Professor Olga Jurasz

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. 

Violence against women

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 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.

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.