FIW 2016 Acknowledgements

Katherine Blue Carroll is an assistant professor and the director of the program in public policy studies at Vanderbilt University. She received her master’s degree and PhD in politics from the University of Virginia. Her teaching and research interests include the comparative politics of the Middle East, political violence, and the U.S. military. Her work has appeared in Middle East Policy and the Middle East Journal. She served as a Middle East and North Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Mamadou Bodian is a PhD candidate in political science at the University of Florida. He is also the project coordinator for the Trans-Saharan Elections Project (TSEP) and a founding member of the Sahel Research Group (SRG). He has also been a senior researcher with the Islam Research Programme at the Embassy of the Netherlands in Senegal, a project spon- sored by Leiden University and the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. His current research focuses on a comparative examination of elections and democracy in the Sahel, with special attention to Senegal, Mali, and Niger. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Free- dom in the World.

Nadia Boyadjieva obtained a master’s degree in history from Sofia University and a master’s degree in law from the New Bulgarian University. She completed her PhD at Sofia Univer- sity, with a dissertation on U.S. policy toward the conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina. She has taught at Plovdiv University since 2000 and is currently a professor of international law and international relations, and chair of the Department of International and Comparative Law. She has held a number of fellowships and has conducted extensive archival research in institutes ranging from the Russian State Archive of Recent History to the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library. She served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Greg Brown is an adjunct professor in Georgetown University’s Center for Australian, New Zealand, and Pacific Studies, and a senior analyst at CENTRA Technology, Inc., where he focuses on transnational and emerging national security issues. He has served as a consul- tant and editor for the Millennium Project’s Global Challenges Program, and has held numerous fellowships. Brown’s academic work in political demography, comparative migration policy, and diaspora politics has been highlighted in the Economist, the Austra- lian, and the New Zealand Herald, and has been published in the Georgetown Journal of International Affairs, Political Science, and Australia’s journal of demography People and Place. He served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom in the World.

Nina Burbach is a former senior adviser to the Slovenian Ministry of Justice on international human rights issues. She holds a master’s degree in international humanitarian law and human rights from the University of Geneva and a bachelor’s degree in international law from the University of Ljubljana. She served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Samlanchith Chanthavong is the senior program officer for Asia and global programs at the National Endowment for Democracy, where she manages grants to civil society organiza- tions working to strengthen human rights, civic and political participation, and democratic governance. Previously, she worked on rule of law programs in Asia at the American Bar Association. She received a master’s degree in international affairs from American Univer- sity. She served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom in the World.

Douglas Coltart is a Zimbabwean human rights lawyer currently doing a fellowship in Wash- ington, DC, at the International Republican Institute, where he manages Southern Africa programs and conducts research on constitutionalism in Zimbabwe. Previously, he worked for a leading law firm in Harare where he handled various human rights matters and co- wrote a book on socioeconomic rights in Zimbabwe’s 2013 constitution. He obtained a law degree from the University of Cape Town. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in Southern African history and law from the same institution. Coltart was a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Sarah Cook is the manager of the production team for Freedom House’s China Media Bulle- tin, a biweekly news digest of press freedom developments related to China. She previously served as a research analyst at Freedom House and as assistant editor on three editions of the Freedom on the Net index, which assesses internet and digital media freedom around the world. She coedited the English version of Chinese attorney Gao Zhisheng’s memoir, A China More Just, and was a delegate to the UN Human Rights Commission for an organiza- tion working on religious freedom in China. She received a master’s degree in politics and a master of laws degree in public international law from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, where she was a Marshall Scholar. She served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom in the World.

Britta H. Crandall is an adjunct professor at Davidson College in North Carolina. She is the author of Hemispheric Giants: The Misunderstood History of U.S.-Brazilian Relations. Previously, she was associate director for Latin American sovereign risk analysis at Bank One, and worked as a Latin American program examiner for the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. She received a PhD from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. She served as an Americas analyst for Freedom in the World.

Julian Dierkes is an associate professor and the Keidanren Chair in Japanese Research at the University of British Columbia’s Institute of Asian Research, where he coordinates the Program on Inner Asia. His research has focused on history education and supplementary education in Japan, as well as contemporary Mongolia. He is the editor of Change in Demo- cratic Mongolia: Social Relations, Health, Mobile Pastoralism, and Mining. He received a PhD in sociology from Princeton University. He served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Free- dom in the World.

Jake Dizard is a PhD candidate in political science at the University of Texas at Austin. He was previously the managing editor of Countries at the Crossroads, Freedom House’s annual survey of democratic governance. His area of focus is Latin America, with a specific emphasis on the Andean region and Mexico. He received a master’s degree from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. He served as an Americas analyst for Freedom in the World.

