Staff

Tom DecorteTom Decorte

Prof. dr. Tom Decorte Prof. Dr. Tom Decorte (°26/08/1969) obtained a Master's degree in Criminology (Catholic University of Leuven, 1992) and the Qualified Teacher's Degree for Secondary Education (Catholic University of Leuven, 1993). He also studied theatre sciences and obtained the Special Certificate in Social and Cultural Anthropology (Catholic University of Leuven, 1994).
From 1992 to 1998 Tom Decorte was member of the research group Police and Judicial Organization (director: Prof. Dr. Em. Lode Van Outrive), at the Department of Penal Law, Penal Procedure and Criminology at the Catholic University of Leuven. At first he was teaching assistant, and from 1994 to 1995 he was a fulltime research fellow, working on two studies on private policing and fundamental civil rights.
From 1996 to 1998 he worked on an ethnographic study among cocaine users in Antwerp, that would become the basis for his doctoral dissertation in criminology, titled 'Informal control mechanisms among cocaine and crack users in the metropolitan area of Antwerp (Belgium)' (Catholic University of Leuven, 1999). Supervisors were Prof. Dr. Em. Lode van Outrive en Prof. Dr. Joris Casselman. Tom Decorte attended specialized training courses for drug researchers in Zürich (European Addiction Training Institute, 1996) and Aarhus (Nordic Council for Alcohol and Drug Research, 1998).
Since October, 1st 2000 Tom Decorte is appointed professor in the field of criminology, at the Department of Criminology, Penal Law and Social Law of the Faculty of Law, University of Ghent. In September 2002 he founded the Institute for Social Drug Research (ISD), a research group that wants to play a prominent part in the social scientific collection and transfer of knowledge regarding different aspects of the use of drugs, drug trafficking and drug policies from a social scientific perspective and a social commitment. Apart from active participation in European and international networks, professor Decorte often gives lectures on different aspects of the drug phenomenon at national and international conferences, guest lectures at Belgian universities, and presentations in schools and other organizations.
He is currently teaching courses in ‘Qualitative Criminological Methods’ (2nd bachelor), ‘Drug phenomena’ (3rd bachelor, partim), ‘Selected issues: drug policy' (Master, partim), 'Selected Issues: Critical Criminology and the Criminal Justice System I and II' (3rd bachelor and Master) and four courses in the Qualified Teacher's Degree for Secondary Education: ‘Teaching Methodology I’, ‘Teaching Methodology II’, ‘Teaching Methodology: practically-oriented seminars’ and the ‘Work placement’.

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Charlotte De KockCDK 2019.JPG

Over the past decade, Charlotte De Kock pushed the field that studies the migration-drug use nexus forwards. This study domain in Flanders found its early roots in the ZEMIV (2008) and PADUMI (2016) research project in which Prof Derluyn and Prof Decorte took the lead. Charlotte’s PhD in turn focussed on 'Equitable substance use treatment for migrants and ethnic minorities'.

MATREMI (2020), ACCESS (2022), DrugInt (2023-2025) and 'Recovery capital among refugees' (2023-2028), were designed and conducted by Charlotte De Kock. She works and worked with funds from the Federal Science Policy, Fedasil and the European Drug and Asylum Agency, among others, on fundamental, practice- and policy-oriented research. Shere recently completed two research projects on professional drug-related needs in the European (EMCDDA & EUAA, 2023) and in the Belgian reception setting (DrugInt). Charlotte published and peer-reviewed extensively in this field (see biblio).

Charlotte is co-lecturer in Qualitative methods in criminology and Critical criminology. She is currently developing the new course ‘Diversity and migration in criminology’.

Charlotte chairs the Diversity Committee of the Faculty of Law & Criminology since 2018. She has been an active board member of the European Xchange Prevention Platform (EMCDDA) since 2018 and is a member of the scientific committee of the European Society for Prevention Research (EUSPR) and Lisbon Addictions. 

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Herman WolfHerman Wolf

Herman Wolf (°02/06/1961) obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Dutch, English and History (Pius X, 1985) and a Master’s degree in Criminology (Vrije Universiteit Brussel, 2004). In his dissertation he explored the added value of public and private partnerships for employment projects aimed at people who experience difficulties in finding a job. Furthermore, Wolf is a fiction and non-fiction writer.

