Research Consultant – Justice for Women in Digital Spaces

BACKGROUND

The rapid expansion of digital technologies is reshaping the justice landscape for women and girls, creating both opportunities for empowerment and new forms of exclusion, discrimination, and technology-facilitated gender-based violence. Platform design, algorithms, data governance, and content moderation systems can either protect or undermine rights and equality in digital spaces. Gender-responsive digital governance therefore requires rights-based safeguards, effective oversight and accountability mechanisms, and legal frameworks that keep pace with technological change.

At the same time, digital technologies are transforming justice systems through e-justice platforms, virtual courts, AI-assisted tools, and the growing use of digital evidence. While these innovations can improve efficiency and access to justice, they may also introduce bias and deepen existing inequalities if not designed with the needs of women and girls in mind. Ensuring justice in digital contexts requires accessible and user-centered remedies, digital legal empowerment, safer technology design, transparency in automated systems, and inclusive policymaking that reflects the lived experiences of women and girls.

In this context, IDLO, together with partners, will develop a report to explore how the rapid expansion of digital technologies is reshaping the justice landscape for women and girls. It will provide a distinctive contribution to the contemporary discourse by bridging the gap between digital governance and justice systems, with a focus on how rights are protected, violations addressed, and remedies delivered in digital contexts. It will also provide policy guidance to strengthen gender-responsive justice systems and ensure that women and girls can participate safely, equally, and meaningfully in digital societies. 

The report will be the fourth in the Justice for Women series building on the three flagship reports (2019, 2020 and 2025) produced by IDLO, UN Women, World Bank, UNDP, Pathfinders for Peaceful, Just and Inclusive Societies and other partners, which documented the global justice gap for women, highlighted promising legal and policy reforms, and advanced a shared agenda for gender-responsive justice systems.

THE ASSIGNMENT

It is within this framework that IDLO seeks to recruit a Research Consultant (hereinafter Contractor) to develop a research paper on justice for women in digital spaces.  The Contractor will work under the supervision of IDLO’s Chief, Women & The Law, and in close coordination with IDLO’s Chief, Research and Learning.

The Contractor will be responsible for undertaking the following:

• Develop and submit an inception report presenting the (a) research workplan, indicating clear milestones and timelines; (b) research questions and methodology; and (c) an outline of the paper.
• Conduct a literature and desk review of IDLO and relevant sources to inform the analytical framework of the paper.
• Support the organization of at least one expert consultation to guide the development of the paper by participating in the meeting, preparing background materials, identifying experts to participate, facilitating the consultation (or parts of it), if needed, and integrating key takeaways, and recommendations from the consultation into the report.
• Implement 6-8 key informant interviews with selected IDLO staff and external experts from other organizations on the theme.
• Develop and submit a first draft of the research paper (40-50 pages) in line with the agreed research plan, methodology and outline and integrating inputs from the key informant interviews.
• Provide a second draft of the report, integrating inputs from the expert group consultation and comments received from IDLO and partners.
• Provide a summary of key findings.
• Submit a final draft of the report, including policy recommendations, integrating comments received from IDLO and partners, for approval through standard IDLO processes.

KEY DELIVERABLES, TIMELINE AND PAYMENT SCHEDULE

The Contractor will produce a report using mixed methods, including a literature review, a desk review of relevant public and internal sources from IDLO and partners, and consultation with external experts. Consultation with experts will be organized through key informant interviews and an expert group meeting bringing together leading experts in women’s rights, justice, and digital technology, as well as women’s rights organizations working at the intersection of justice and digital issues, where possible.

The timeline and payment schedule are indicative and may be adjusted by IDLO, in consultation with the Consultant, as needed during the course of the assignment.

• Second & final payment: upon satisfactory completion and acceptance of deliverables 4-7: EURO 16,000.-

Education and Experience

• Graduate degree in law, gender studies, development, human rights, or another related field;
• Minimum 10 years relevant professional experience working in the area of gender equality, justice, and digital technology/governance;
• Demonstrated expertise in digital rights, platform regulation, data protection, or AI governance, particularly from a gender perspective;
• Familiarity with AI systems and their human rights implications, including bias, discrimination, and transparency concerns;
• Familiarity with digital justice systems and technologies used in justice delivery, including e-justice platforms, AI-enabled tools, and digital evidence systems;
• Experience analyzing or working with legal and regulatory frameworks related to digital technologies;
• Proven track record conducting research for diverse stakeholders, including producing high-level policy reports and academic publications.

Language

• Fluency in written and spoken English is required.

Specific Knowledge, Skills and Competencies 

• Advanced research skills, knowledge of both qualitative and quantitative methods, and sharp analytical capabilities;
• Demonstrated experience in data analysis, including the extraction and synthesis of data;
• Ability to develop evidence-based analysis translating findings into practical recommendations;
• Strong technical drafting and editing skills in English, with rigorous attention to detail;
• Proven ability to see through tasks set and deliver results;
• Proven ability to work under pressure with tight deadlines, flexibility, and an entrepreneurial spirit;
• Excellent interpersonal skills and experience working in a diverse, multi-cultural professional environment;
• Established networks and contacts related to (1) gender equality, especially on gender-responsive legal frameworks and justice for women and girls (2) digital technology and AI. Contacts in both areas strongly preferred;
• Keen sense of ethics, integrity, and commitment to IDLO's mandate.

The consultancy will be home-based for a period of around six months with regular meetings to be agreed with relevant IDLO staff. A fixed lumpsum amount of EURO 23,000.- as remuneration for the assignment will be made in two instalments and upon receipt of deliverables and upon approval by the supervisor. 

Applications will be reviewed on an ongoing basis and candidates are advised to apply as soon as possible. In the interest of making the most effective use of resources, only short-listed candidates will be contacted during the selection process.