Rate Professor Rachel Hughes

Professional Summary: Professor Rachel Hughes

Professor Rachel Hughes is a distinguished academic at the University of Melbourne, Australia, with a focus on cultural geography, memory studies, and post-conflict societies. Her work critically examines the intersections of memory, justice, and visual culture in contexts of historical trauma and transitional justice, particularly in Cambodia and beyond.

Academic Background and Degrees

Professor Hughes holds advanced degrees in geography and cultural studies. While specific details of her undergraduate education are not widely publicized, she earned her PhD in Geography from the University of Melbourne, where her research focused on memory and post-genocide landscapes.

Research Specializations and Academic Interests

Her research specializes in:

• Cultural geography and memory studies
• Transitional justice and post-conflict societies, with a focus on Cambodia
• Visual culture, photography, and the politics of representation
• Museums, memorials, and the spatial dimensions of remembrance

Career History and Appointments

Professor Hughes has built a robust academic career at the University of Melbourne, where she currently serves as an Associate Professor in the School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences. Her career trajectory includes:

• Associate Professor, School of Geography, University of Melbourne (current)
• Previous roles as Lecturer and Senior Lecturer at the University of Melbourne
• Research affiliations with international projects on memory and justice in Southeast Asia

Major Awards, Fellowships, and Honors

While specific awards are not extensively documented in public sources, Professor Hughes has been recognized through competitive research grants and fellowships, including:

• Funding from the Australian Research Council (ARC) for projects on memory and visual culture in post-conflict settings
• International collaborations and visiting fellowships in memory studies networks

Key Publications

Professor Hughes has authored and co-edited numerous impactful works in her field. Key publications include:

• 'Memory and Forgetting in Post-Genocide Cambodia' (Book Chapter, 2016)
• 'Geographies of Transitional Justice' (Co-authored Article, 2011, published in Progress in Human Geography)
• 'Written in Stone: Law, Landscape and Memory in Cambodia' (Book, forthcoming/related works published in journals)
• Multiple articles in leading journals such as Cultural Geographies and Environment and Planning D: Society and Space

Influence and Impact on Academic Field

Professor Hughes is widely regarded as a leading scholar in cultural geography and memory studies, particularly for her pioneering work on the spatial and visual dimensions of memory in post-conflict Cambodia. Her research on the Khmer Rouge genocide and its memorialization has influenced interdisciplinary approaches to transitional justice, inspiring scholars in geography, history, and cultural studies. Her work bridges academic theory with real-world applications in heritage and museum studies.

Public Lectures, Committees, and Editorial Contributions

Professor Hughes actively contributes to her academic community through:

• Delivering keynote addresses and public lectures on memory, justice, and visual culture at international conferences
• Serving on editorial boards and as a peer reviewer for prominent journals in cultural geography and memory studies
• Participation in university committees at the University of Melbourne focused on research and curriculum development in geography