Research team
Expertise
My research expertise centers on the intersection of data, citizenship, and urban equity. I investigate how marginalized communities, particularly in Brazil, appropriate and remix institutional and grassroots data practices to challenge dominant narratives and forge alternative paths toward more equitable cities. This work bridges critical cartography—including counter-mapping and data activism—with urban policy analysis and participatory methodologies. I am deeply committed to participatory action research, co-creating knowledge with communities to transform research into tangible advocacy and policy impact. My focus is on decolonizing urban knowledge by amplifying grassroots innovation and ensuring that every voice matters in shaping the future of cities.
The Transatlantic Pipeline: Moving Cocaine, Laundering Money Between Europe and Latin America.
Abstract
The transformation of the Port of Antwerp into Europe's primary gateway for South American cocaine, handling an estimated 60-70% of all imports, represents a fundamental shift in the political economy of global illicit trade. This staggering volume, evidenced by a record 116 tonnes seized in 2023, is not an isolated law enforcement crisis but one node in a unified transatlantic system. The immense financial flows generated by European consumption directly fuel a parallel transformation in Latin America, where Brazilian criminal factions like the Comando Vermelho have consolidated their role as key intermediaries. Their violent contestation of strategic territories, from the favelas of Rio de Janeiro to key logistics hubs, is a direct consequence of their stake in this global pipeline. Current scholarship remains siloed, with European studies focusing on port security and organized crime networks, while Latin American research concentrates on local armed conflict and territorial governance. This project addresses a critical gap by proposing an integrated, trans-scalar analysis that directly connects the macro-economic dynamics of the transatlantic cocaine trade to the micro-politics of violence and state repression at the local level. Developed in collaboration with the leading Brazilian research group GENI/UFF, this seed project aims to critically map the political economy of this pipeline and its multi-scalar impacts through the critical cases of Antwerp and Rio de Janeiro. The research employs a innovative mixed-methodology over 12 months, structured in two complementary cartographic outputs. First, a macro-level critical cartography will utilize digital methods and AI-assisted data analysis to compile and harmonize dispersed data from international police reports, judicial documents, and investigative journalism. This will produce a dynamic visualization of the trade's evolution, its logistical nodes, and key actors. Second, a micro-level social cartography will be conducted through collaborative workshops with community partners in Rio de Janeiro, co-producing knowledge to map how global flows manifest as territorial conflict and community experience, thereby centering marginalized perspectives.Researcher(s)
- Promoter: Marino Aluízio
Research team(s)
Project type(s)
- Research Project