Valerio Simoni

Valerio Simoni is a Visiting Professor at the Department of Anthropology and Sociology and serves as Faculty Lead for the Applied Research Projects' part of the Interdisciplinary Master (MINT) at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva. He also holds positions as Senior Research Fellow at the Global Migration Centre and Research Associate at the Albert Hirschman Centre for Democracy. Simoni joined the Institute in 2014 after completing his PhD at Leeds Metropolitan University and has established himself as a leading scholar in the anthropology of tourism and migration, with a particular focus on Cuba and transnational connections.

Simoni's research spans three main theoretical areas: the economy and its margins, the transformations of intimacy, and the politics of mobility. His work examines how tourism and migration intersect to shape identities, moralities, and social relationships, with particular attention to how ideals of a 'good life' are articulated and reassessed in contexts of crisis and migration. His approach combines rigorous ethnographic methods with theoretical innovation to explore complex social phenomena.

Analysis of Simoni's recent publications reveals a consistent focus on the intersections between tourism, migration, and identity formation, particularly in Caribbean contexts. His work demonstrates a progression from examining tourism encounters in Cuba to exploring broader questions of return migration, ethical frameworks, and the political dimensions of mobility. There's a clear trajectory from studying localized tourism economies to investigating transnational connections and their implications for understanding global mobility patterns.

• Nelson Graburn Book Prize (American Anthropological Association-ATIG) for 'Tourism and Informal Encounters in Cuba' (2016)
• Principal Investigator for ERC Starting Grant project 'Returning to a Better Place' (BETLIV) (2018-2023)

Simoni has extensive teaching experience across multiple languages (English, French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, and Catalan) at BA, MA, and PhD levels. His courses address topics in research design and ethnographic writing; intimacy, gender and sexuality; ethics and morality; the politics of culture, identity, and heritage; and critical approaches to mobility and migration. As Faculty Lead for Applied Research Projects since 2023, he partners with major international organizations including IOM, ILO, OHCHR, UNWTO, and Save the Children, mentoring students in policy-relevant research aligned with UN Sustainable Development Goals.

His current research project 'Moving Politics' explores the nexus between mobilities and migration, digital media, and global political imaginaries and movements, building on his ERC-funded work to examine how digital technologies reshape political engagement among migrant communities and connect to broader global movements.