Overview

I am a Lecturer in Geography at the University of Exeter. I joined Exeter in September 2022. Before this, I worked for three years as a Lecturer in Geography at the University of East Anglia. I hold a PhD from the London School of Economics. 

My research explores the memory of political violence in Argentina. 

Qualifications

PhD, Sociology: London School of Economics

MSc, IR (with Distinction): University of Bristol

BA (Hons), Geography: University of Nottingham

Research group links

• Cultural and Historical Geographies

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Research

Research interests

My research has to do with the cultural memory of political violence in Argentina. I explore how different groups compete to inscribe the memory of forced disappearances in the landscape in order to shape the type of politics that is possible in Argentina's ongoing transition to democracy. 

Most of my research considers the memory of violence in Argentina following the 'Dirty War' of the 1970s and 80s, but I have also pursued these interests in relation to Chile after Pinochet and post-WWII Germany. 

Research projects

I am currently trying to think through the relationship between place, memory and mourning. My first paper, published in the journal Memory Studies, considered this relationship through a study of mourning practices among visitors in the memorial park in Buenos Aires. My second, published with Political Geography, explored the crucial role played by the relatives of the 'disappeared' in withholding the temptation to mourn. My third paper, currently in progress, will take up these ideas through a comparison of two sites of memory.

Research networks

I am a member of the Cultural and Historical Geographies reading group, and the Space, Power and Politics reading group at Exeter. 

I am a member of the Memory Studies Association, Royal Geographical Society (with IBG), and Society for Latin American Studies and have presented at several MSA, RGS and SLAS conferences. 

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Teaching

I contribute to the following modules at Exeter:

GEO1106 Geographies of Global Change

GEO1309 Study Skills

GEO1316 Concepts in Geography

GEO2311 Ideas in Human Geography

GEO2132 Global Urban Futures

GEO2327b Geographies of Justice

GEO2329 Geographies of Consumption

GEO3311/12 Dissertation

GEO3148 Berlin Field Course

GEOM130 Culture, Creativity and Practice

GEOM132 Space, Power & Politics

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Office Hours:

Monday: 11:30-12:30 

Wednesday: 16:00 to 17:00

Office hours by appointment. To book an appointment please email: d.m.james2@exeter.ac.uk 

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