Alumni News |
Eric Miller (USA), M.A., Class of 2009
May 6, 2010
Eric Miller has just published his Master’s thesis under the title: The Inability of Peacekeeping to Address the Security Dilemma: A Case Study of the Rwandan-Congolese Security Dilemma and the United Nation’s Mission in the Congo (Lambert 2010).
His advisor, Professor Douglas Yates, comments: "Eric had been interested in the topic before he arrived at AGS, and when I first met him he was already reading literature on this conflict, which is so big and so complex that it has been called “Africa’s World War.” The fall of Mobutu and the collapse of Zaire in 1996 created an enormous power vacuum in the heart of Africa, which has been filled by a euphemistically named Democratic Republic of the Congo, ruled by a father and then by his son: Laurent and Desire Kabila. Since then the Congo forest basin has been filled with armed rebellion, strategic resource conflict, attempted genocide, and all the evils of war.
What makes Eric’s book interesting is how he framed the ongoing conflict in the DRC not in terms of those conventional categories, but in terms of the rising power of Rwanda. Eric shows how the war in the eastern DRC is not how many have presumed just another resource conflict (although natural resources surely do play their part) but is really a kind of “proxy war” reflecting the “security dilemma” faced by post-genocide Rwanda. That is, Eric managed to use international relations theory to explore a conflict usually relegated to African studies.
The inability of the United Nations peacekeeping mission (the largest in the world) to resolve this conflict, or even to prevent what is estimated to have been six million deaths, was Eric’s original problematic. But as he delved into all the literature coming out on the subject, and mapped the shifting patterns of international, national, and sub-national armed forces, what he managed to do was demonstrate how this conflict is not simply another African exemplar of the coming anarchy, but a genuine international conflict, with global implications.
For Master's students who are working on their thess, Eric’s publication should be an inspiration. This is not the first AGS student to publish their work, nor will it be the last."
Since he graduate from AGS last June, Eric Miller has been guest lecturing on topics related to his thesis in various universities in the US and Europe. On December 8-10, 2009, he taught two classes at the University of New York Tirana, in Albania, upon invitation by UNYT's Professor Tom Hashimoto. He spoke about peacekeeping, nation building and security in Africa.
On March 2, he was invited as a guest speaker at Boston University, USA. He did a summary of his thesis, the Congo wars, the continuing security dilemma in the region and the role of the United Nations in that conflict, to an audience of about thirty professors and graduate students from the International Relations and African Studies departments.
Laura-Lee Smith (USA), M.A., Class of 2009
March 10, 2010
Laura-Lee Smith is interning at the US State Department in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor in Washington D.C. Laura-Lee says "I am really picking up on how everything works. I have been in meetings with Secretary Clinton's deputies, and next week I am scheduled to attend two confirmation hearings and the main celebration for Black History Month by the Office of Civil Rights. It is very exciting and I am already learning so much about possible career paths with the State Department. I am seriously considering becoming an Foreign Service Officer (FSO) and will be conducting as many informational interviews as I can while I am here."
Additionally this year, Laura-Lee was selected as an Alexander von Humboldt Fellow for 2009-2010. The Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship promotes academic cooperation between excellent scientists and scholars from over the world and from Germany. Fourty-three former Alexander von Humboldt fellows became Nobel laureates.
For one year, starting in September 2010, Laura-Lee will be conducting research in Berlin with the German Council on Foreign Relations. Her individual project is about the German role in the Afghanistan war and contradictions between Germany's international obligations with NATO and waning public support at home.
Laura-Lee comments: "I would not have chosen this topic if I had not been inspired during the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy conference last summer, and if I hadn't met the policy analyst from the German Council of Foreign Relations who encouraged me to apply for fellowships such as this one. It's incredible how one event leads to so many others and I am very grateful to AGS for supporting my attendance to this conference."
Karina Kloos (USA), M.A., class of 2006
November 8, 2009
Karina Kloos entered Stanford University in the fall 2009 to do a Ph.D. in Sociology.
