Professor Olga Jurasz
Profile summary
- Central Academic Staff
- Professor of Law
- The Faculty of Business & Law
- The Open University Law School
- The Law School
- olga.jurasz
Web links
Professional biography
Olga Jurasz is professor of law and Director of the Centre for Protecting Women Online. Her research expertise is in international law, human rights, legal responses to violence against women (including online violence) and feminist approaches to governance of online spaces.
Olga is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
Research interests
Online violence against women, online harms and governance of online spaces
Professor Jurasz is a leading voice in the field of law & violence against women. Her research focuses on the exploration of legal and policy responses to online violence against women (OVAW), online harms, online violence against women in politics (OVAWP) and online misogyny. She published her research widely, including two books: Online Misogyny as a Hate Crime: A Challenge for Legal Regulation (Routledge 2019) and Violence Against Women, Hate and Law: Perspectives from Contemporary Scotland (2022). She was the lead author and researcher on the first ever empirical project to examine the extent and impact of online violence on women in Libya (2021), analysing this phenomenon in the context of Libya's transition from conflict to peace. In 2023, Professor Jurasz led on a project 'Online Violence Against Women: A Four Nations Study' which is the biggest empirical study in the UK to gather data about societal attitudes towards online violence against women and women's experiences of such violence.
Olga is working on several projects which related to this area and has contributed her expertise to a number of consultations concerning hate crime reform and legal responses to violence against women (both online and offline). Olga's book Online misogyny as a hate crime: a challenge for (legal) regulation? (with K Barker) which addresses these themes was published by Routledge in 2019.
Olga has published in the above research areas and presented her research at many conferences, both in the UK and internationally. Her research has been funded by the British Academy, Research England, Economic & Social Research Council, Engineering and Social Sciences Research Council and British and Irish Law, Education and Technology Association (BILETA). She is also a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Gender Studies.
International law, violence against women, and post-conflict situations
Olga’s research interests lie in the area of international law, human rights & post-conflict situations. She is particularly interested in how various mechanisms of public international law address the long-term impact of armed conflict on women and how women’s rights are protected in the aftermath of war, during the process of transition from war to peace. In 2018-19, Olga worked on the British Academy funded project 'Making international law work for women post-conflict: new voices' which explored some of these themes.
Olga is happy to discuss and supervise PhD research project in her research areas.
Teaching interests
- Law & violence against women
- Public International Law
- Human Rights
- Law & Gender
Impact and engagement
Professor Jurasz's expertise has been used by governments, international organisations and third sector organisations to influence changes in law and policy in areas of online violence against women, criminal law, online communications and State obligations concerning violence against women. Professor Jurasz provided expert advice to the Council of Europe regarding the development of the first recommendation on the digital dimension of violence against women by GREVIO - the Council of Europe’s independent expert body responsible for monitoring the implementation of the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence. Since 2024, she serves as an Independent Expert to the Council of Europe Committee of Experts on combating technology-facilitated violence against women and girls. She is a member of the TechUK Violence Against Women and Girls Digital and Tech Working Group and regularly appears in the media as an expert commentator on contemporary matters in her research areas.
Professor Jurasz contributed to a number of consultations in her areas of research, including submissions to the Meta Oversight Board, UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, the One Scotland Consultation on Amending Hate Crime Legislation in Scotland, the Australian Government's Online Safety Charter Consultation, and Women & Equalities Committee. Olga's research was quoted in the House of Commons Women and Equalities Select Committee Report on Sexual Harassment of Women and Girls in Public Spaces and also endorsed by members of the Welsh Assembly. In March 2019, Olga was invited by the International Foundation for Electoral Systems to speak at the UN Commission on the Status of Women event in New York, where she shared findings of her research on online violence against women, discussing effective protection from online violence against women in politics. Olga was also invited to speak at the Internet Freedom Festival in Valencia in April 2019 where she discussed online violence against women and gaps in its legal regulation.
