Dr. Stef Pukallus

Dr. Stef Pukallus is Senior Lecturer in Public Communication and Civil Development at the University of Sheffield (UK). She is also the founding Chair of the Hub for the Study of Hybrid Communication in Peacebuilding (HCPB) and in this position, also collaborates closely with the Centre for Freedom of the Media (CFOM). Stef’s research interest is the role that public communication (widely conceived to include the visual and performative arts) plays in the building and strengthening as well as the diminishment and polarisation of civil societies worldwide, both emergent and mature. She has published three single authored monographs – the most recent in 2022 with Palgrave ‘Communication in Peacebuilding. Civil wars, civility and safe spaces’ and multiple papers addressing her interests in various ways and contexts. She’s currently working on her fourth book which is provisionally entitled ‘Aural democracy. Civil society, listening and judgment’ and focuses on how different types of listening contributes to judgment formation about the boundaries of civil society, of who belongs and who doesn’t as well as how listeners’ individual perspectives and emotions influence the listening process and the judgments made. For Stef, listening is an essential part of democratic and communicative societies – one which has long been understudied. She has also consulted for the European Commission, the European Parliament and the United Nations.