The project “Gangs, Gangsters, and Ganglands: Towards a Global Comparative Ethnography” (GANGS) aims to develop a systematic comparative investigation of global gang dynamics, to better understand why they emerge, how they evolve over time, whether they are associated with particular urban configurations, how and why individuals join gangs, and what impact this has on their potential futures. It draws on ethnographic research carried out in Nicaragua, South Africa, and France, adopting an explicitly tripartite focus on “Gangs”, “Gangsters”, and “Ganglands” in order to better explore the interplay between group, individual, and contextual factors. The first will consider the organisational dynamics of gangs, the second will focus on individu...