Stef Pukallus

Professor Stef Pukallus, of the University of Sheffield's School of Information, Journalism and Communication, is a leading scholar in public communication and civil development. She currently serves as the Faculty Director of Postgraduate Research and Academic Director of the Global Listening Centre.

• BA (Potsdam/Paris XII)
• MA (Paris III)
• MA (Paris XII)
• PhD (Sheffield)
• Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA)

Stef’s research explores the role of public communication in shaping civil society, with a focus on communicative peacebuilding, hate speech regulation, and media’s impact in post-conflict settings. Her recent work emphasizes the importance of discursive civility and safe spaces in fostering peaceful cooperation.

Her publications (2015–2024) span themes like hate speech, media in post-conflict societies, and EU communication policy. She has contributed extensively to both peer-reviewed journals and Routledge Handbook chapters.

• ESRC Impact Prize (2021)
• Teaching Excellence in Social Sciences award (2016-17)
• Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy

Stef has led or co-led grants from the British Council, Newton RCUK-Colciencias, and European Commission, including the award-winning Improbable Dialogues project. She supervises PhD students studying hate speech prevention and religion's role in peacebuilding, and co-founded the East Africa Peace Ambassadors network.