Richard Downie is deputy director and a fellow of the Africa Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Previously, he was a journalist for the British Broadcast- ing Corporation (BBC). He received a master’s degree in international public policy from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Daniel Eizenga is a PhD candidate in the Department of Political Science and a research associate with the Sahel Research Group at the University of Florida. His area of focus is sub-Saharan Africa, specifically the Francophone African Sahel where he has conducted extensive research. He received a master’s degree in political science from the University of Florida in 2013. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Brian Ernst is a program officer at the National Democratic Institute, focusing on improving governance in southern and eastern Africa. Brian previously served as a Peace Corps volun- teer in Madagascar and covers the Indian Ocean island nations for NDI. He received a master’s degree in international security from the University of Denver and bachelor’s degree in political science from Vanderbilt University. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Golnaz Esfandiari is a senior correspondent with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and the editor of the popular Persian Letters blog. Esfandiari’s work focuses on political and social developments in Iran, and ties between Iran and the United States. Her work has appeared in and has been cited by publications including the New Yorker, the New York Times, the Washington Post, and Foreign Policy; she has also contributed to Freedom House’s Free- dom of the Press report. She served as a Middle East and North Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Amy Freedman is a professor and the department chair of political science and international studies at Long Island University, C. W. Post Campus. Her research touches on various questions relating to democratization and political economy in Southeast Asia. Her most recent book is The Internationalization of Internal Conflicts, and she is a coeditor of the journal Asian Security. She received a master’s degree and PhD in political science from New York University. She served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom in the World.

Julie George is an associate professor of political science at Queens College and the City University of New York Graduate Center. Her work addresses the intersection of state- building, democratization, and ethnic politics in postcommunist states. She is the author of The Politics of Ethnic Separatism in Russia and Georgia. Her work has appeared in Elec- toral Studies, Post-Soviet Affairs, and Europe-Asia Studies and other outlets. She served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom in the World.

Ana Pastor Gonzalez holds a journalism degree from the University of Navarra, in Spain, and has worked as a local and cultural journalist for different media companies. In 2015 she completed a master’s degree in international relations from New York University. She served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Eva Hoier Greene is a former research assistant at Freedom House. Previously, she covered nuclear disarmament and other issues at the Permanent Mission of Denmark to the United Nations. She received a bachelor’s degree in international development in Denmark. She served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Shelby Grossman is a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University’s Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law. Her research focuses on the political economy of devel- opment. In her dissertation, which uses original survey data collected in Lagos, Nigeria from 1,878 randomly sampled traders, along with market case studies, she investigates the conditions under which private organizations will promote economic activity. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Liutauras Gudˇzinskas lectures on comparative politics at the Institute of International Rela- tions and Political Science of Vilnius University. His main research interests are postcom- munist transformation, Europeanization, and politics of the Baltic countries. Since 2013, Gudzˇinskas  is  also  the  editor-in-chief  of  the  Baltic  Journal  of  Political  Science,  and  the president of Lithuanian Political Science Association. In 2015, he was elected as General Secretary of Central European Political Science Association. He served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Hilary Hemmings holds a bachelor’s degree in foreign service from Georgetown University and a master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia University. She was previously an Alfa Fellow in Moscow, Russia, where she worked in a humanitarian health clinic serv- ing the Tajik migrant worker population. She currently works at the International Rescue Committee in the Emergency Preparedness and Response Unit. She served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom in the World.

Ted Henken is an associate professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Baruch College, City University of New York. He holds a joint appointment in Baruch’s Black and Latino Studies department. He is president ex-officio of the Association for the Study of the Cuban Economy. He is the coauthor with Archibald Ritter of Entrepreneurial Cuba: The Changing Policy Landscape, coeditor with Miriam Celaya and Dimas Castella- nos of Cuba in Focus, and author of Cuba: A Global Studies Handbook. He has published articles about Cuba in the journals Human Geography, Current History, Nueva Sociedad, Cuban Studies, Latino Studies, and Latin American Research Review, as well as in the New York Times and the blog of the Committee to Protect Journalists. He writes about contempo- rary Cuba on his blog, El Yuma. He received a PhD in Latin American studies from Tulane University in 2002. He had served as a consultant on Cuba for the Department of State and the White House and was an Americas analyst for Freedom in the World.

