Dr Paulo Pires Pepe is Lecturer in Humanities at the Interdisciplinary Institute for the Humanities (IIH), University of East Anglia. As an interdisciplinary scholar, Paulo works across the humanities and area studies, examining how gender, sexuality, and decolonial practices shape cultural expression, community activism, and knowledge production in the Global South. His research lies at the intersection of queer theory, decolonial methodologies, and social media, with a strong commitment to inclusive and equitable approaches to research and teaching.

Paulo is Principal Investigator of the ORIGEM Project, an arts-based, decolonial Participatory Action Research (PAR) initiative developed in collaboration with Professor Thea Pitman (University of Leeds) and Indigenous LGBTQIA+ communities in Northeastern Brazil. ORIGEM explores how creative and collaborative audiovisual practices can enhance visibility, wellbeing, and social acceptance for Indigenous gender and sexual minorities.

His publications include the monograph Do Pop ao Teatro de Rua: Revoluções Ibéricas de Género em António Variações e José Pérez Ocaña (2017) and the co-edited volume Beyond Binaries: Sex, Sexuality and Gender in the Lusophone World (2019). He has published in New Area Studies, Arte & Crítica, and edited collections with Routledge and Peter Lang. Paulo’s research has been supported by the AHRC and the University of East Anglia.

At UEA, Paulo teaches across the BA Liberal Arts and the MA Gender Studies programmes, with expertise in queer theory, decolonial approaches to culture and society, and inclusive pedagogies. He is Course Director for the MA Gender Studies since January 2025 and Co-Chair of the UEA Pride Network (2023–2025). Paulo is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and welcomes supervision and collaboration in the areas of gender and sexuality studies, queer and decolonial theory, media and cultural studies, and area studies.

If you are considering a research collaboration, PhD or postdoc, I am happy working on/with projects related to:

• Queer and Decolonial Knowledge Production; including ethics, creative methodologies, and cross-cultural research design

• Gender and Sexuality; including queer and trans experiences, the (re)production of gender norms, and cultural understandings of identity and belonging

• Digital and Media Cultures; especially the role of social media and audiovisual practices in activism, resistance, and visibility

• Indigenous and Global South Studies; with a focus on community-based research, decolonial perspectives, and intercultural dialogue

• Cultural Politics and Representation; exploring how art, literature, and performance function as transformative and emancipatory practices

Paulo’s research explores how gender, sexuality, and decolonial thought intersect within cultural, digital, and transnational contexts. His work considers how queer and creative practices reimagine belonging, resistance, and knowledge production across postcolonial and diasporic settings. He is particularly interested in:

• Queer and decolonial approaches to culture and representation

• Digital and social media as spaces of activism and identity formation

• Indigenous and Global South knowledge systems

• Cultural and artistic practices as tools for social transformation

• Inclusive and creative pedagogies in higher education

• Course Director MA Gender Studies (since Jan 2025)
• Study Abroad Coordinator
• Co-Chair of Pride Network at UEA (until Jan 2025)