Damola is a restorative justice researcher and practitioner who holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminology from Colorado state university in the United States and a Master of science in Criminal Justice and Law enforcement from Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, United states. Damola has trained Nigerian Police Officers at the National Institute of Police Studies in Abuja on Crime analysis and Restorative Justice in law enforcement.  He is currently pursuing a PhD in Labor Law and Social Security from the University of Mauritius in Reduit, Republic of Mauritius.

Damola’s PhD research titled “Improving the Platform economy for app-based transport workers in Nigeria: Legal and Regulatory Dimensions” aims to examine how restorative justice can redefine and clarify the scope or the nature of the employment relationship status of platform drivers. The research considers how restorative justice can be considered as an alternative to litigation in cases of misclassification, corporate crime, or serve as a channel of communication to resolve unjust deactivation and dismissal, or a form of social dialogue for stakeholders to negotiate. Damola hopes to add valuable contribution through the digital labour worker initiative, a research project which he currently leads to provide a global perspective on corporate violence and digital labour platforms within sub-Saharan Africa. This approach will focus on repairing harm caused by the misclassification of workers through dialogue between workers and their family members, platforms, regulators and other members of the community.

The Balzan PhD prize will assist Damola in contributing to the development of literature on corporate violence and digital platform work by expanding the scope of restorative justice practice into labour relations and occupational health and safety. The Balzan PhD Prize and Fellowship will provide essential services that improve the quality of Damola’s dissertation. The funds from the fellowship will enable attending conferences, where Damola will disseminate his work and obtain feedback.