Franklin Hess is the coordinator of the Modern Greek Program at Indiana University, a senior lecturer at the Institute for European Studies, and codirector of a working group on the sovereign debt crisis. His scholarly work examines Greek popular culture, exploring the economic, geopolitical, and geocultural contexts of its production. His other research inter- ests include immigration and the cinematic representation of violence. He received a PhD in American studies from the University of Iowa, focusing on the influence of American television programming on Greek culture. He served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Rola el-Husseini holds  a  PhD  from  the  E´ cole  des  Hautes  E´ tudes  en  Sciences  Sociales  in Paris and is currently a research associate professor at the City University of New York Graduate Center. She has previously held positions at Texas A&M University and Yale University. Her first book, Pax Syriana: Elite Politics in Postwar Lebanon, was published in 2012. She served as a Middle East and North Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Ibrahim Yahaya Ibrahim is a PhD candidate in political science at the University of Florida, where he is also a research associate with the Sahel Research Group. His dissertation focuses on political contestations and religious discourse in the Sahel. Ibrahim was a Ful- bright grantee at the University of Florida from 2011 to 2013. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Faysal Itani is a resident senior fellow with the Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, where he focuses primarily on the Syrian conflict and its regional impact. Itani has repeatedly briefed the U.S. government and its allies on the conflict in Syria and its effects on their interests. He has been widely published and quoted in prominent media outlets including the New York Times, TIME, Politico, and the Washington Post, among other places. Itani holds a master’s degree in strategic studies and international economics from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, a certificate in public policy from Georgetown University, and a bachelor’s degree in business from the American University of Beirut. He served as a Middle East and North Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Victoria Jennett is an independent consultant specializing in justice sector reform, anticor- ruption, and the promotion of human rights. She has worked previously as a human rights advisor, as the chief of property in the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Mission in Kosovo, and as a research analyst for Transparency International. She received her PhD in constitutional law and conflict transformation from the European Uni- versity Institute in Florence, Italy, and is a British qualified lawyer who gained her bachelor of laws from King’s College, London. She served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Cara Jones received her PhD in political science and African studies from the University of Florida in 2013. She has published numerous articles on development and post-conflict politics in Africa in academic, policy, and popular media. Now a development professional, she was an academic teacher-scholar for five years previously, in addition to a decade of work in the field. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Toby Craig Jones is an associate professor of history and the director of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Rutgers University, New Brunswick. He is the author of Desert Kingdom: How Oil and Water Forged Modern Saudi Arabia and of Running Dry: Essays on Energy and Environmental Crisis, and is currently writing a book entitled America’s Oil Wars. He is an editor of Middle East Report and has published widely, including in the International Journal of Middle East Studies, the New York Times, and Foreign Affairs. He received a PhD from Stanford University. He served as a Middle East and North Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Karin Karlekar is the director of Free Expression Programs at PEN America. Prior to joining PEN, she served as director of the Freedom of the Press project. As well as acting as an expert spokesperson on press freedom issues, she has developed index methodologies and conducted training sessions on press freedom, internet freedom, freedom of expression, and monitoring of dangerous speech; authored a number of special reports and academic papers; and conducted research, assessment, and advocacy missions to Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. She has also worked as an editor at the Economist Intelligence Unit and as a consultant to Human Rights Watch, and served as chair of the governing council of the International Freedom of Expres- sion Exchange (IFEX) network. She holds a PhD in Indian history from Cambridge Univer- sity and a bachelor’s degree from Vassar College. She served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom in the World.

Valery Kavaleuski holds a master’s degree in foreign service from Georgetown University. As a former diplomat, he specialized in Belarus-U.S. political relations, as well as human rights and human trafficking issues with the UN agencies. He is a freelance journalist now, writing on issues pertaining to foreign and national policy matters in Belarus, Ukraine, and Russia. He served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom in the World.