Publications
Journal articles
Digital and online violence: international perspectives (2024)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
International Review of Law, Computers & Technology, 38(2) (pp. 115-118)
Online Misogyny as a Hate Crime: An Obstacle to Equality? (2021-12)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
GenIUS: Rivista di studi giuridici sull’orientamento sessuale e l’identità di genere, 2021(1) (pp. 51-66)
Sexual Violence in the Digital Age: A Criminal Law Conundrum? (2021-08)
Jurasz, Olga and Barker, Kim
German Law Journal, 22(5) (pp. 784-799)
Misogynistic Harassment: a stumbling block for Scots hate crime reform? (2021-03-29)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
Juridical Review, 2021(1) (pp. 1-17)
Online violence against women as an obstacle to gender equality: a critical view from Europe (2020)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
European Equality Law Review, 2020(1) (pp. 47-60)
Sexual and gender-based violence: the case for transformative justice in Cambodia (2019)
Szablewska, Natalia and Jurasz, Olga
Global Change, Peace & Security, 31(3) (pp. 263-282)
Online Misogyny: A Challenge for Digital Feminism? (2019)
Jurasz, Olga and Barker, Kim
Journal of International Affairs, 72(2) (pp. 95-114)
Towards an Intersectional Understanding of Conflict-Related Sexual Violence: Gender, Sexuality, and Ethnicity at the ICTY (2018-09-28)
Isaac, Maike and Jurasz, Olga
International Criminal Law Review, 18(5) (pp. 853-882)
About justice that is yet to come: a few remarks about the international pursuit of post-conflict gender justice (2015)
Jurasz, Olga
Journal of Gender Studies, 24(1) (pp. 56-69)
The Istanbul Convention: a new chapter in preventing and combating violence against women (2015)
Jurasz, Olga
Australian Law Journal, 89(9) (pp. 619-627)
Authored books
Violence Against Women, Hate and Law: Perspectives from Contemporary Scotland (2022-07)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
Palgrave Hate Studies
ISBN : 978-3-030-99374-0 | Publisher : Palgrave Macmillan Cham
Online Misogyny as Hate Crime: A Challenge for Legal Regulation? (2018-12-17)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
ISBN : 9781138590373 | Publisher : Routledge
Book chapters
Online Text-Based (Sexual) Abuse (2023-06-02)
Jurasz, Olga and Barker, Kim
In: Ali, Parveen and Rogers, Michaela eds. Gender-Based Violence: A Comprehensive Guide (pp. 541-554)
ISBN : 978-3-031-05639-0 | Publisher : Springer
Women, Violence and Protest in Times of COVID-19 (2023-01)
Jurasz, Olga and Barker, Kim
In: Stychin, Carl F. ed. Law, Humanities and the Covid Crisis. Reimagining Law and Justice (pp. 183-205)
ISBN : 9781911507291 | Publisher : University of London Press | Published : London
The ‘Politics’ of Responsible Social Media Use in Universities: Cautionary Tales for Student Experience? (2023)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
In: Siliquini-Cinelli, Luca and Giddens, Thomas eds. Biopolitics and Structure in Legal Education (pp. 223-238)
ISBN : 9781003175193 | Publisher : Routledge | Published : Abingdon, Oxon
Online misogyny as a hate crime: #TimesUp (2022)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
In: Zempi, Irene and Smith, Jo eds. Misogyny as Hate Crime
ISBN : 9780367903176; 9781003023722 | Publisher : Routledge
Gender-Based Abuse Online: An Assessment of Law, Policy and Reform in England and Wales (2021-11-29)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
In: Powell, Anastasia; Flynn, Asher and Sugiura, Lisa eds. The Palgrave Handbook of Gendered Violence and Technology (pp. 529-544)
ISBN : 978-3-030-83733-4 | Publisher : Palgrave Macmillan
Text-Based (Sexual) Abuse and Online Violence Against Women: Toward Law Reform (2021-06-04)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
In: Bailey, Jane; Flynn, Asher and Henry, Nicola eds. The Emerald International Handbook of Technology Facilitated Violence and Abuse. Emerald Studies In Digital Crime, Technology and Social Harms (pp. 247-264)
ISBN : 978-1-83982-849-2 | Publisher : Emerald Publishing Limited | Published : Bingley
Towards transformative gender equality: the importance of addressing economic violence against women in Cambodia. (2019-10-29)
Jurasz, Olga and Szablewska, Natalia
In: Gámez Fuentes, María José; Núñez Puente, Sonia and Gómez Nicolau, Emma eds. Re-writing Women as Victims: From Theory to Practice. Interdisciplinary Research in Gender (pp. 68-82)
ISBN : 9781138487154 | Publisher : Routledge
AFRC Trial Judgement (Prosecutor v. Brima, Kamara, Kanu), Special Court for Sierra Leone (2019-09-05)
Jurasz, Olga; Labenski, Sheri; Mouthaan, Solange and Sedman, Dawn
In: Hodson, Loveday and Lavers, Troy eds. Feminist Judgments in International Law (pp. 373-406)
ISBN : 9781509914456 | Publisher : Hart Publishing
Reparations for Gendered Harm at the International Criminal Court: Towards Transformative and Gender-Just Reparations? (2019-02-28)
Jurasz, Olga
In: Jurasz, Olga and Mouthaan, Solange eds. Gender and War: International and Transitional Justice Perspectives (pp. 235-258)
ISBN : 9781780686868 | Publisher : Intersentia | Published : Cambridge
Violence Against Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence (Wales) Act 2015 (2018-11)
Jurasz, Olga
In: Rackley, Erika and Auchmuty, Rosemary eds. Women's Legal Landmarks: Celebrating the history of women and law in the UK and Ireland
ISBN : 9781782259794 | Publisher : Hart
Gender, human rights and cybercrime: are virtual worlds really that different? (2014-06-01)
Jurasz, Olga and Barker, Kim
In: Asimow, Michael; Brown, Kathryn and Papke, David Ray eds. Law and Popular Culture: International Perspectives (pp. 79-100)
ISBN : 978-1-4438-5810-6 | Publisher : Cambridge Scholars Publishing | Published : Newcastle upon Tyne
Women of the Revolution- the future of women's rights in post-Gaddafi Libya (2013-02)
Jurasz, Olga
In: Panara, Carlo and Wilson, Gary eds. The Arab Spring: New Patterns for Democracy and International Law. Nijhoff Law Specials (ISSN: 0924-4549) (82) (pp. 123-144)
ISBN : 9789004230415 | Publisher : Martinus Nijhoff | Published : Leiden
Edited books
Gender and War: International and Transitional Justice Perspectives (2019-01)
Jurasz, Olga and Mouthaan, Solange eds.
