Mathieu Couttenier

Mathieu Couttenier serves as Professor of Economics at Ecole Normale Superieure de Lyon and Head of the Center for Economic Research on Governance, Inequality and Conflict (CERGIC). He is additionally a Research Fellow at the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) specializing in International Trade, Regional Economics, and Political Economy. His interdisciplinary research spans political economy, economic development, civil conflicts, natural resources, and media dynamics, with significant contributions to understanding conflict determinants and resource-driven socio-economic impacts.

His academic trajectory includes a PhD in Economics from University Paris 1 Sorbonne (2011), followed by positions as Assistant Professor at the University of Geneva and post-doctoral researcher at the University of Lausanne. He has held visiting appointments at Stanford University, Sciences Po Paris, and the University of Bologna, building expertise in spatial conflict analysis and resource economics.

• PhD in Economics, University Paris 1 Sorbonne (2011)
• Assistant Professor, University of Geneva
• Post-doctoral researcher, University of Lausanne
• Visiting researcher: Stanford University, Sciences Po Paris, University of Bologna

Couttenier's research program centers on microeconomic analyses of conflict diffusion, examining how income shocks, climate variability, and natural resource extraction influence violence patterns across space and time. His work integrates economic modeling with geospatial techniques to investigate resource-conflict linkages and local development impacts, particularly in African contexts.

His publication record reveals a consistent methodological evolution toward spatial and quantitative approaches, with recent work employing deep learning for geospatial mining detection and network analysis for conflict cost measurement. Key thematic threads connect natural resource governance, media effects on political behavior, and climate-conflict interactions across his American Economic Review, Journal of EEA, and Economic Journal publications.

Major scientific recognition includes:

• ERC Consolidator Grant (2023) for socio-economic impact research on African artisanal mining
• Ongoing CEPR Research Fellowship status

As head of CERGIC and EMR CNRS 5001 Equality and Conflict, Couttenier directs research teams investigating governance structures and inequality drivers. His current ERC-funded project will conduct field studies on artisanal mining communities in Africa, aiming to produce evidence-based policy recommendations for sustainable resource management and conflict prevention through interdisciplinary collaboration.