Staff

Stefan Peters

Academic Director

Academic Director of the German-Colombian Peace Institute – CAPAZ and Chair of Peace Studies at the Justus Liebig University Giessen (Germany). He studied Political Science at the Philipps-University Marburg and Universidad Complutense de Madrid and obtained his PhD in Political Science at the University of Kassel (Germany). Stefan Peters works in the fields of Neo-Extractivism and Rentism, Social Inequalities, Education, Memory Studies, Development Theory and North South Relations. He has been visiting professor and researcher at universities in countries such as Cuba, Argentina, Ecuador and Puerto Rico.

Read here the welcome message sent by Dr. Peters.

Paula Ortega Orjuela

ADMINISTRATIVE AND FINANCIAL DIRECTOR

Master in Regional Sciences and Territorial Planning from the University of Karlsruhe (Germany), Economist from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia and Specialist in Social Economy from the Universidad de los Andes. She has professional experience in evaluation, monitoring and project management in various financial and social sectors. Among others, she was part of the Mission Management Team of the Agency for Reintegration and Normalisation of Colombia, responsible for the monitoring and quality of processes, plans and mission programmes. Since 2020, she is part of the CAPAZ / University of Giessen team in the coordination of the “Nodo Alemania” project from Germany. Since 2022 she is part of the administrative and financial team of CAPAZ.

Indira Murillo

Project Director

Lawyer graduated from Universidad Cooperativa de Colombia (Neiva), she holds a Master´s Degree in International Legal Studies with a Specialization in International Human Rights and Gender and the Law from American University Washington College of Law, and an LL.M. from Ruprecht Karls – Universität Heidelberg.  Ms. Murillo has focused her work on Human Rights Issues, Transitional Justice, Nationality and Statelessness, International Migration, Gender-based violence and the Promotion of Gender Equality.

Throughout her career, Ms. Murillo has served in various positions, such as Lawyer at the Constitutional Court of Colombia, Consultant for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Colombia, Human Rights Fellow at the New York City Bar Association, and Dean´s Fellow at the War Crimes Research Office at American University Washington College of Law.  She has also taught International Public Law at two law schools in Bogotá, Colombia.

Thilo Marauhn

Justus Liebig University Giessen

Prof. Dr. Marauhn is the spokesman of the German consortium of CAPAZ. He is professor of Public Law and International Law at Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany, and head of the newly established International Law Research Group of the Peace Research Institute Frankfurt. He chairs the German National Committee on International Humanitarian Law, is a member of the Advisory Board on United Nations Issues of the German Foreign Office and First Vice-President of the International Humanitarian Fact-Finding Commission. Thilo Marauhn has held visiting professorships at the Universities of Bergen, Madison (Wisconsin), Rovaniemi, Tromsø and California Western School of Law, San Diego; he holds a permanent visiting position at the University of Lucerne, Switzerland. Among the various externally funded research projects, the most recent one addresses “UN policing – legal basis, status and directives on the use of force” (German Foundation of Peace Research).

Camilo Alberto Borrero García

Universidad Nacional de Colombia

Stefan Peters

Academic Director

Academic Director of the German-Colombian Peace Institute – CAPAZ and Chair of Peace Studies at the Justus Liebig University Giessen (Germany). He studied Political Science at the Philipps-University Marburg and Universidad Complutense de Madrid and obtained his PhD in Political Science at the University of Kassel (Germany). Stefan Peters works in the fields of Neo-Extractivism and Rentism, Social Inequalities, Education, Memory Studies, Development Theory and North South Relations. He has been visiting professor and researcher at universities in countries such as Cuba, Argentina, Ecuador and Puerto Rico.

Read here the welcome message sent by Dr. Peters.

Indira Murillo

Project Director

Lawyer graduated from Universidad Cooperativa de Colombia (Neiva), she holds a Master´s Degree in International Legal Studies with a Specialization in International Human Rights and Gender and the Law from American University Washington College of Law, and an LL.M. from Ruprecht Karls – Universität Heidelberg.  Ms. Murillo has focused her work on Human Rights Issues, Transitional Justice, Nationality and Statelessness, International Migration, Gender-based violence and the Promotion of Gender Equality.

Throughout her career, Ms. Murillo has served in various positions, such as Lawyer at the Constitutional Court of Colombia, Consultant for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Colombia, Human Rights Fellow at the New York City Bar Association, and Dean´s Fellow at the War Crimes Research Office at American University Washington College of Law.  She has also taught International Public Law at two law schools in Bogotá, Colombia.

Juliette Vargas

Scientific Collaborator – Georg-August-Universität Göttingen

Juliette Vargas has a Law Degree of the Universidad Nacional de Colombia and a Law Master’s Degree (LLM in German) of the Humboldt-Universität (HU) in Berlin. Her academic and professional experience has been focused on international public law, as well as international criminal law, international human rights and international humanitarian law and on topics of environment law. She has worked in strategic litigation research with organizations such as the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights – ECCHR and the José Alvear Restrepo Lawyers’ Collective – CCAJAR. In the last years she has been working in topics related to transitional justice and the challenge of its implementation in Colombia. Additionally, she pursued Music Studies in Colombia and Germany. Mrs. Vargas’ position is financed by the University of Göttingen. Currently, she is PhD-candidate at the Göttingen University. Her research focuses on the Victim Participation at the Special Jurisdiction for Peace.