Karina spent six months, prior to starting her doctoral studies, volunteering in Cambodia with PEPY, an educational NGO and social venture.
Karina recounts: "I was primarily involved in supporting PEPY's educational and volunteer tours, mostly with volunteers from Dubai coming to help in the construction of three new primary schools in a rural commune of Siem Reap Province. PEPY also leads cycling tours throughout Cambodia, visiting with and learning from partner organizations along the way.
My first-hand experience with these trips contributed to my research on responsible volunteer tourism, an increasingly popular way to travel and, for better or worse, a progressively more accessible approach to development work and educational opportunities.
During my years at AGS, I distinctly remember talking about the "increasing role of non-state actors". As a country with one the highest NGO density rates in the world, Cambodia was a fascinating place to learn about development work.
I experienced incredible insights during my time there about how NGOs are contributing to the reconstruction of the country, devastated by the Khmer Rouge thirty years ago, and how social ventures are helping to improve accountability and decrease dependency on aid and donations."
In the fall, Karina entered Stanford's Ph.D. program in Sociology, focusing on social movements and organizational studies, specifically related to international development organizations, applying her experiences with PEPY and the dozens of NGOs and social ventures she interacted with in Cambodia, Africa and the US as well as her international relations studies here at AGS.
Harold Bashor (USA), Ph.D. 2004
July 8, 2009
Dr. Harold Bashor is a professor at Franklin University, Columbus, Ohio. He teaches International Business and Global Issues in the Vantage MBA program.
Since he received his Doctoral degree from AGSIRD in 2004, Harold Bashor published his Ph.D. dissertation under the title The Moon Treaty Paradox (Xlibris Co. 2004) and received a Graduate Certificate in Air and Space Law from McGill University. He was interviewed by USA Today regarding the legal and financial issues of the upcoming US, EU and Chinese Lunar missions.
Harold Bashor is also the editor of the Journal of Diplomatic Language.
Alan Seelinger (USA), M.A., class of 2009
June 9, 2009
On the occasion of President Obama's visit to France on the 65th anniversary of D-Day, Alan Seelinger (M.A. 2009), along with his wife Beth, his daughter Eloise, and his parents Tom and Lisa, met the US President at the US Ambassador's Residence in Paris on June 6th, 2009.
While greeting several young children on the rope line, the President took Eloise in his arms, and upon learning her name, said "I remember that book, 'Eloise in Paris' - that's what you are!"
Alan says : « It was truly an unforgettable experience! We plan on requesting the President's autograph -on Eloise's behalf, of course!"
Culver Van Der Jagt (USA), Ph.D., class of 2000
March 3, 2009
Culver Van Der Jagt passed the US Multistate Bar Exam in May, scoring in the top 2% of test takers across the country. He is now employed as an attorney with the law firm of Gutterman Griffiths in Denver, Colorado.
Culver uses diplomacy in negotiation and litigation and thanks AGS for equipping him to defend a position under tremendous pressure.
Charlotte Bennborn (Sweden), M.A., class of 2008
February 4, 2009
Charlotte Bennborn has been appointed Delegate of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneva, an international organization whose humanitarian mission is to protect the lives and dignity of victims of war and internal violence and to provide them with assistance.
Charlotte is currently posted in Darfur for 12 months.
Jennifer Grant (USA), M.A., class of 2008
January 3, 2009
Jennifer Grant is consulting at the United Nations World Food Program in Rome. She works as a Production Facilitator in the Communications and Public Policy Strategy Division. Her tasks include participating in the development of multi-media tools to internally communicate new politcy initiatives to senior staff.
James Wagamon (USA), M.A., class of 2006
October 3, 2008
James Wagamon works in Washington as a Senior Consultant with Booz Allen Hamilton, a consulting company specializing in strategy, operations, organization and change, information technology, systems engineering, and program management. Booz Allen Hamilton has 20,000 employees in 80 offices accross the globe.
