Border Forensics

Border Forensics is an agency that uses innovative methods of spatial and visual analysis to investigate practices of border violence wherever they occur. Here is a detailed description of their work, mission, and values:

Border Forensics combines established human rights work and research methods with new forms of remote sensing, data processing, and visual research. The agency develops and applies new technological systems to document and uncover violence against migrants and refugees at borders. Their main products and services include:

• Geospatial and Visual Analyses: By using satellite imagery, cartography, and other visual techniques, the practices of border violence are examined and visualized in detail[1][3][5].
• Human Rights Reports and Documentation: Border Forensics produces reports, maps, video reconstructions, and other visualizations to document human rights violations against migrants and support calls for accountability[5].
• Cooperation with Civil Society Organizations: The agency works closely with activists, non-governmental organizations, and migrant groups to amplify the voices of those facing border violence daily[1][3][4].

The main mission of Border Forensics is to defend the dignity and rights of migrants and promote mobility justice. The agency aims to use the real experiences of migrants as a starting point for its research and analysis, thereby making violations of their rights visible. The values of Border Forensics include:

• Human Rights: The agency generates evidence of violations and questions the (il)legality of border practices to protect the rights of migrants[5].
• Solidarity and Collaboration: By closely collaborating with migrants and civil society organizations, efforts are made to strengthen the capacities of the migrant rights movement and support their demands for truth, accountability, and justice[1][4].

Border Forensics is committed to a sustainable and human-centered approach to migration and border management. The sustainability goals and initiatives include:

• Technological Innovations: The agency develops and utilizes new technological solutions to improve the documentation and uncovering of border violence and to promote a nuanced discussion about the human-centered use of technologies in migration[4].
• Legal Initiatives: Although strategic legal actions are not the main goal of current projects, Border Forensics hopes that the results of their investigations can be used for legal initiatives in the future to address the role of aerial surveillance in the pushback of migrants[1][3].
• Public Awareness and Advocacy: By presenting their findings in national and international courts, parliaments, political assemblies, and the international press, as well as in exhibitions and public events, Border Forensics seeks to raise awareness of border violence and promote political change[5].

Border Forensics operates at the intersection of human rights, technology, research, and art to develop a comprehensive and nuanced approach to investigating and combating border violence. Through their innovative work and close collaboration with civil society organizations and migrant groups, the agency significantly contributes to promoting mobility justice and protecting the rights of migrants.

• 1 - https://civilmrcc.eu/interview/border-forensics-amplify-voices-of-those-who-are-close-to-the-reality-everyday-boder-violence/
• 2 - https://www.borderforensics.org
• 3 - https://civilmrcc.eu/border-forensics-amplify-voices-of-those-who-are-close-to-the-reality-everyday-boder-violence/
• 4 - https://www.bosch-stiftung.de/en/project/border-forensics-investigating-border-violence-fostering-mobility-justice/details
• 5 - https://www.borderforensics.org/about/