Restorative Justice where she works with a broad network of professionals and organisations across Europe.
Amber Bosse
Public Mediation, NL
Amber is a mediator at Public Mediation with a background in humanitarian law and conflict resolution. She focuses on dialogue between citizens and local governments as a form of everyday peace.
Anna Di Ronco
University of Bologna, IT
Anna is an Associate Professor at the University of Bologna with a background in law and a PhD in criminology. Her research focuses on public space governance and the criminalisation of activism.
Nieke Elbers
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, NL
Nieke is an Associate Professor at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Senior Researcher at NSCR. Her research focuses on victims’ rights and empowerment and restorative justice.
Ana Gabriela Rojo Fierro
University of Cambridge, UK
Ana is a Gates Cambridge Scholar and PhD candidate in Development Studies at the University of Cambridge. Her research explores collective action and everyday resistance to socio-environmental threats.
Giovanni Grandi
University of Trieste, IT
Giovanni is Professor of Moral Philosophy at the University of Trieste, where he teaches public ethics and restorative justice. His research explores moral conflict and restorative approaches to justice.
Lisa Herzog
University of Groningen, NL
Lisa is a Professor of Political Philosophy at the University of Groningen. Her research focuses on workplace democracy, professional ethics, and the role of knowledge in democracy.
Menno Hurenkamp
University of Humanistic Studies, NL
Menno is a Professor of Citizenship at the University of Humanistic Studies in Utrecht. His work bridges academia and journalism, exploring citizenship and social cohesion.
Vasilios Ioakimidis
University of West Attica, GR
Vasilios is a Professor of Social Work at the University of West Attica. His research explores resistance and complicity within the social work profession in contexts of political, social, and environmental upheaval.
Katrin Kremmel
University of Zurich, CH
Thomas Kampen
University of Humanistic Studies, NL
Thomas is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Humanistic Studies. His research explores social work, care, and the lived experiences of welfare recipients.
Martien Kuitenbrouwer
Public Mediation, NL
Martien is a mediator, lecturer, and researcher at the University of Amsterdam. As the co-founder of Public Mediation, she explores how dialogue and mediation can enhance democratic practice.
Katrien Lauwaert
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, NL
Katrien is a Professor of Restorative Justice at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and the Policy Coordinator for the Moderator Forum for restorative justice and mediation in Belgium.
Giuseppe Maglione
University of Kent, UK
Giuseppe is an Assistant Professor of Criminology and Director of the Restorative Justice Clinic at the University of Kent. His research focuses on restorative justice, penal abolitionism, and radical approaches to justice.
Elke Plovie
Hogeschool UCLL, BE
Elke is a lecturer and researcher examining the politicisation of social work, informal and formal care dynamics, and the role of power dynamics and institutional violence in the care sector.
Conny Roggeband
University of Amsterdam, NL
Conny is an Associate Professor of political science with a focus on the politicisation of gender-based violence and democratic backsliding in Central and Eastern Europe and Latin America.
Marcel Spierts
Independent Researcher, NL
Marcel is an independent researcher with a PhD in Sociology from the University of Amsterdam. His research explores culture, power, and identity in contemporary societies.
Evelien Tonkens
University of Humanistic Studies, NL
Evelien is a Distinguished Research Professor of Citizenship and Polarisation at the University of Humanistic Studies. Her research explores ideals and practices of citizenship, democracy, and solidarity in the context of polarisation.
Raffaele Vallorani
Independent Researcher, NL
Raffaele holds an MA in Theoretical Philosophy. His current research explores the intersections of restorative justice and political theory, with a focus on agonistic approaches to conflict and democracy.
Christian van der Veeke
Erasmus University Rotterdam, NL
Christian is a Senior Lecturer in the Humanities at Erasmus University College in Rotterdam. His work explores critical theory, democracy, and contemporary continental philosophy.
Anneke van Hoek
Restorative Justice Netherlands, NL
Anneke is an independent criminologist and the co-founder of Restorative Justice Netherlands, which coordinates restorative justice research, projects, and training across the Netherlands.
Nanke Verloo
University of Amsterdam, NL
Nanke is an Associate Professor of Urban Politics and Planning at the University of Amsterdam. Her research focuses on inclusive governance, citizen participation, and urban democracy.
Peter Vermeersch
KU Leuven, BE
Peter is a professor of politics at KU Leuven with a background in Slavic and Eastern European studies. His work focuses on deliberative democratic theory, democratic innovation, and restorative justice.
Imrat Verhoeven
University of Amsterdam, NL
Imrat is a political scientist focusing on public policy. His research is concerned with energy justice perspectives in the context of the Netherlands’ energy transition.
Ward Vloeberghs
Erasmus University Rotterdam, NL
Ward is a Senior Lecturer in Political Science at Erasmus University College in Rotterdam. His work explores power, resistance, and the political dimensions of everyday life in the contemporary Middle East.
Cristina Vasilescu
Freelance Policy Analyst and Evaluator, IT
Cristina is a Senior freelance policy analyst and evaluator, currently representing Como Restorative City within the EFRJ Working Group on Restorative Cities. Her work focuses on social impact evaluation, restorative justice, social inclusion, participatory approaches to policy and community engagement
Andrea Voets
Resonate Productions, NL
Andrea is a musician, performer, and artistic director blending in-depth social journalism and music to explore themes such as loneliness, isolation, polarisation, and trauma.
Marleen zum Vörde sive Vörding
Public Mediation, NL
Marleen is a mediator at Public Mediation, facilitating dialogue amongst communities in the Netherlands regarding divisive issues such as renewable energy, and social and asylum housing planning.