Emma Vossen, PhD
Dr. Emma Vossen (PhD, University of Waterloo, 2018) is an Assistant Professor of Game Studies in the Department of Digital Humanities at Brock University. Her interdisciplinary research explores the intersections of politics, identity, and technology, with a particular focus on digital games and their cultural impact.
She is the co-author and co-editor of the books Feminism in Play (2018) and Historiographies of Game Studies: What It Has Been, What It Could Be (2025).
Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets, including ABC News, CBC News, NBC News, Wired, Maclean’s, The Washington Post, University Affairs Magazine, Toxic Avenger Magazine, and Electronic Gaming Monthly. In 2016, her dissertation research was the focus of a nationally broadcast CBC Ideas documentary titled "The Dangerous Game: Gamergate and the 'Alt-Right'."
Dr. Vossen’s scholarship is deeply committed to inclusivity and public engagement. She has been a prominent voice in discussions around online radicalization, digital violence, and contemporary fascism since 2013. She continues to advocate for a progressive, inclusive, and accessible policy and culture in academic and gaming spaces.
Before joining Brock, Dr. Vossen held several academic and research positions, including Knowledge Mobilization and Research Impact Officer at the University of Waterloo’s Games Institute, Postdoctoral Research Fellow at York University and the University of British Columbia, and Instructor at Wilfrid Laurier University (Game Design and Development), OCAD University (Visual and Critical Studies), Sheridan College (Game Design and Development), Seneca Polytechnic (Liberal Studies), and the University of Waterloo (English Language and Literature).
Dr. Vossen was one of the earliest members of the University of Waterloo Games Institute and played a foundational role in shaping its inclusive culture. She co-founded the “GI Janes,” a gaming group for people who don’t identify as cis men, helping to create space for marginalized voices in gaming in the region. Her academic journey began with a focus on comics and sexuality, notably Alan Moore’s Lost Girls, before shifting toward game studies in response to the rise of #GamerGate. During this pivotal moment, she joined First Person Scholar as an editor. She later became Editor-in-Chief, using the platform to critically engage with the political and cultural implications of digital games.
Academic Appointments (Research and Administrative)
Knowledge Mobilization and Research Impact Officer, The Games Institute, University of Waterloo, 2021-2025.
Post Doctoral Fellow, University of British Columbia, Refiguring Innovation in Games (ReFiG), 2019-2020
Post Doctoral Fellow, York University, Refiguring Innovation in Games (ReFiG), 2018 - 2019
Education
PhD, English Language and Literature, University of Waterloo, 2018
Dissertation: “On the Cultural Inaccessibility of Gaming: Invading, Creating, and Reclaiming the Cultural Clubhouse”
MA, English Language and Literature, Highest Honors, Carleton University, 2010
BA, English Language and Literature, Highest Honors, Carleton University, 2009
Certification
Certificate in Knowledge Mobilization. University of Guelph. Community Engaged Scholarship Institute. 2024-2025
“Inform: Processes of Knowledge Translation and Dissemination.” 2025.
“Act: Transforming Knowledge into Action.” 2025.
“Inform: Process of Knowledge Translation and Dissemination.” 2024.
“MobilizeU” Knowledge Mobilization Certification. A collaboration between Research Impact Canada, York University and Simon Fraser University. 2024.