Human Rights Expert

Tamara
Amoroso Gonsalves

For twenty years, I've dedicated my career to human rights law and advocacy, specializing in women's rights and gender justice. My work bridges academic research with practical impact, demonstrated through extensive publications and leadership roles across governmental and non-governmental sectors.

Three women talking (Tamara in the middle) and taking notes at a conference panel, with a camera recording in the foreground. Tamara Gonsalves standing and smiling in a large assembly hall (UN) with identification plaques and decorative ceiling. Tamara speaking in a studio setup with cameras and a world map on the wall behind her. A group of women posing together in a well-lit room with plants. Tamara Gonsalves smiling while signing a book at a table with flowers and books.

About Me

My educational background in law, with a focus on human rights, and my experience in non-governmental, governmental, and academic roles have enabled me to excel in advocacy and stakeholder negotiation. As a spokesperson for various organizations, I have effectively engaged with diverse audiences, ranging from experts in international human rights bodies to grassroots communities, academics, and public servants. I have delivered talks and represented institutions on more than 90 occasions, both locally, regionally, and internationally, on topics spanning children's rights, women's rights (particularly gender-based violence and sexual and reproductive rights), and consumer rights.

Academic & Professional Background

I hold a bachelor's degree in Law, a master's in Human Rights, a PhD in Law and Society, and a Graduate Certificate in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. I bring extensive experience in human rights at national, regional, and international levels, with skills in policy analysis, advocacy on human rights issues, and delivering lectures on complex topics to diverse audiences, from policymakers and academics to grassroots organizations, ensuring complex issues are communicated effectively to drive impactful outcomes. Having lived and worked in various countries and being fluent in 4 languages (Portuguese, English, Spanish, and French), I am highly attuned to and respectful of socio-cultural diversities. My career spans academia, non-profits, and government, including serving in Brazil's Ministry of Justice. Over the past 20 years, I have worked in Brazilian, Latin American, and Canadian contexts as a lawyer, gender and human rights expert, lecturer, public servant, and policy analyst. My expertise covers gender-based violence, sexual and reproductive rights, health law, ultra-processed food advertising regulation, consumer law, children's rights, and international human rights law. For further details on my academic and professional background, please refer to my CV.
Download Complete CV (PDF)

Books and publications

Publications

I am dedicated to producing high-quality, community-engaged research and scholarship that addresses pressing social issues. Over the past 20 years, I have developed interdisciplinary, transsystemic, and socio-legal research, resulting in 2 published books, 40 book chapters, 11 journal articles, 10 research and advocacy reports, and 36 opinion pieces. My publications span a broad range of topics, including children's fundamental rights, women's human rights—particularly gender-based violence and sexual and reproductive rights—and consumer rights, with a specific focus on product recalls, advertising regulations, and the regulation of ultra-processed foods.

Books

Cover of the book.

This book examines how the false concept of "parental alienation" is used to undermine women's reports of abuse and remove custody from protective mothers in Latin America and the Caribbean. Though presented as psychological, it functions as institutional violence that hides domestic abuse and reinforces gender stereotypes. Based on a regional seminar led by CLADEM, Equality Now, and the Global Campaign for Equality in Family Law, this interdisciplinary volume analyzes legal trends and case studies from five countries, exposing coordinated efforts by anti-rights groups to roll back feminist advances in family law. Discussions held in Portuguese, automated translation available.

Cover of the book titled 'Direitos Humanos das Mulheres e a Comissão Interamericana de Direitos Humanos'

My book analyzes quantitative and qualitative data related to cases of women's human rights violations presented to the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights, identifying the regional agenda that feminist organizations have pushed through gender-sensitive strategic litigation. This work combined statistical analysis and case analysis, in pioneering jurimetrics work done in Brazil.