Abigail Pratt (USA), class of 2006 and Karina Kloos (USA), class of 2006
July 31, 2008
Abigail Pratt and Karina Kloos went to South Africa to work in an orphanage outside of Johannesburg in November 2007. Abigail wrote an account of why she made the trip and the time they both spent there.
"After leaving Paris and working for a year at the European Center for Security Studies in Germany, I realized that my real interest lay in humanitarian aid. I figured if I went to Africa, and into the field, I could see if this was the career path for me. I left knowing about the problems, government corruption, AIDS, crime and poverty, but also having heard that it is a continent of such vast beauty and kindness that, once you have experienced it, every other place seems tame."
"I thought I could leave Europe, work in a children's home, gain valuable field experience and eventually return and work for some NGO to "alleviate poverty and hunger." By the time I left Africa, I had been all but stripped of those notions and my idealism had been badly bruised by the realities that I had seen on the road. This is not to say that I returned without hope, or that I didn't plan to return and work for an NGO, but simply that I had a better understanding of the role I wanted to play."
"I started my trip at TLC Ministries, a children's home founded in 1995 for AIDS orphans and abandoned newborns."
Kyra Levine (USA), M.A., class of 2007
July 31, 2008
Kyra Levine has entered a doctoral program at the Université de la Sorbonne in Paris. Her area is socio-linguistics and German colonial history in Africa.
She says: "I am continuing my research on Tanzania, which was one of my cases in my AGS thesis, and the connections between national identity, colonial politics, and socio-linguistic issues related to the use of Swahili in the German colonial administration. I was so encouraged by Drs. McGiffen, Harwich and Kobtzeff at my thesis defense that it helped influence my decision to keep researching this multifaceted topic."
Sean Lee (Scotland, USA, France), class of 2003
July 31, 2008
Sean Lee is a Research Analyst at Morgan Stanley, London. Though his work revolves around balance sheets and cash flows, his AGS experience provided him with the capacity to view mergers and alliances on the international and political level, not merely on the financial one.
He appreciated the diverse cultural environment at AGS, and attributes his successful acclimatization in the very international workplace of Morgan Stanley to this. He has stayed in touch with a number of his AGS classmates and they often get together when they visit London.
Sean earned a B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, USA before entering the M.A. program at AGS. He went on to the top French business school HEC where he was awarded a Master's in the Science of Business degree. He earned his CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) a qualification for finance and investment professionals, in 2006.
Noriyuki Shikata (Japan), class of 2001
January 29, 2008
Noriyuki Shikata serving with the Japanese Diplomatic Corps has been transferred from his post as Director of Status of U.S. Forces Agreement to that of Assistant Press Secretary, Director in charge of the International Press for the Japanese Foreign Ministry.
Noriyuki monitors how Japan-related issues are treated in the international media, liaising with the foreign press, holding press conferences, and accompanying Japan's leaders on their official overseas trips.
Over the last year, Noriyuki has traveled to Mongolia, Finland, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, Beijing and Seoul, Hanoi and the Philippines.
Vili Lazarova (Bulgaria), Class of 2004
January 16, 2008
Vili Lazarova is now working at Publicis in Paris as a Consultant in Financial Communications, while finishing her Master's thesis with AGSIRD.
She works with French and international companies around their financial, but also corporate communications. On the financial communications side, her work involves press relations actions around key financial dates and announcements (results, revenues), but also financial operations, such as listings, M&As, business strategy announcements, etc. On the corporate communications side, she also works with the media to raise the profile of Publicis' clients, organizing interviews, press meetings, conferences, etc.
She also works on new business opportunities, participating in financial and corporate communications pitches.
Omar Bandar (USA), M.A., class of 2006
January 16, 2008
Omar Bandar (2006) was part of a fifteen-member delegation to the West Bank in Palestine, in association with the Cambridge Peace Commission, in November-December 2007. The purpose of the delegation was to promote "People-to-People" relationships in an effort of public diplomacy in the Middle-East. The initiative will build on and expand existing relationships between people and organizations in the Cambridge and Bethlehem communities such as peace and conflict resolution groups, educational institutions, universities, cultural and arts centers, faith-based centers, women's cooperatives, youth groups, healthcare facilities, and media outlets.