ANDRÉS HERNÁNDEZ

SCIENTIFIC COLLABORATOR

Andrés Hernández is a public administrator, with a specialization in Human Rights from the Higher School of Public Administration (ESAP) and a Master’s degree in Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law from the Superior School of War of Colombia (ESDEG). He was part of the documentation team of the Observatory of Memory and Conflict (OMC) at the National Center for Historical Memory, served as research coordinator at the Institute for Pedagogy, Peace, and Urban Conflict (IPAZUD), and was a consultant for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Additionally, he has been a teacher and researcher on topics related to human rights and international humanitarian law, and the author of various academic publications in these areas.

ANDREA CAGUA

SCIENTIFIC COLLABORATOR – JEP-CEV PROJECT – POLITICAL EDUCATION

She is a historian, researcher and project coordinator for the popularisation of history. She completed her doctorate in history at the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt. She completed her MA in Interdisciplinary Latin American Studies at the Free University of Berlin and her BA in History at the Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá. Her doctoral research dealt from a historical perspective with the silences and memories of the violence that were constructed in the media in Colombia in the 1960s and 1970s. She is currently co-creator and researcher in the transmedia project for historical research called @memoriaycomics, a participatory action research process to understand how comics construct the history of violence in the country and its use for political education. She is co-founder and active member of MemoriAL: Red interdisciplinaria de estudios sobre memoria en América Latina, since 2013. In addition to memory studies and comics, her research interests include gender studies, the relationship between history and literature, and film.

Andrea Neira

Scientific Collaborator

Ph.D. student in Anthropology at the University of Cauca, Master in Feminist and Gender Studies and Social Worker. She has been a university professor of undergraduate and postgraduate courses at several public and private universities in Colombia for more than eleven years. Andrea has also worked with the academic and administrative management of research and social projection,  as well as in the Monitoring Team for Reparative and Restorative Measures (ESMRR) of the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP). Currently, Andrea is the coordinator of the CLACSO Working Group «Decolonial epistemologies, territories and culture», and a researcher of the Interdisciplinary Group for Gender Studies (GIEG), of the National University of Colombia. Furthermore, she is also part of the Working Group “Masculinities in Latin America. Frictions, leaks and fissures”. Her research topics are Masculinities, militarization, armed conflict and reincorporation processes; alternative and feminist economies; Youth subjectivities, hip hop, and peace; and Post-development, and alternatives to development. In 2019, Andrea won the Jorge Bernal Award for Social Research.

DIANA MORALES

SCIENTIFIC COLLABORATOR – ENVIRONMENTAL PEACE

Sociologist and specialist in Environmental Law from the Universidad Externado de Colombia, and Master in Territorial Planning and Environmental Management from the Universidad de Barcelona. She has worked on issues related to the analysis and management of socio-environmental conflicts associated with the development of mining activities and decision-making for the conservation of strategic ecosystems such as the moorlands; formulation of public policy for the mining and energy sector, community water management and research ethics in organisations such as the Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Research on Biological Resources, the Office of Environmental and Social Affairs of the Ministry of Mines and Energy and the Centre for Research on Social Dynamics of the Universidad Externado de Colombia.

HEYDER ALFONSO-CAMELO

SCIENTIFIC COLLABORATOR

Sociologist specialized in conflict resolution with a master’s degree in human rights defense. He holds a Ph.D. in political studies and international relations from the National University of Colombia. He has worked as a consultant on access to justice and human rights issues for international cooperation programs such as USAID, UNDP, and KfW Bank aus Verantwortung. Additionally, he has been a consultant for the Unit for Victims’ Assistance, the Truth Commission, and the Peace and Reconciliation Foundation, among others. He has been a professor and researcher at various universities in the country, focusing on the dynamics of violence in Colombia, Central America, and Mexico, armed conflict, organized crime, state-building, and post-conflict periods.

Lorena Díez Arias

SCIENTIFIC COLLABORATOR

Museologist and curator. Her main research has focused on the culture of memory. As a museologist and curator, she is particularly interested in exploring definitions of territory and territoriality. She examines the intersections between everyday life and geopolitics, approaching the concept of borders from both symbolic and aesthetic perspectives. She has specialised in the recovery of life stories, using narrative interviews and story-making workshops to find other ways of bringing them into the realm of representation. She is interested in building bridges between different cultures and fostering connections between diverse communities.