Catherine Kelly has a PhD in government from Harvard University and is an American Council of Learned Societies Public Fellow at the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative in Washington, DC. Her research and teaching address African politics, political party development, elections, democratization, and Islam in politics. A former Fulbright Scholar and Title VI Foreign Language and Area Studies fellow, her work has appeared in the Journal of Democracy and Electoral Studies, and on the blogs of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Social Science Research Council. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Nicholas Kerr is an assistant professor of comparative politics in the Department of Political Science at the University of Alabama. His research interests include African politics, elec- toral institutions, electoral integrity, political corruption, and public opinion. His current research explores the factors that influence the design of electoral commissions in Africa, and probes how the design and performance of these institutions influence electoral integ- rity. He has recently published articles in Governance, Political Research Quarterly, and Electoral Studies. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Sylvana Habdank-Kolaczkowska is a political analyst and researcher specializing in postcom- munist Europe. She has previously served as the director of Nations in Transit, Freedom House’s annual report on democratic governance from Central Europe to Eurasia, and as the managing editor of the Journal of Cold War Studies, a peer-reviewed quarterly. She received a master’s degree in Eastern European and Eurasian studies from Harvard Univer- sity and a bachelor’s in political science from the University of California, Berkeley. She writes reports on Central Europe for Freedom of the Press and served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Niklas Kossow is a PhD candidate and communications officer at the European Research Centre for Anti-Corruption and State-Building in Berlin, focusing on the use of new media tools in anticorruption movements. He holds a bachelor’s degree in European social and political studies from University College London, and a master’s degree in public policy from the Hertie School of Governance. He previously worked as a volunteer fellow for Freedom House, an advisor for Transparency International, and a consultant for the UN Development Program and the World Wide Web Foundation. He served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Paul Kubicek is a professor of political science and director of the International Studies Program at Oakland University. He is the author of numerous works on the European Union, democratization, and postcommunist and Turkish politics, which have appeared in journals including Comparative Politics, Political Studies, and Political Science Quarterly. His most recent book is Political Islam and Democracy in the Muslim World. He is the editor of Turkish Studies. He has taught in Ukraine, Turkey, and Austria, and was a Fulbright Scholar in Slovenia. He received a PhD in political science from the University of Michigan. He served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Joshua Kurlantzick is a senior fellow for Southeast Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations. Previously, he was a scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where he focused on Southeast Asian politics and economics and China’s relations with Southeast Asia. He is a longtime journalist whose articles have appeared in Time, the New Republic, the Atlantic Monthly, Foreign Affairs, and the New Yorker, among others. He is the author of the recently released book State Capitalism: How the Return of Statism is Transforming the World. He served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom in the World.

Astrid Larson manages programs and special events at American Friends of the Louvre. She received a master’s degree in international media and culture from the New School Univer- sity. She has served as an analyst for Western Europe, sub-Saharan Africa, and the South Pacific for Freedom House’s Freedom of the Press report. She served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Joey Lee is the Asia Law and Justice Program director at the Leitner Center for International Law and Justice at Fordham Law School, where he leads research, advocacy, and capacity- building efforts to support strengthening of rule of law in Asia. He earned a juris doctor degree from Boston University and a master of laws degree from New York University. He served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom in the World.

Kelsey Lilley is assistant director for the Atlantic Council’s Africa Center, where she follows African political, security, and economic developments closely. Kelsey was formerly a Princeton in Africa Fellow with the International Rescue Committee. She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Davidson College. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Sophia Lin is an international human rights lawyer, and currently serves as legal and policy associate at the International Corporate Accountability Roundtable. She graduated from American University Washington College of Law in 2013, and has served a senior staffer on the American University International Law Review. Previously, Sophia served as a legal advisor at Sorini, Samet, and Associates, a consulting firm on trade, labor, and corporate social responsibility policy. Previously, she was an Asia research fellow at Freedom House. Sophia holds a bachelor’s degree from National Taiwan University. She served as an Asia- Pacific analyst for Freedom in the World.

Joshua Lustig is editor of Current History, an international affairs journal based in Philadel- phia. Previously, he was a senior editor at Facts On File World News Digest, covering Western Europe. He received a bachelor’s degree in English literature from Columbia Uni- versity. He served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Eleanor Marchant is a PhD candidate at the Annenberg School for Communications at the University of Pennsylvania, specializing in media, information communication technologies and policy in Africa, and ethnographic research methods. She is also a research associate at the Center for Global Communication Studies and an international fellow at iHub Research in Nairobi, and advises on research projects related to technology, development, and media policy at both centers. Previously, she worked at the Programme in Comparative Media Law and Policy at Oxford University, the Media Development Investment Fund, the Media Institute in Nairobi, and Freedom House. She received a master’s degree in interna- tional relations from New York University and a bachelor’s degree in politics and economics from the University of Bristol. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Philip Martin is a PhD Candidate in the Department of Political Science and the Security Studies Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His dissertation research examines the organization of armed movements and state formation in sub-Saharan Africa. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Wade McMullen is managing attorney at Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights and a lecturer at University of Virginia School of Law, where he codirects the International Human Rights Law Clinic. His work focuses on civic space, criminal justice reform, and strategic litigation before international human rights tribunals. He has been featured on CNN and MSNBC as well as in the New York Times, Washington Post, and the Guardian, among other outlets. He received his Jjuris doctor degree from the New York University School of Law. He served as an Americas analyst for Freedom in the World.