Continuing his interest in human rights and social justice, on February 11th, 2008, Omar will be embarking on a fifty-day European tour of human rights and criminal justice organizations as well as visiting prisons and detention centers in several European countries (France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Latvia, Estonia, Romania, Norway, Italy, and The Netherlands). The purpose of this trip is to learn more about prisoners' and human rights issues on the international scale as well as the criminal justice challenges of specific countries.
Nina Sajic (Bosnia-Herzegovina), M.A., class of 2006
November 14, 2007
On October 24th-25th, Nina Sajic travelled to Italy as a member of the official delegation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, where she met with both Pope Benedict XVI and Italian President Giorgio Napolitano.
Nina is Foreign Policy Advisor to H.E. President Nebojsa Radmanovic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and deals mainly with bilateral European relations, the European Union, and the United Nations. The presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina is composed of three presidents, each representing one of the three constitutive peoples of the country. Each president is a primus inter pares, and the delegation to Italy was led by H.E. President Zeljko Komsic.
"My job involves a lot of traveling with my president to meet with other heads of state of the region and monthly trips to Brussels for discussions with officials from the European Commission and Parliament."
Danilo Padilla (Philippines), class of 2000
October 9, 2007
Danilo Padilla works for UNESCO in Bangkok where he is Programme Planning Officer and Executive Assistant to the Director. Danny participates in UNESCO's medium-term strategy consultations.
His responsibilities include liaising with the more than 20 U.N. agencies based in Thailand, where he focuses on education-related activities in the Asia-Pacific region. He also serves as coordination officer for activities being implemented by UNESCO's Bangkok office in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.
Danilo Padilla joined UNESCO in Paris in 1998, where over the years he served in the Bureau of Human Resources Management, in the Unit for Indigenous Peoples in the Culture Sector, and in the Division for Freedom of Expression in the Communication and Information Sector.
Matthew Bentley (Australia), M.A. 2000, Ph.D. 2004
October 2, 2007
Matthew Bentley is working with UNEP (United Nations Environmental Protection Agency) in Paris on a two-year assignment, after which he will return to Australia to his post with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, within their Agency for International Development (AusAID).
While an M.A. student at AGSIRD, Matthew had interned at UNEP. On completion of his M.A. degree, he had been offered a post in that organization. After moving back to his native country, he has remained involved with UNEP's activities.
Deborah Lizak (USA), class of 2006
July 15, 2007
Deborah Lizak works at Columbia University as special assistant to Joseph Stiglitz, recipient of the Nobel Prize of Economics in 2001. Her duties include background research on anyone that professor Stiglitz meets. Traveling with him to conferences she attended the World Economic Forum in Davos and the Gore-Sachs event on climate change.
Rao Chelikani (India), Ph.D., class of 1997
May 3, 2007
After returning from Paris where he had spent many years, Rao Chelikani started an International Foundation for Human Development (IFHD) in Hyderabad, India. IFHD is an organization that strives to activate civil society for self-management thereby reducing excessive government and state involvement.
Dr Chelikani was President of the Standing Committee of NGOs affiliated to UNESCO and already held a doctorate from the Sorbonne University when he began studying towards his Ph.D. at AGSIRD.
Arnold Obermayr (Austria), class of 2000
March 10, 2007
Arnold Obermayr is Deputy Head of Mission and counsellor currently serving at the Austrian Embassy in Bangkok. He took up this position in May 2007 after serving the Austrian diplomatic corps in Japan.
 Sir Christopher MacRae United Kingdom
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I aim to help my students prepare for life beyond "the groves of academe" - especially how to ask the right questions to work out what is really going on out there. Along the way, they practice writing lucidly and succinctly. It is stimulating teaching such a lively crew. I hope they also find it fun being challenged to analyse the facts without prejudice and to think originally