Valerio Simoni is Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Social Sciences, University of Lisbon. His research, as social anthropologist, examines the moral, economic, affective, and political dimensions of transnational mobility. Thematically, his work has brought together international migration and tourism, linking different epistemic traditions to develop novel theoretical approaches closely informed by his ethnographic work and empirical findings. His main regions of expertise are Latin America and Southern Europe.

He obtained his PhD in Social Anthropology from Leeds Metropolitan University (2009) after graduating from the University of Neuchâtel (2004). Following postdoctoral research in Portugal (2010–2014, FCT Fellow, CRIA–ISCTE) and Switzerland (2014–2017, SNSF Fellow, Geneva Graduate Institute), he led the European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant project Returning to a Better Place (2018–2023), exploring how experiences of migration and crisis shape moral evaluations of what makes for a “good life”. He is currently Principal Investigator of the ERC Proof of Concept project Conciliating a Bearable Life, which develops participatory action research on cross-border mobilities in Ecuador.

His publications, including the award-winning monograph Tourism and Informal Encounters in Cuba (American Anthropological Association–ATIG Book Prize), contribute to anthropological and social science debates on morality, ethics, intimacy, difference, and value in contexts marked by mobility and inequality. Building on ethnographic research, his ongoing projects investigate how digital media and political critique intertwine in cross-border mobilities between Latin America and Southern Europe, and how anthropological insights can inform public debate and policies promoting inclusion and combating vulnerability.

Alongside academic research, he has coordinated outreach initiatives linking research, art, and memory—most notably with Geneva’s Bureau de l’Intégration et de la Citoyenneté (BIC)—and collaborated with international and non-governmental organizations such as the ILO, UNHCR, IOM, WFP, Save the Children, and UNI Global Union to bridge anthropological inquiry with applied and policy-oriented perspectives. A dedicated teacher and mentor, he has extensive experience designing and delivering university courses on research design and ethnographic writing, intimacy, gender and sexuality, ethics and morality, and the politics of culture and heritage—reflecting the wide scope of his expertise and engagement with contemporary social challenges.

Area of Activity: Social Anthropology

Keywords: Mobility, Ethics and Morality, Economy, Intimacy, Ethnography