Research Associate in Latin American Studies

The role

Applications are invited to fill a Postdoctoral Research Associate role in Latin American Studies. The post is part of a Leverhulme Trust funded projected on “Women Walkers in Latin America” led by Professor Matthew Brown. ‘Women Walkers in Latin America’ will investigate and analyse women’s walking experiences in Latin America from independence in the nineteenth century to the present day. Using a unique combination of cross-disciplinary methodologies – including archival, cultural studies, and peripatetic ethnographic methods – the project will address how, where and why women have walked in the region and what their heterogeneous pedestrianist practices mean to them. Women there are now walking more than ever as a means of transit, leisure and activism, while there has been a reciprocal upsurge in interest in walking’s potential as a collective, embodied expression of feminism. Given this public and political momentum, as well as the regional ascendency of the far right under which gender rights have come under greater threat, now is an opportune moment to examine women’s pedestrianist practices within a longer, more comprehensive cultural history of walking women in Latin America, which has not yet been written. ‘Women Walkers in Latin America’ pursues new historical and theoretical understandings of walking in urban, rural and border geographies, and it aims to establish the value of its diverse modalities for women’s history and politics in modern Latin America. 

What will you be doing?

The successful candidate will carry out individual research into women walkers in leisure, tourism, and visual culture in Latin America, as well as contributing to the project’s broad investigation of women walkers through gathering written and visual materials in Spanish and Portuguese from archives in the region. They will be responsible for building a network of - as well as liaising and conducting walking interviews with - women walkers and walkers’ groups in at least two of the project’s case study countries, which include Argentina, Chile, Brazil and Mexico. They will also contribute to the project’s outcomes by engaging in an interdisciplinary dialogue with fellow members of the research team, which includes Professor Claire Lindsay (UCL), Dr. Liesbeth Francois (University of Cambridge) and Professor Patricia Anderson (Universidad de Belgrano), at regular team meetings and at seminars and conferences.

You should apply if

The PDRA will hold a PhD in a relevant subject area (e.g. Latin American cultural studies or history), be fluent in Spanish and/or Portuguese, and have some archival and/or fieldwork experience in Latin America. The successful candidate will have a record of peer-reviewed publications or other research outputs. They will be expected to demonstrate an openness to interdisciplinarity and collaboration and to undertake any training necessary for the successful carrying out of project duties, which may be reviewed and/or be subject to amendment in consultation with the post holder.

IMPORTANT: 

You must read the Further Particulars document to learn more about the project and required application materials. Please ensure you read the document before sending email enquiries.

Additional information

Contract type: Open-ended with 3 years fixed-funding from 01/09/2026

This role is only available full-time, and you will be expected to be based in Bristol for the duration of the employment (except during fieldwork).

The PDRA will be expected to start on 1 September 2026.

For informal queries please contact: Professor Matthew Brown (matthew.brown@bristol.ac.uk)

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