Matheus de Abreu Costa Souza

My PhD research examines how notions of space and time come together in narratives about everyday life in (post-)war cities. I am particularly interested in how lived experiences of time (i.e., interpretations and imaginations of past, present and future) condition spatial narratives of actors in (post-)war cities. Empirically, I look at spatial narratives in the city of Mostar (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and highlight the heterogeneous and often conflictive understandings of space and time that make people experience the city in radically different ways. Methodologically, my research draws upon creative methodologies such as walking and talking and cognitive mapping, methods used to obtain a better understanding of how space is understood and lived by research participants.

Aside from my interest in the spatialities, temporalities and (post-)war cities, my previous research has mobilised post-structuralist approaches to analyse UN peacekeeping operations. More recently, I have also drawn upon notions of 'illiberal peacebuilding' in order to make sense of the turn towards UN stabilisation missions.

At the Department of Political Science, I also teach peace and conflict studies at the undergraduate program (Peace and Conflict Studies) and at the Master's level (Crisis Management and Peacebuilding).