About
I am an international human rights jurist, advocate, and independent consultant driven by a deep commitment to helping others and contributing to bringing about meaningful change in the world.
Born into an international family spanning multiple continents, I grew up looking beyond borders. My upbringing fostered a deep curiosity about the world, an appreciation for different cultures, and a strong commitment to social justice. After completing law school and specializing in international human rights, I chose to pursue a career in international development standing alongside those facing injustice, while navigating complex and often challenging environments.
My studies, travel and work have taken me all over the world. Having lived in nine and traveled to over 40 countries, my experiences that have taught me independence, adaptability, resilience and the value of seeing the world from many different perspectives. More than a decade of my career has been spent in Asia, living and working for the UN, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and The Asia Foundation in Bangladesh, Mongolia, and Nepal .
With two decades of experience and taking a 360 degree view to identify solutions to complex problems, I bring expertise in leadership development, management, strategic thinking, human rights and justice reform to individuals and organizations seeking to contribute to positive change. I provide pro-bono legal and other support to persons who are wrongfully convicted in the United States and arbitrarily detained in Asia.
EDUCATION & PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
EDUCATION
Tirza holds a MA in Law (Maastricht, the Netherlands) and a LLM in Human Rights and Democratisation (Venice, Italy) with continued studies at Oxford University (UK). As part of her studies, she interned with a criminal defense Barrister at 3 Paper Buildings, the Chambers of Michael Parroy Q.C. (UK) and worked at a legal aid service provider.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Tirza’s management experience includes leading and overseeing program and project teams; grantee management and supervision; financial, human resources and operational management; and strategic communications.
A key area of focus in Tirza’s work has been to develop and implement politically informed programs, conducting political economy analysis assessing the institutions, power structures and relationships that govern decision-making and developing adaptive programming strategies that take these factors into account. She has worked closely with policy- and decision-makers on policy reform in the areas of urban governance, economic and green development. Tirza has supported organisations in strategy development related to governance, anti-corruption, civic engagement, gender equality and social inclusion.
As part of her justice work, she has conducted policy, advocacy and legislative reform related to justice for children, including the drafting of legislative amendments; advocacy for the implementation of international standards and developing strategic partnerships with other agencies for joint cooperation. She has developed and conducted multi-sectoral capacity building programs for judges, prosecutors, lawyers, probation officers and law enforcement personnel on international human rights, child rights, justice standards and restorative justice practices. She has provided technical assistance to national government agencies on the implementation of international human and child rights treaties and provision of legal aid services. For her work, she has visited children in detention, care institutions, refugee camps and slums. Currently, besides justice and human rights reform, her focus is on supporting persons who have been wrongfully convicted or arbitrarily detained in the US and Asia.
Tirza has developed various proposals awarded by different international donors for innovative projects and programs in the field of governance, leadership development, data and statistics, environmental protection and women’s rights including a Women’s Business Center serving thousands of women business owners. She co-founded a social enterprise focused on making information and data accessible while creating job opportunities for over fifty young people in Nepal.
She has conducted consultancy work for various clients including the German Agency for International Development Cooperation, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and The Asia Foundation.
Awards and Publications
Awards
Tirza has been awarded the Friendship Medal by decree of the President of Mongolia for her leadership and contribution to the development of Ulaanbaatar; and Medal of the Ministry of Population and Social Welfare of Mongolia for her overall contribution to the development of Mongolia.
Publications
Tirza has co-authored with Bianca Karim, the Bangladesh chapter, in Dinah Shelton (ed.) “International Law and Domestic Legal Systems: Incorporation, Transformation, and Persuasion, Oxford , 2011; online ed., Oxford Academic, 19 Jan.2012; and edited and co-authored selected parts of “Towards a Justice System for Children: A Guide and Case Law on Children in Conflict with The Law”, by Justice M. Iman Ali (Supreme Court of Bangladesh), UNICEF, 2010.