ABOUT US
The Prison Transparency Project is a seven-year, collaborative, comparative study of prison transparency in seven research sites across Canada, Argentina, and Spain. This project researches both formal mechanisms and informal practices that promote the movement of information in and out of carceral sites, both for accountability purposes, and also to defend the rights and freedoms of incarcerated persons.
OBJECTIVES
LEADERSHIP
PARTNERSHIP
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Centre and amplify the voices of people with lived experience of incarceration, as the people most directly impacted by carceral systems and their lack of transparency.
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Bring together different actors concerned about transparency in institutions of incarceration (e.g., provincial detention centers, federal penitentiaries, migrant detention centers);
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Compare access-to-information issues between different countries (Argentina, Canada, and Spain) and national cultures specific to certain regions (Quebec, Catalonia).
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Document strategies for dealing with different jurisdictional and international cultures;
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Create platforms to support cross-national network-building between grassroots advocates, activists, people with lived experience, their supporters (family and friends), and prison watchdogs and other monitors;
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Provide training and mentorship to people with lived experience of incarceration and university students, in the areas of academic and popular research and writing;
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Share information we’ve gathered through multiple avenues including podcasting, workshops, publications, and other community and advocacy activities.
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This large-scale research project is co-led by Dr. Dawn Moore, Professor of Law at Carleton University, Dr. Máximo Sozzo, Professor at University of Litoral in Argentina, and Dr. José Brandariz, Professor at University of Coruña in Spain, alongside academic experts. The work of the PTP is being done over a seven-year period, from 2023-2030, and will be shaped and informed by a broad network of people with lived experience, partners, and researchers. The research team includes people with lived experiences of incarceration, as well as researchers from Argentina, Spain, and Canada.
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Partners are organizations and individuals who work with incarcerated people, who have a mandate to offer direct services or an advocacy mandate, and who are concerned with transparency. The PTP draws together scholars, people with lived experience of incarceration, friends and families of incarcerated people, NGOs, watchdog agencies, journalists, grassroots organizations, legal professionals, and more, in both formal and informal partnerships. This robust network informs the research on prison transparency from many angles and perspectives, offering the most comprehensive study possible.