Wolf has an extensive experience in the field. Initially, he worked as an executive for the Sleutel vzw and co-developed accessible actions aimed at drug users in Antwerp. In this same period, he functioned as one of the architects of organized outreach work in Flanders and Brussels and as co-founder/coordinator of Vlastrov vzw (Vlaams straakhoekwerk Overleg). For JeS vzw, he afterwards coordinated the startup and activities for the city youth center De Branderij in Borgerhout. Furthermore, he founded Instant A, a public-private employment mediation organization specified for vulnerable groups , of which he acted as director for ten years. In the following period, he held an intermediary position as managing director within adult education.

Currently, Herman Wolf is a teaching-assistant within the Department of Criminology, Criminal Law and Social Law. For several years now, he is also a teacher at the Karel de Grote-hogeschool within the study field of social work.

Relevant criminological creations:

  • SMACK! (theater play, Fakkeltheater Antwerpen (1993), Théâtre de Poche Brussel (1994));
  • Drugs en Gebruik – duidelijke antwoorden op uw vragen (co-author, Icarus/Standaard uitgeverij, 1994, 1995, 1998);
  • Straathoekwerk: een algemene inleiding (Standaard uitgeverij, 1997);
  • Gettoblaster! (co-author, Manteau, 1999);
  • Het spanningsveld bij de aanpak van de criminaliteit in steden: over vertrouwensagenten en straathoekwerkers met een wapenstok (Panopticon, 1999)
  • GHB! (Theater play, Raamtheater Antwerpen, 2005)
  • Mijn land!Mijn land! De Chocoprince van Tsuide (theater play, ’t Arsenaal Mechelen, 2013)

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Marthe Ongenaert Marthe Ongenaert

Marthe Ongenaert is a researcher and teaching assistant in the Department of Criminology, Criminal and Social Law at Ghent University. She received her master's degree in Criminology in 2018 with high distinction. Her master's thesis focused on the informal and illegal employment of asylum seekers in Flanders.

Since she started at Ghent University in 2018, Marthe has been involved in courses on qualitative research methods, drug phenomena, drug policy and critical criminology. She is also working on a PhD on harmful business practices in the emerging legal cannabis industry. She examines the social and legal dimensions of this rapidly developing industry and explores the potential negative consequences and regulatory challenges associated with the legalization and commercialization of cannabis.

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Frédérique BawinFrédérique Bawin

Frédérique Bawin (°27/11/1992) obtained the degree of Master in Criminological Sciences (UGent) in 2015 with the highest distinction. For her Master's thesis, she conducted exploratory research on environmental justice in Belgium.

From 2015 to 2020, she was active as a doctoral student at the ISD. She prepared a dissertation on the topic of medicinal cannabis. This doctoral research focused on self-reported medicinal cannabis use in Flanders, with a particular focus on user profiles and patterns of use for health reasons. Frédérique successfully defended her PhD thesis on 13 January 2020.

Since 2020, she has been working as a postdoctoral researcher at the ISD. From 2020 to 2021, she worked as a lead researcher on the research project Youth perceptions in recreational or non-medical use of psychoactive medication (YOUTH-PUMED). Since September 2021, she is conducting research on the market and profit analysis of indoor illicit cannabis cultivation and trafficking (MARCANT).

Frédérique was appointed as part-time Visiting Professor at the Faculty of Law and Criminology for the fields Qualitative criminological methods and techniques and Selected Issues: Drug Policy.

Currently, Frédérique is a voluntary postdoctoral fellow at the ISD.

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Tamie Wuytjens

Tamie Wuytjens

Tamie Wuytjens, a deaf researcher, received her Master's degree in Criminological Sciences (UGent) with highest distinction in 2024. In her master's thesis, she conducted qualitative research on substance use in the Flemish Deaf community. Her master thesis was awarded the prize for the best master thesis of criminology of the academic year 2023-2024.

From September 2024, she serve as an FWO doctoral grantee, where she will delve deeper into the topic of substance use in the Flemish Deaf community. This doctoral research focuses on the prevalence of use, the patterns, the motives and also the state of affairs regarding prevention and treatment within the cultural-linguistic minority group, the Flemish Deaf Community.

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