Mert Can Yilmaz

Biography

I am a Research Engineer and Senior Analyst at the Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP), based at the Department of Peace and Conflict Research at Uppsala University.

My work sits at the intersection of peace and conflict research, computational social science, and data infrastructure development. I focus on developing automated tools and methodological solutions to improve the reliability, scalability, and analytical potential of large-scale conflict event data.

This includes work on conflict event coding, data harmonization, and the integration of computational approaches into traditionally human-coded datasets.

In parallel to my work on conflict data, I am a co-founder of Yapay Gündem, a platform that examines the ethical and societal implications of artificial intelligence. Through this initiative, I engage with questions related to responsible AI governance, transparency, and accountability, particularly in the context of democratic processes and information ecosystems.

I hold an MSSc in Peace and Conflict Studies and an MA in Religion in Peace and Conflict from Uppsala University. My broader research interests concern the role of emerging technologies in shaping conflict dynamics, information environments, and political behavior, with particular attention to issues such as misinformation, algorithmic governance, and the measurement of political violence.

My work draws on computational and quantitative approaches using tools such as Python, R, and SQL to support data-driven analysis in peace research.