Simon Granovsky-larsen

Biography

Simon Granovsky-Larsen research examines Guatemala’s post-conflict transition, especially in relation to ongoing political violence and the efforts of social movements to transform the country. This work is based on more than ten years of collaboration with grassroots groups and human rights defenders in Guatemala. Simon Granovsky-Larsen current research project, “The Militarization of Mega-Development in Guatemala,” maps and theorizes the repressive model used to enforce large-scale extractive projects (mining, hydroelectricity, agro-fuel, etc.), with a focus on the interaction between private companies and non-state armed groups. I also have two book manuscripts in advanced stages. Dealing with Peace: The Guatemalan Campesino Movement and the Post-Conflict Neoliberal State, which is currently under review, looks at how the Guatemalan campesino (peasant) social movement participated in the country's peace process and neoliberal transition beginning in the mid-1990s. The second book, Organized Violence and the Expansion of Capital, which I am editing together with Dawn Paley (Universidad de Puebla), is an interdisciplinary collection of research on violence in contemporary Latin America.

Research Interest

Simon Granovsky-Larsen research interests: Critical development studies, Latin American politics, Guatemala, Central America, social movements, political violence, post-conflict transitions, extractive industries.