ISBN : 9781780686868 | Publisher : Intersentia
Conference items
#MeToo, Sport, and Women: Foul, Own Goal, or Touchdown? Online Abuse of Women in Sport as a Contemporary Issue (2024-06-07)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
In : WSHR: Workshop on Sports and Human Rights 2022. (30 Jun 2022, Lausanne, Switzerland) (pp. 71-93)
Building transformative peace & justice in Cambodia: intersections between international law, SDGs and gender equality (2019)
Jurasz, Olga and Szablewska, Natalia
In : The Arctic University of Norway Conference 'Critical Inter-disciplinary Conference on Studying Peace from Below' (5-6 Sep 2019, Tromso, Norway)
Gender-based crimes at the ICC- where is the future? (2014)
Jurasz, Olga
In : 108th Annual Meeting of the American Society of International Law (7-12 Apr 2014, Washington DC) (pp. 429-432)
Other
Online violence against women: A Four Nations study (2024-03)
Jurasz, Olga
The Open University
Towards a research agenda: tackling violence against women and girls online. REPHRAIN White Paper (2023-04)
Michalec, Ola; Barker, Kim; Coopamootoo, Kovila; Coventry, Lynne; Duppresoir, Francois; Edwards, Matthew; Johnson, Shane; Johnstone, Emily; Jurasz, Olga; Mehrnezhad, Maryam; Moncur, Wendy; Ridout, Frances; Stevens, Francesca; Strothmayer, Angelika and Tanczer, Leonie
REPHRAIN
What the Istanbul Convention Means for Women and Girls in Wales (2022-11-25)
Jurasz, Olga
Institute of Welsh Affairs
Tackle online violence against women now: a call to the internet giants (2021-12-22)
Jurasz, Olga
openDemocracy
Reform of Hate Crime Laws - Consultation Response to the Law Commission (2020-12)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
The Open University
Reform of the Communications Offences - Consultation Response to the Law Commission (2020-12)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
The Open University
Scottish Parliament Justice Committee Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Bill Call for Views – Response (2020-06)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
Olga Jurasz & Kim Barker
Submission of Evidence on COVID-19 and the increase of domestic violence against women to the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, Its Causes and Consequences, Dr Dubravka Šimonović (2020-06)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
UN
Hate Crime Legislation in Northern Ireland – An Independent Review: Consultation Response (2020-03)
Jurasz, Olga and Barker, Kim
Self published
Northern Ireland Independent Review of Hate Crime Consultation Response (2020) (2020-03)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
Committee on the Administration of Justice
Response to the Online Safety Reform Legislation Consultation (2020)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
Stirling Law School & The Open University Law School
Online Harms White Paper Consultation Response (2019-06)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
Striling Law School & The Open University Law School
Written Submission of Evidence to the Joint Committee on Human Rights inquiry on Democracy, free speech and freedom of association. (2019-05-15)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
UK Parliament
Submission of Evidence to Online Safety Charter Consultation Paper (2019-03)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
Australian Government
Expert Response to One Scotland Consultation on Amending Scottish Hate Crime Legislation (2019)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
Scottish Parliament
Written Submission of Evidence to the Women and Equalities Committee inquiry into sexual harassment of women and girls in public spaces (2018-03-05)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
Stirling Law School & Open University Law School
Online Violence Against Women: The Limits & Possibilities of Law (2018-01)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
Stirling Law School & Open University Law School
Submission of Evidence on Online Violence Against Women to the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, its Causes and Consequences, Dr Dubravka Šimonović (2017-11)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
United Nations
Submission of Evidence to Scottish Government Independent Review of Hate Crime Legislation (Bracadale Review) (2017-11)
Barker, Kim and Jurasz, Olga
Independent Review of Hate Crime Legislation in Scotland
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