Olivier Walther
Associate Professor | University of Florida
Gainesville, FL, UNITED STATES
Olivier Walther focuses on cross-border trade and transnational political violence in North and West Africa.
Biography
Olivier Walther focuses on cross-border trade and transnational political violence in North and West Africa using spatial and network approaches. He is an assistant professor of geography in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
Areas of Expertise (8)
Africa
Borders
Cities
Conflict
Regional Integration
Sahel
Security
Terrorism
Articles (3)
Mapping the Changing Structure of Conflict Networks in North and West Africa
African SecurityOlivier J. Walther, et. al
2021-11-08
Contemporary conflict in North and West Africa is characterized by a high degree of social and political complexity. Hundreds of rebel groups and extremist organizations are involved in a shifting series of alliances and rivalries with regional governments and with each other. These changing relationships can be represented as a social network that provides both opportunities and constraints to violent organizations.
Introducing the Spatial Conflict Dynamics Indicator of Political Violence
Terrorism and Political ViolenceOlivier J. Walther, et. al
2021-09-02
While the location of violent events and their propensity to cluster together in space is increasingly well known, a deeper exploration of their spatiality and spatial evolution over time remains an emerging frontier in “Big Data”-driven conflict studies. The new Spatial Conflict Dynamics indicator (SCDi) introduced in this article contributes to fill this gap, by measuring both the intensity and spatial concentration of political violence at the subnational level.
Contextualizing the Relationship Between Borderlands and Political Violence: A Dynamic Space-Time Analysis in North and West Africa
Journal of Borderlands StudiesSteven M. Radil, et. al
2021-08-25
This paper examines the role of borderlands in contemporary armed conflicts in North and West Africa. Borderlands are important to the legitimacy and security of states because of their association with sovereignty and the provision of order. They are also essential to efforts by non-state groups to bypass or challenge the same. However, not all borderlands are the same and the evolution of conflict is a complex and dynamic process.
Social