Mauricio Angel is the Head of the Policy, Research and Training Unit (PRTU) and a member of the Management Team of Protection International (PI). Based in Brussels, he joined PI in 2012 and worked initially as an Advocacy Officer and later as Research Officer, before being appointed as Head of Unit. Mauricio holds a Master’s in Political Science and International Relations and completed a doctoral research training as PhD candidate in political science at the Free University of Brussels (ULB), Belgium. Besides the protection of human rights defenders (HRDs), Mauricio’s main centres of interest are the upholding of human rights and international relations issues in relation to development, governance, human security, and conflict prevention and resolution.
Mauricio has a wide range of local and international experience. Before joining PI, he worked as senior analyst for the Andean Region Project of the International Crisis Group, an international NGO that works for the prevention and resolution of armed conflicts worldwide. He also taught international relations and foreign policy as guest lecturer in Colombian universities. As one of PI’s leading researchers, Mauricio has been involved in the drafting of different analytical pieces as well as main editor of reports on HRD protection policies at national levels, the criminalisation of defenders and capacity-building tools for facilitators. This experience in research, capacity building initiatives, networking and working with different HRDs at risk greatly facilitates his work as a management team member.