Dr Karina Garcia-Reyes

• Qualifications:PhD Politics MA Latin American Interdisciplinary Studies MBA BA International Relations
• Position:Lecturer in Criminology
• Department:HAS - Health and Social Sciences
• Telephone:+441179656261
• Email:Karina.Garcia-Reyes@uwe.ac.uk
• Social media:

About me

Dr. Karina García-Reyes earned a PhD in Politics from the University of Bristol in 2018, with a distinguished thesis that won the “Best Thesis of the Faculty” award in 2019 by the Faculty of Social Sciences and Law. The research, which drew on in-depth interviews conducted in Mexico, analysed the lived experiences of 33 drug trafficking criminals, examining their perceptions of crimes such as murder, kidnapping, and torture. This pioneering work has contributed significantly to the understanding of the social and discursive dimensions of organised crime.

Dr. García-Reyes’s research has been widely disseminated, influencing both academic discourse and public policy. In 2021, she published the critically acclaimed book Morir es un alivio [When Dying is a Relief], which draws on the findings from their doctoral research and was specifically crafted to engage both the general public and policymakers in Mexico and the United States.

In addition to her significant research contributions, Karina García-Reyes has written extensively on and is actively involved in discussions about the methodological challenges of researching violent and illicit topics. She focuses on the ethical, practical, and theoretical complexities involved in such research, offering insights into how scholars can navigate these sensitive areas while maintaining academic rigor and integrity.

Dr. García-Reyes has fifteen years of teaching experience in both Mexico and the UK. She has been invited as a guest lecturer at several prestigious institutions across Europe and North America. In addition, she has contributed to numerous academic journals and conferences, with her work continuing to shape contemporary debates on global drug policies and their socio-political implications.

She is currently working with researchers from Mexico and the University of Oxford on an interdisciplinary project that uses new technologies to help local governments and search groups locate clandestine graves in Mexico.

OTHER RELEVANT EXPERIENCE:

Dr. García-Reyes has significant writing experience, with six articles published in The Conversation. She also worked as an editor for the Chilean newspaper CIPER in 2021. In 2022 and 2023, she was invited to contribute as an expert author to Jane's Defence Magazine

PODCAST AND VIDEOS:

Drug War Myths, part 1: the Tax Justice Network podcast, the Taxcast - Tax Justice Network

Los Plebes - Young people working for Mexican Cartels

(5) Mexico: Alternatives to address violence - YouTube

La guerra contra el narco nunca debió existir; es una guerra destinada a fallar: Karina García

RESEARCH INTERESTS AND SUPERVISION:

She is keen to supervise topics related to Transnational Organised Crime, Violent Crime and Offender Studies.  Particularly interested in the following topics:

• Global Drug Policies
• Drug Trafficking Violence
• Masculinities and Crime
• Dissapearances and forced dissapearances
• Citizen Led Forensics

In terms of methodology, she is also keen to supervise graduate research drawing on qualitative methodology, especially:

• Discourse Analysis
• Grounded Theory and
• Life story Interviews

Area of expertise

Offender Studies, Transnational Organised Crime, Drug Policy, Masculinities and Crime, Qualitative Research Methods.

Publications

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