Editorial: The politics of journal publishing

Mattias De Backer, is postdoctoral researcher at Vrije Universiteit Brussel and KU Leuven, travelling between criminology, sociology and geography. He holds a Master in Philosophy (UGent) and Urban Studies (VUB), and a PhD in Criminology (VUB). Mattias works on topics related to youth, the city and migration and has an interest in creative/participatory methods and poststructuralist philosophy. Mattias is editor-in-chief of the open-access journal Criminological Encounters, has published the books Radicalisering: donkere spiegel van een kwetsbare samenleving (2020) and Order and Conflict in Public Space (2016). A new edited collection titled Refugee Youth: Migration, Justice and Public Space is due to be published in 2023.

Lucas Melgaço, is Associate Professor in the Department of Criminology at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB). His main scientific interests are in the domains of urban criminology, surveillance technologies, policing, public spaces and public order. He has worked on translating and introducing the theories of the Brazilian geographer Milton Santos to the English-speaking community. Lucas is co-editor of the books “Protests in the Information Age: Social Movements, Digital Practices and Surveillance” (Routledge, 2018), “Milton Santos: A Pioneer in Critical Geography from the Global South”(Springer, 2017) and “Order and Conflict in Public Space” (Routledge, 2016). He is one of the editors-in-chief of Criminological Encounters.