Cover of the book titled 'Aborto e Religião nos Tribunais Brasileiros'
Abortion and Religion in Brazilian Courts

Tamara Amoroso Gonsalves (coord.), Thais de Souza Lapa

In this MacArthur-Foundation-funded book, Aborto e Religião nos Tribunais Brasileiros (2008), I discuss the influence of religious arguments in abortion cases decided by Brazilian courts—in a country where abortion is illegal and is the 5th cause of maternal death. This research was grounded on feminist scholarship, sociological analysis of Catholic religion, and statistical data on court decisions. This was a pioneering work combining socio-legal feminist research and jurimetrics, when the latter was rarely used in Brazil. Available in Portuguese only.

Other Projects

Gender 305 Podcast cover image
Gender 305 Podcast

Podcast series on Gender and Human Rights.

At UVIC's Gender Studies Department, I taught Gender and International Human Rights in fall 2022 and 2023, where students created podcast episodes as their final assignments with CFUV's technical support. These episodes, now being published and aired through CFUV, explore diverse topics including abortion rights, LGBTQ2+ and non-binary rights, gender-based discrimination in AI, and violence against Indigenous women in Canada. We invite you to listen and engage in these important conversations.

Listen on Spotify

Public Speaking

My educational background in law, with a focus on human rights, and my experience in non-governmental, governmental, and academic roles have enabled me to excel in advocacy and stakeholder negotiation. As a spokesperson for various organizations, I have effectively engaged with diverse audiences, ranging from experts in international human rights bodies to grassroots communities, academics, and public servants. I have delivered talks and represented institutions on more than 90 occasions, both locally, regionally, and internationally, on topics spanning children's rights, women's rights (particularly gender-based violence and sexual and reproductive rights), and consumer rights.

Contact me for public speaking requests

Video thumbnail for Broadening women's rights through international advocacy
Broadening women's rights through international advocacy

Talk presented at CFGS as part of a series on gender and global governance, analyzing the use of parental alienation in custody disputes as a tool of gender-based violence. The discussion connects feminist legal research and transnational activism aimed at challenging its legitimacy before international human rights bodies.

Watch on site
Video thumbnail for Alienação Parental: uma nova forma de violência de gênero contra mulheres e crianças na AL e Caribe
Alienação Parental: uma nova forma de violência de gênero contra mulheres e crianças na AL e Caribe

Seminário no Tribunal Federal Brasileiro para lançar o livro 'Alienação Parental: Uma nova forma de violência de gênero contra mulheres e crianças na América Latina e Caribe'. Discuti como a alienação parental e a Convenção de Haia têm sido mal utilizadas para silenciar alegações de abuso e reforçar violência institucional contra mulheres e crianças.

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Video thumbnail for Como Usar as Recomendações da CEDAW em Litígio Estratégico Nacional
Como Usar as Recomendações da CEDAW em Litígio Estratégico Nacional

Painel discutindo o uso estratégico das recomendações da CEDAW para litígio doméstico no Brasil, enfatizando aplicações práticas para avançar direitos das mulheres.

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Video thumbnail for Representação CLADEM/Brasil na revisão do Brasil perante o Comitê CEDAW
Representação CLADEM/Brasil na revisão do Brasil perante o Comitê CEDAW

Discurso proferido na Sessão de Abertura com associações brasileiras sem fins lucrativos, abordando várias formas de violência institucional como violência obstétrica, alienação parental em tribunal de família, serviços de aborto inacessíveis para vítimas de violência sexual, casamento infantil e gravidezes forçadas entre adolescentes.

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Video thumbnail for Debates sobre o Início da Vida e Regulamentações Legais para Personalidade
Debates sobre o Início da Vida e Regulamentações Legais para Personalidade

Exploração de perspectivas feministas sobre os debates legais e éticos concernentes ao início da vida e personalidade, focando em suas implicações para leis e políticas sociais.

