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New agreement with ACLED to reinforce research on conflict

On November 4th, 2021, the University of Florida Board of Trustees signed a memorandum of understanding with the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) to encourage research on conflict and political violence. Signed on behalf of the University of Florida African Networks Lab, the new agreement will facilitate access to conflict data and […]

Introducing a new spatial indicator of political violence

While the location of violent events and their propensity to cluster together in space is increasingly well known, a deeper exploration of their spatiality and spatial evolution over time remains an emerging frontier in  conflict studies. To fill this gap, we introduce a new Spatial Conflict Dynamics indicator (SCDi) that measures both the intensity and […]

AAG 2022

Call for papers American Association of Geographers Annual Meeting, NYC, 25 Feb-1 March 2022 Session title Geographies of conflict in North and West Africa Organizers Olivier Walther, University of Florida; Steven Radil, U.S. Air Force Academy; David Russell, Princeton University; Matthew Pflaum, University of Florida Session description: The geography of conflict in North and West Africa […]

Survivors of war: Internally displaced camps and the Malian conflict

By Matthew Pflaum and Charis Li Camp Senou is one of the many displacement camps that emerged in Mali following the 2012 civil war and the consequent insecurity. Opened in 2019 in the southern fringes of Bamako, the camp shows no fences, legitimate signage, security guards, or any other official accoutrements of an internally displaced […]

Conflict networks in North and West Africa

The new OECD report on security was launched at the Sahel Coalition this week. Entitled “Conflict networks in North and West Africa”, the report maps the evolution of alliances and rivalries in the region since the late 1990s. Using Dynamic Social Network Analysis, the report examines how rivalries and alliances shape patterns of violence across the region […]

Security and Trade in African Borderlands

Special issue of Journal of Borderlands Studies Guest editor: Olivier J. Walther, Ph.D., University of Florida Abstract submission deadline: September 15, 2020 Background In recent decades, the multiplication of trade facilitation initiatives in Africa has been accompanied by a deterioration of security conditions in border areas. Trade activities have been significantly disrupted by political insecurity, […]

Have African conflicts become more urban?

Africa is currently undergoing rapid urban expansion. According to the 2020 Africapolis report, Africa’s urban population has increased from 27 million in 1950 to 567 million in 2015, with further rapid growth projected to continue. The consequences of this rapid growth on the distribution of armed conflict in Africa remain under-studied, despite being crucial for the […]

Uncovering the internal structure of Boko Haram

By Olivier J. Walther, University of Florida The internal structure of violent extremist organizations such as Boko Haram in West Africa remains largely unknown due to their secretive nature. Of particular importance is whether violent extremist organizations are centralized around a few key hubs or composed of highly decentralized cells. In a new paper published today […]