People

Team

Lieselotte is a First Generation Belgian-Flemish legal and environmental anthropologist with a PhD in Law (2011) and a Senior Fellowship at the Human Rights Centre, Ghent University. For nearly two decades, Lieselotte has collaborated with Indigenous communities in Latin America (Guatemala, Colombia, Ecuador, Perú) and Nepal—ranging from genocide survivors to networks of Indigenous lawyers. Her research spans legal pluralism, Indigenous rights, transitional justice, the decolonization of human rights, and natural resource governance.

In 2018, she was awarded a prestigious European Research Council Starting Grant to lead RIVERS – Water/Human Rights Beyond the Human?, a six-year interdisciplinary project (2019–2026) developed primarily at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (Spain). Bringing together an international and interdisciplinary hybrid team, RIVERS explores Indigenous water ontologies, plurilegal encounters, and interlegal translation through fieldwork in Nepal, Guatemala, Colombia, and at the United Nations. Initially planned as a five-year project, RIVERS had to navigate the challenges and delays of the COVID-19 pandemic and received two extensions, bringing its conclusion to February 2026. She was previously a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellow at the Centre for Social Studies, University of Coimbra (2016–2018), and has worked as a human rights practitioner, including with the UN Human Rights Office in Ecuador (2010–2013).

As part of RIVERS, she co-produced two short documentaries: Marsyangdi Wile Ri’iba: May You Live as Long as the River (Nepal) and Aty Seikuinduwa: Judge Between Worlds (Colombia). These films challenge dominant legal frameworks by foregrounding more-than-human voices and Indigenous jurisprudence. Premiering academically at LSA Chicago 2025 under the title Human Rights Beyond the Human?, the twin films offer a powerful reflection on legal pluralism, spirituality, and resistance to extractivism.