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Video thumbnail for Pesquisa Acadêmica Interdisciplinar Engajada com a Comunidade
Pesquisa Acadêmica Interdisciplinar Engajada com a Comunidade

Apresentação sobre a aplicação de metodologias de pesquisa feminista interdisciplinar para engajar comunidades e abordar questões sistêmicas, destacando aplicações acadêmicas e práticas.

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Video thumbnail for Alienação Parental: Uma Forma de Violência Contra as Mulheres
Alienação Parental: Uma Forma de Violência Contra as Mulheres

Webinar abordando como o conceito de alienação parental é usado como forma de violência institucional contra mulheres, envolvendo apoio multi-stakeholder e discussões em português e espanhol.

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Video thumbnail for Audiência Pública sobre Publicidade para Crianças
Audiência Pública sobre Publicidade para Crianças

Audiência pública no Congresso Nacional Brasileiro abordando o impacto da publicidade direcionada a crianças, destacando suas práticas manipuladoras e abusivas, e defendendo medidas regulatórias.

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Video thumbnail for Gênero e Direitos Humanos
Gênero e Direitos Humanos

Seminário sobre igualdade de gênero e sua interseção com direitos humanos, discutindo como análise de gênero pode informar políticas e estruturas de desenvolvimento social.

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Video thumbnail for Impacto das Discussões de Gênero no Conceito de Direitos Humanos
Impacto das Discussões de Gênero no Conceito de Direitos Humanos

Apresentação analisando como discussões de gênero influenciaram a conceituação de direitos humanos, com foco em desenvolvimentos históricos e contemporâneos no campo.

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What
I can offer

Courses

  • Human Rights Systems: covers international human rights systems (global and regional ones), their functioning, key documents, and advocacy opportunities.
  • Gender and International Human Rights: offers an overview of the most relevant Human Rights Instruments that protect women and gender-diverse individual's rights.
  • Gender-based violence: discusses how the concept of gender-based violence has evolved, covering key concepts, legal standards, and public policies.
  • Transnational feminism and international advocacy: explores feminist transnational activism and its advancements and challenges.
  • Feminist Legal Theories: presents and discusses the main feminist threads and their socio-legal implications for advancing gender justice.

Courses can vary in length and depth, depending on your needs. They can also be tailored to specific audiences such as academics, government, and the general public.

Consultancy

My consultancy work focuses on policy analysis, advocacy, research, and capacity-building in human rights, with a particular emphasis on gender-based violence, sexual and reproductive rights, health law, and children's rights. Leveraging my academic foundation—a bachelor's in Law, a master's in Human Rights, a PhD in Law and Society, and a graduate certificate in teaching—I provide insightful, evidence-based solutions tailored to diverse contexts. Grounded on a deep commitment to advancing equity and justice, I can:

  • Develop strategies for advocacy;
  • Conduct training workshops;
  • Craft comprehensive legal and policy analyses.

Lawyering

  • Legal opinions on gender based violence, coercive control, domestic abuse, intimate partner violence, children's rights, human rights;
  • Expert witness on gender based violence, coercive control, domestic abuse, intimate partner violence, children's rights, abusive litigation, parental alienation;
  • Legal services on Hague Convention cases involving Brazilian citizens;
  • Family law and divorce in contexts of domestic abuse;

Mentorship

I can support you with the following:

  • Applying for graduate studies;
  • Preparing academic proposals;
  • Developing academic work.

Advocacy Work

  • Elaboration of shadow reports to United Nations treaty bodies, and MESECVI (follow-up Mechanism of the Belém do Pará Convention - Organization of American Estates);
  • In-person advocacy - for more successful results;
  • Institutional representation in public hearings;
  • Articulation, preparation, and submission of Amicus Curiae both at the national and international levels;
  • Workshops for non-profit organizations and corporations;
  • Moderation of academic and institutional events.

Get in touch

Let's connect! For inquiries or collaboration opportunities, reach out via email at [email] or connect with me on LinkedIn. Responses within 48 hours.

Send me an email

Find Me on Social Media

  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn