About Me
I am a PhD candidate and Cambridge Trust Scholar at the University of Cambridge’s Department of Politics and International Studies (POLIS) and was previously a Visiting Researcher at the Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá. Drawing on 10 months of fieldwork in Colombia, my dissertation research examines the relationship between armed group ideology, socialization, and conflict-related sexual and reproductive violence. It conceptualizes gendered violence as a relational, performative, and inherently social process.
A second line of research focuses on gender and democratic politics. My new book Aiding Empowerment: Democracy Promotion and Gender Equality in Politics, co-authored with Saskia Brechenmacher and published with Oxford University Press, documents how international democracy support for gender equality in politics has evolved over the last thirty years and how effective these programs have been. Drawing on research in Kenya, Nepal, Morocco, and Myanmar, we examine the varied methods aid providers use to challenge patriarchal political structures and support local reformers, identify persisting challenges and promising innovations, and make practical recommendations for reform.
Alongside these research projects, I serve as a Junior Fellow at the Conference of Defence Associations Institute and teach undergraduate courses related to peace and conflict, as well as politics and gender. I previously worked as a Managing Editor for the Cambridge Review of International Affairs (CRIA).
Prior to joining Cambridge, I was a policy researcher in the Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. I have also worked with non-profit organizations to reduce group-targeted political violence and promote civic activism, as well as served in various other research and editorial positions. I hold an MPhil in International Relations from the University of Oxford and a dual-BA in Political Science and International Affairs with a minor in French from the University of Georgia.
My work has been published in Foreign Policy, Just Security, and other outlets.