Marie-Claude Maurel

Marie-Claude Maurel is a Chair Professor of Geography at the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales (EHESS) in Paris, France, and a member of the Centre d’études des mondes russe, caucasien et centre-européen (CERCEC), a joint CNRS/EHESS research unit. She previously held leadership roles as Director of the Institut Universitaire de France (2010-2013), Director of the French Research Center in Social Sciences (CEFRES) in Prague (2006-2010), and Director of the Division of Humanities and Social Sciences at the CNRS (1997-2001). Earlier in her career, she served as a Full Professor, Associate Professor, and Assistant Professor at Paul Valéry University in Montpellier (1970-1997).

• Academic Leadership: Director of multiple institutes (IUF, CEFRES, CNRS Division).
• Research Focus: Post-socialist rural transformations, land ownership, and local governance in Central and Eastern Europe.

Her career spans over four decades, with significant contributions to understanding agrarian decollectivization, property regimes, and the socio-political evolution of Eastern European rural societies during systemic transitions.

• Awards & Honors: CNRS Bronze Medal (1990), František Palacky Medal (2010), Trnka Medal (2012), and distinctions in the Ordre National du Mérite and Légion d’honneur.
• Academic Service: Panel member for European Research Council grants (2011, 2013, 2015), evaluator for Portugal’s FCT Foundation, and expert group participant for Lithuania’s Research Council.