Dr S.M. Marzi (Sonja)

I am an urban and development geographer with a PhD in International Development from the University of East Anglia, UK. Before joining Radboud University I was a Lecturer at the University of Glasgow in the School of Social and Political Science and prior to that a postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Methodology at the London School of Economics and Political Science. I continue to hold a Visiting Fellow Position in both the Department of Methodology and the Latin America and Caribbean Centre at the LSE.

In my work I am interested on urban issues in Colombia and gendered resistance to multiple forms of violence and urban inequalities/ challenges.

In my research I draw on feminist, anti-racist and post-colonial theories and push the boundaries of collaboration and (remote) participatory research designs, focusing on (re)conceptualising gendered urban challenges in Colombia. Building on cutting-edge methods of using audio-visual digital methods (e.g., film and video) I co-produce knowledge on gendered urban inequalities with displaced women in Medellin and Bogota. In particular I contribute to new understandings about women’s resistance to multiple forms of violence, activism and their negotiation of their urban futures in contexts and times of crisis.

Additionally, I aim to improve our knowledge and understanding about the spatial inequalities within urban space and how women and young people can enhance their social conditions in cities. Here, I particularly focus on how insecurity, socio-spatial mobility and the build environment reinforce urban challenges and inequalities.
Methodologically I am a participatory (action) researcher and co-produce knowledge with my participants. I combine traditional qualitative research methods (interviews, focus groups and observations) with participatory (visual) methods such as mapping, guided tours, filming and photography