My research and professional expertise focuses on social and political transformation in Latin America in transnational perspective. Taking a historical approach to understanding changes in political movements and ideas, I emphasise the role of the interaction between individuals - especially those individuals who are able to travel and develop their ideas and reflections by interacting with others across the world - and the structural and cultural context they are operating in. My PhD looked at the rise of human rights as a protest language during the 1970s, and the subsequent marriage of this language with new ideas about democratisation to form transitional justice in the post-authoritarian, post-Cold War period. This research involved three years living in Argentina, conducting archival research and political ethnography. My current work looks at how Latin Americans have engaged with international movements and organisations, specially Amnesty International. My expertise as a historical complements the work of social scientists and can provide an understanding of both the deeper structures conditioning social change, and of the role of individuals in promoting social and political change.