Maritime Studies Comprehensive Project: Bridging Atlantic

This project examines the evolving challenges and strategic transformations affecting maritime security and ocean governance in the Atlantic space, with particular attention to the South Atlantic and its connections to wider transatlantic dynamics. The research adopts an interdisciplinary and multidimensional approach that combines maritime security studies, international relations, governance analysis, technology studies, and critical infrastructure perspectives to better understand contemporary maritime risks and patterns of cooperation.
The project focuses on the analysis of illicit trafficking networks, maritime crime, critical maritime infrastructures, digital and technological vulnerabilities, and the interaction between security, sustainability, and development in the maritime domain. Special emphasis is placed on how emerging technologies, maritime domain awareness systems, interagency coordination mechanisms, and international regulatory frameworks are reshaping maritime governance and security practices across the Atlantic.
A core objective of the project is to investigate how different state and non-state actors respond to complex maritime challenges through formal and informal cooperation mechanisms at bilateral, regional, and multilateral levels. The research therefore explores both macro-level geopolitical dynamics and micro-level institutional interactions, examining the role of governments, navies, coast guards, international organizations, research institutions, and maritime agencies in shaping governance responses and security architectures.
The project also seeks to contribute to comparative and evidence-based research on maritime cooperation by promoting academic exchange, collaborative analysis, and knowledge diffusion among Atlantic stakeholders from both the Global North and the Global South. Through research forums, policy dialogue initiatives, mapping projects, and interdisciplinary publications, the project encourages critical reflection on maritime governance models, strategic asymmetries, and emerging security trends in the Atlantic region. The project contributes to a deeper understanding of contemporary maritime security dynamics and their implications for international cooperation, sustainable ocean governance, and transatlantic relations in an increasingly complex strategic environment, integrating empirical research, policy analysis, and interdisciplinary theoretical approaches,

2026-2027

- Mobility: Visiting Researcher at the Graduate Program on Maritime Studies (Brazilian Naval War College) - as part of the PRODEFESA V on Blue Amazon funded by CAPES.
- Seas Commission - Portuguese Speaking Countries Community (CPLP): Oceans Conference Workshop
- Funding: Pro-Defesa VI - Blue Amazon (2024-2029)
- BISA 2027: Oceans Governance, TOC and Ports (UK)
- Workshop Stellenbosch University (South Africa)
- EISA 2026 - European International Studies Association - Lisbon Conference
- Paris Defense Forum + Paris Peace Forum

Delivered Outputs:
- 2024: Visiting Professor (Sabrina Medeiros) at NDU, William Perry Center (2024), Washington, DC, Maritime Security Course.
- Seas Commission - 2024/2025 Reports
- Events: TOC and Maritime Security (OT-24 - Global Initiative); BISA 2025 Belfast; Paris Peace Forum on LAWS regulation; Digital and Cyber Maritime Crime Dimensions (Madrid), Paris Defense Forum 2025; IDN Gulf of Guinea Event