Christina Jerne

Christina Jerne is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Copenhagen, Faculty of Social Sciences. Her research explores economic diversity, focusing on informal, illicit, and alternative economies such as organized crime, gangs, anti-mafia activism, and slow-living movements. She is affiliated with the Centre for Global Criminology and leads research within the project 'RE-ANIMATE: Designs for Life-Enhancing Economies in Anthropological Perspective'.

• BA in Political Science and International Relations, Universitá di Pisa
• MSc in Human Security, Aarhus University
• PhD in Experience Economy, Aarhus University

Her research interests include organized crime, political economy, social movements, diverse economies, and post-conflict livelihoods. She employs theoretical frameworks such as affect theory, phenomenology, feminist political economy, and action research, with fieldwork conducted in Italy, Denmark, Sweden, and Uganda. Her current work examines de-urbanization and slow-living in rural Italy, analyzing how individuals leaving urban environments reshape rural economies.

The recent scholarly output of Christina Jerne reflects a strong focus on the intersections of crime, economy, and resistance. Her publications explore anti-mafia activism, the branding of rural revival, telework policy, and the moral economies of organized crime. Collectively, her work contributes to critical understandings of alternative economies, challenging normative assumptions about productivity, legality, and value.

She has received prestigious awards including the Carlsberg Post-doctoral Scholarship and the Julie Graham Community Economies Research Fund Fellowship.

• Carlsberg Post-doctoral scholarship
• Julie Graham Community Economies Research Fund Fellowship

Christina Jerne actively supervises and teaches in anthropology, emphasizing critical approaches to economy and politics. She also works as a consultant in experiential design for museums, heritage sites, and public spaces. Her collaborations include work with the Centre for Global Criminology and interdisciplinary research networks.

She is affiliated with the Centre for Global Criminology, which conducts ethnographically grounded research on transnational crime and criminal economies. Her work often bridges academic research with public engagement, as seen in media contributions and policy consultations.