Welcome! I am a political scientist and foreign policy professional/analyst with a decade of experience designing and leading policy-oriented research and programming aimed at solving peace and development challenges in Southeast Asia. I received my doctorate in Political Science at the University of Michigan in 2025. My research is at the intersection of comparative politics and international relations, with a focus on nationalism, authoritarian politics, and conflict processes. My regional focus is Southeast Asia where I have extensive area knowledge and in-country experience. I was a 2019-2020 United States Institute of Peace-Minerva Peace Fellow for my dissertation Coercion, Coups, and Conflict: The Challenges of Democratization from Military Rule. My work on digital activism in post-coup Myanmar is published in the Asian Journal of Comparative Politics and the Journal of Contemporary Asia, and I have an article on religious nationalist mobilization during Myanmar’s democratic transition under review in the journal of Comparative Political Studies.
Formerly, I was a Foreign Affairs Officer at the U.S. Department of State and led an inter-agency working group on election security and foreign aid during Myanmar’s historic 2015 elections. I also have an MPH and an MA in Southeast Asian Studies from the University of Michigan.