About Me

I am a lecturer in sociology and criminology at Kristianstad University and Ph.D. candidate in social anthropology at Lund University, Sweden. My dissertation looks at the exchange of sexual services for payment through the analysis of public attitudes, policy, and the client perspective, In addition to sex work related issues, my research interests include sexuality and social norms more broadly, as well as topics such as romance fraud, rights, and migration. 

My scholarly articles have appeared in The Journal of Sex Research, Sexuality Research and Social Policy, Sexuality & Culture, Canadian Journal of Political Science, and edited books. 

I have  been involved in several EU-funded research projects on human trafficking, including Demand-side Measure Against Trafficking (DemandAT) and INSigHT - Building capacity to deal with human trafficking and transit routes in Nigeria, Italy, Sweden, for which I have has carried out extensive field research in Sweden, Germany, and New Zealand. I have also worked as a consultant on human trafficking policy at the United Nation’s Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), where I developed a global database on member states’ responses to human trafficking. 

I became interested in researching the exchange of sexual services for payment during my time working in Perugia, Italy, in a harm-reduction project. We worked to secure the rights of street-based sex workers, mainly migrants, including their access to healthcare and information on immigration and prostitution legislation. I value collaboration between researchers and other societal actors, such as sex workers' rights advocates. 

Awards & Grants

• Iuav University of Venice Post-graduate Scholarship, 2019.
• MIM Master Essay Award, 2014.
• Centre for European Studies Stipend, Lund University, 2012.
• Minor Field Study Stipend from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), 2012.

Conference Presentations & Invited Lectures

• "Il sistema di protezione e prevenzione per le persone vittime di tratta in Svezia: un confronto con l'Italia", Università Iuav di Venezia, 2020.
• “The Swedish Approach to the Sex Trade – Repression & Its Repercussions”, Department of Development Studies, University of Vienna, 2019.
• “Trafficking, the Sex Trade & the Problems of the So-Called Swedish Model”, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, 2018.
• "Repressive, Restrictive or Integrative? A Comparative Analysis of Sex Trade Policies in Germany, Sweden & New Zealand", Institute for Advanced Studies, Vienna, 2017.
• "Sweden & the Safety of People Selling Sexual Services - Implications of a Repressive Policy", Leipzig University, 2017.
• "Displaced Demand? Swedish Clients Navigating around Criminalisation", Aalborg University, 2017.
• "Researching Sex Work in Sweden: Lessons from the Field", Department of Gender Studies, Lund University, 2015.

Professional Memberships

• Gruppo Italiano di Ricerca su Prostituzione e Lavoro Sessuale (GRIPS), Italian research group on prostitution and sex work, 2019-present.
• Forskning om Sex Mot Ersättning (FOSME), Swedish research network on sex against remuneration, 2016-present.
• Comparing European Prostitution Policies: Understanding Scales and Cultures of Governance (PROSPOL), international research network, COST Action IS1209, 2013-2017.