MARÍA C. LLINÁS SOTO

SCIENTIFIC COLLABORATOR and INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABILITY OFFICER

Coordinator of the International Office for Sustainability in Bogotá, an initiative born from the inter-institutional cooperation between Justus-Liebig-Universität Gießen, Universidad de los Andes, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Universidad de Antioquia, and Universidad Andina Simón Bolívar (Quito campus), with the support of the Colombo-German Institute for Peace (CAPAZ). She holds a dual degree in International Business from Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana in Medellín (Colombia) and the University of Applied Sciences in Münster (Germany). Additionally, she earned a Master’s degree in International Studies from the University of Passau (Germany), specializing in sustainability, food sovereignty, and alternatives to development. Her professional experience focuses on the implementation and evaluation of sustainability strategies for companies and NGOs. She has served as the Impact Director for a social startup in Madrid (Spain) and worked as a consultant on international cooperation projects aimed at strengthening women-led community projects in La Guajira (Colombia).

MARÍA ALEJANDRA SALDARRIAGA

RESEARCH ASSISTANT

Philosopher from the Universidad de Antioquia. Social Manager of the programme “Jóvenes en Paz” of the Ministry of Equality and Equity of the National Government since February 2024 in the city of Medellín. She worked as a bilingual mediator at the Museo Casa de la Memoria in Medellín in 2022. Her areas of research and interest are conflict and peace, memory, crimes against humanity, transitional justice, international relations and political ideologies.

VALENTINA GONZÁLEZ

RESEARCH ASSISTANT

Lawyer from the University of Ibagué. She is interested in topics such as the protection of vulnerable populations, human rights, constitutional law, and international humanitarian law. She has experience as a monitor for the “Legal Assistance Program for Populations in Need of International Protection and Victims of the Armed Conflict,” led by the Legal Clinic of the University of Ibagué. Valentina has participated in research and projects related to the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the Network of Territories for Peace.

Paula Ortega

Administrative and Financial Coordinator

Master in Regional Sciences and Territorial Planning from the University of Karlsruhe (Germany), Economist from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia and Specialist in Social Economy from the Universidad de los Andes. She has professional experience in evaluation, monitoring and project management in various financial and social sectors. Among others, she was part of the Mission Management Team of the Agency for Reintegration and Normalisation of Colombia, responsible for the monitoring and quality of processes, plans and mission programmes. Since 2020, she is part of the CAPAZ / University of Giessen team in the coordination of the “Nodo Alemania” project from Germany. Since 2022 she is part of the administrative and financial team of CAPAZ.

JOSÉ FONTECHA

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

Specialist in Government, Management and Public Affairs from the Universidad Externado de Colombia and Public Accountant from the Universidad de La Salle. He has professional experience in the implementation of international cooperation projects financed by the European Union, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. He has also worked in national government entities and in the financial sector.

Laura Valencia Espinosa

Assistant NETCAPAZ Platform

Jair Burgos

Administrative Assistant – Project JEP-CEV

Accountant graduated from the Jorge Tadeo Lozano University. Work experience in financial and administrative affairs acquired in socio-economic projects funded by the private sector and non-governmental organizations. Jair has developed new training methods for people who have little or no knowledge in financial and tax areas, helping them to improve manual and financial skills. He has five years of experience in budget monitoring, administrative support, financial and tax support, and two years of experience assisting natural people in filing their income tax returns.

DANIEL FELIPE NIETO

ACCOUNTANT

Professional Accountant, graduated from the Universidad de la Salle Colombia in 2014. He has work experience in companies in the real sector, commercial sector, construction and with companies belonging to the special tax regime. He has carried out financial, process and accounting audits in these areas. He has extensive knowledge of the entire accounting cycle, from the reporting process to tax preparation and preparation, financial information and reporting. In addition, he has experience as a statutory auditor in Colombian companies and is up to date in international financial reporting standards.

LORENA CASTELLANOS CAICEDO

LEGAL PROFESSIONAL

Lawyer specialising in Labour Law and in Management and Management of Cultural Enterprises. Student of the Master’s Degree in Human Management and Organisational Development, at the Universidad Externado de Colombia. She has experience in human resources management, collective bargaining and cultural project management. She has led processes of selection, training, compensation, personnel management, labour relations, organisational climate, wellbeing, organisational development and health and safety at work in non-profit organisations. She served as human talent coordinator of the National Association of Symphonic Music – National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia for nine years.

ANA VILLALBA CASTRO

COMMUNICATIONS AND PUBLIC RELATIONS ADVISOR

She has a double master’s degree in International Studies and Political Science from the Universidad de los Andes, Colombia. Social communicator and journalist. She has accumulated experience working for more than fifteen years in national media in Colombia; in the field of organisational communication, democracy and human rights, mainly linked to international cooperation projects, and as an academic consultant. Her academic interests are focused on post-conflict, peacebuilding, migration, environment and gender studies. She is a finalist for the Círculo de Periodistas de Bogotá-CPB Award 2019.

Daniela Alzate

Community Manager

Esteban Campo

Community Manager

Industrial Engineering student at Universidad del Valle. He worked at AIESEC in Colombia in the areas of Organizational Development, Talent Management, and Communications. He has experience managing and creating content for social media, and he has worked with several social initiatives and organizations like Endeavor Colombia. Esteban is interested in topics such as leadership, group management, and visual arts.