Insurgent mobility and state fortification in West Africa

Posted on May 6, 2026

Conflict in West Africa is shaped by a struggle between mobile insurgents and states whose power depends on territorial control. While insurgents exploit speed and rural fluidity to expand their reach, states retreat into fortified towns and military enclaves. Mobile space theory can help explain this recurring spatial pattern. By Olivier Walther, 5/6/2026. The fortification […]

The resurgence of fortified landscapes in West Africa

Posted on April 27, 2026

West African states respond to insurgencies by building city walls and fortifying borders. These initiatives aimed at controlling the movement of jihadist groups are a double-edged sword. While they provide short-term protection, they can also deepen rural insecurity and civilian vulnerability. By Olivier Walther and Steven M. Radil, 4/28/2026. The new fortresses In August 2024, militants […]

CFP AAG 2026 – Geography of trade

Posted on September 19, 2025

American Association of Geographers (AAG) Annual Meeting, San Francisco, March 17-21, 2026 Paper session organized by Lacey Harris-Coble, University of Florida, and Amalie Ravn Weinrich, University of Copenhagen Abstract Trade cuts across economic, political, cultural, and environmental geographies, yet it is not often given attention as a standalone topic. The geography of trade examines how […]

CFP AAG 2026 – Geography and civil war

Posted on September 5, 2025

American Association of Geographers (AAG) Annual Meeting, San Francisco, March 17-21, 2026 Paper session organized by Olivier J. Walther and David G. Russell, University of Florida Abstract The goal of this paper session is to examine how space shapes civil wars. We are particularly interested in understanding which local determinants explain the onset of political […]

Defending our turf

Posted on August 23, 2025

After a decade spent carving out a niche in conflict studies, the time has come to defend it. Since the mid-2010s, my Lab has documented the geography of violence in Africa. To track the spatial evolution of armed conflicts, we have developed a unique indicator that measures both the intensity and spatial concentration of violence. […]

Violence is not fueled by a lack of food in West Africa

Posted on August 11, 2025

The number of violent events recorded in the last decade in West Africa is either independent of agricultural seasonality or increases with the abundance of resources. The lack of seasonality in West African conflicts suggests that political violence does not have a direct link with environmental factors. Instead, the story of hunger is one of […]

Food insecurity and conflict go hand in hand in West Africa

Posted on August 8, 2025

Subnational data reveal a very strong link between food and political insecurity in West Africa. Regions subject to food insecurity are not only prone to more violence, but conflict is more concentrated spatially than in other regions. More food insecurity in conflict regions This correspondence is particularly evident when disaggregated food security data is superimposed […]

When spatial analysis aspired to unite geography

Posted on April 29, 2025

Spatial analysts thought they could unite geography around a few spatial features. Their failure should not obscure the enthusiasm that reigned in the discipline some 60 years ago. The trilogy of spatial analysis Geographers have long argued that space could be represented on a map by a combination of three fundamental features: points, lines, and […]

What can geographers learn from network science?

Posted on April 3, 2025

Growing interest in the study of networks is an opportunity to question the very nature of geographic space, the most fundamental yet least well-defined concept in our discipline. Networks in geography Networks are all the rage in geography. In recent years, a growing number of geographers have been seeking to better understand the relationships between […]

What I learned from my PhD supervisor’s network

Posted on March 24, 2025

In the past 25 years, French Professor Denis Retaillé was involved in the supervision of 39 graduate students. In 2006, I became one of them after completing a joint dissertation between the University of Lausanne in Switzerland and the University of Rouen in France. During my professional career, I have often wondered who else had […]

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