Law as written.
Law as lived.
Independent socio-legal research from Dhaka, reading statutes beside the lives they govern.
আইন বইয়ে যা বলে আর মানুষের জীবনে যা ঘটে, আমরা দুটোকে পাশাপাশি রেখে পড়ি।
Latest from ASCEND
All articles
How to conduct socio-legal research, and how to publish it
A short, referenced guide from ASCEND: from a research puzzle to theory, method, ethics and analysis, then choosing a journal and answering reviewers. English captions are available.
Cheaper Than a Man
700+ participants from 25 countries on child recruitment, adult impunity and the price of protection in Dhaka.
প্রমাণের ভাষা
সাক্ষ্য আইন, ১৮৭২-এর সহজ পাঠ
Cover competition for প্রমাণের ভাষা
Entries were open to anyone, of any age or country. Results are announced by 20 November 2026.
Prothom Alo
ATN News
Ekushey Television
Prothom Alo, ATN News and ETV report the roundtable
National newspaper and television coverage of Cheaper Than a Man.
ASCEND is registered as a public charitable trust
Registered in Dhaka, with a Board of Trustees and five research programmes.
Five research programmes
Each pairs close legal analysis with fieldwork among the people the law affects.
Refugees
How Bangladesh and the wider region receive, protect and govern people who have fled, with a specific focus on the Rohingya.
Bangladeshi migrants worldwide
The legal routes and traps that shape migration from Bangladesh, centred on low-skilled and vulnerable workers, and especially on women who face sexual and other exploitation abroad.
Climate and environmental justice
Environmental harm and sustainable development in one of the world's most climate-exposed deltas, and the question of who carries the cost.
Human rights
Rights in their many dimensions, studied where they are claimed and where they fail: in courts, in custody, at work and online.
Corruption and transparency
Public money, public office and the rules meant to keep both accountable.
ASCEND Journal
Socio-legal research on Asia
Vol. 1 No. 1, in preparation
Publish in the ASCEND journal
Peer-reviewed socio-legal research on Asia. Diamond open access: no fee to publish and no fee to read.
Dates ahead
RoundtablesCover competition results
The winning design for প্রমাণের ভাষা is announced.
20November 2026
at the latest
Findings of the Dhaka roundtable
What Cheaper Than a Man established, published in full.
26November 2026
at the latest
Roundtable conference two
Topic and date to be announced. Write to us to hear first.
Date to be announced
Support independent socio-legal research
Commission a study, co-host a roundtable or partner with our researchers.
