I am interested in the spatial dynamics of nationalism, nation-building and ethnic conflict. My research relies on historical comparative studies as well as quantitative analyses and GIS applications. My doctoral research at UCL explores how ethnically distinct borderlands are turned into integral parts of national lands through construction and destruction of spatial symbols, as well as colonization and expulsion.
My further research interests lie in states’ governance of diversity, the territorialization of collective identities, and the interplay between political borders and identity formation. Emprircally, my research mostly focuses on Europe, Asia and Latin America in the 19th and 20th century. Several months spent at National Taiwan University in Taipei, Taiwan, and a number of visits to Asian and Latin American countries, including longer stays in Asunción, Paraguay, inform my academic work.
Collaborative work in progress includes, among other things, the mapping of state-sponsored cultural genocide world wide since 1945, and an analysis of patterns in nation-building strategies among Latin American states.
Please feel free to send me an email. If I do not respond right away, I am probably off cycling or exploring the wonderful world of Oolong teas but will get back to you as soon as possible.