Susana Moreira is an extractive-industries specialist at the World Bank. She received a PhD from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, focusing on Chinese national oil companies’ investment strategies in Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa. She is involved in several other research projects, including Coping with Crisis in African States and Sino-U.S. Energy Triangles. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Ben Morse is a PhD candidate in political science at the Massachusetts Institute for Technol- ogy. His research focuses on state-building and democratic governance in fragile states, with a particular emphasis on the relationship between political competition and state legiti- mation. He has conducted fieldwork in Liberia, Cote d’Ivoire, and Sierra Leone, and has worked on policy-focused research for Innovations for Poverty Action, the Norwegian Refu- gee Council, and the Government of Liberia. His work has been supported by the National Science Foundation, the International Growth Centre, and the Folke Bernadotte Academy. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Martijn Mos is a doctoral candidate at the Department of Government at Cornell University. His scholarly work focuses on the dynamics of shared understandings in international poli- tics. He holds a master’s degree in European politics and society from the University of Oxford, a master’s degree in global history from the University of Vienna, and a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts and sciences from Utrecht University. He served as a Europe and Americas analyst for Freedom in the World.

Jasmin Mujanovi´c is a PhD candidate in political science at York University. His research focuses on the postwar democratization of Bosnia-Herzegovina and, more broadly, on the role of social movements in postwar and postauthoritarian democratization processes. His work has appeared in a number of scholarly publications, and he is a regular international affairs analyst whose commentary has appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, Al Jazeera, and openDemocracy among other popular magazines. He served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Alysson Akiko Oakley is a PhD candidate at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) and an adjunct professor at Georgetown University. Previously, she served as a senior adviser at the International Republican Institute and a program director at the U.S.-Indonesia Society. She received a master’s degree in interna- tional economics and Southeast Asian studies from SAIS and a bachelor’s degree in interna- tional relations from Brown University. She served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom in the World.

Robert Orttung is assistant director of the Institute for European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies at George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs, president of the Resource Security Institute, and a visiting scholar at the Center for Security Studies at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich. He is managing editor of Demokratizatsiya: The Journal of Post-Soviet Democratization and a coeditor of the Rus- sian Analytical Digest and the Caucasus Analytical Digest. He received a PhD in political science from the University of California, Los Angeles. He served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom in the World.

Alexandra Panzarelli is a graduate student at the politics department at New School for Social Research. She has worked as a political adviser to the Canadian Embassy in Venezuela and as a lecturer at Escuela de Estudios Pol´ıticos de la Universidad Central de Venezuela. She previously served as a consultant to Gobernacio´n de Miranda in Caracas and was program assistant at the Joint United Nations Program on AIDS/HIV (UNAIDS). She has published several articles concerning populism in Venezuela, electoral policies, and social movements. She received a degree in political and administrative sciences from Universidad Central de Venezuela, a postgraduate degree in public management from Universidad Metropolitana, and a master’s degree in politics from New York University with a Fulbright scholarship in 2009. She served as an Americas analyst for Freedom in the World.

Sergi P´erez is  lawyer  and  political  scientist  and  holds  a  master’s  degree  in  public  policy from the University of Oxford. He was previously a governance and anticorruption junior specialist at the World Bank for the Andean region and is currently working, as an indepen- dent consultant within the same institution, on the development of a human rights agenda around the Colombian peace process. His main research interests are governance and extractive industries, social inclusion policies, and the link between poverty and corruption. He also worked at the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, and served as an Americas analyst for Freedom in the World.

Nicole Phillips is an adjunct professor at the University of California Hastings College of the Law, a law professor at the Universite´ de la Foundation Dr. Aristide in Port-au-Prince, and staff attorney with the Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti. She serves as a member of the board of directors of Human Rights Advocates, a nongovernmental organization with consultative status to the United Nations, and has appeared before various UN bodies and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. She earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of California, San Diego, in political science with a concentration in interna- tional relations, and her juris doctor degree from the University of San Francisco. She served as an Americas analyst for Freedom in the World.

Paula Redondo Alvarez is a senior program associate for Eurasia at Freedom House. Pre- viously, she worked as a spokesperson for the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Mission to Moldova in Chisinau. She holds a master’s degree in European studies from the College of Europe and master’s and bachelor’s degreed in Russian and Eastern European Studies from the Universidad Complutense of Madrid. She served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Andrew Rizzardi is a program coordinator with the Institute for the Study of Human Rights at Columbia University. He previously served as a researcher with Freedom House, working extensively on press freedom issues. He holds a master’s degree in international affairs from American University’s School of International Studies. He served as an Americas analyst for Freedom in the World.

Mark Schneider is a visiting assistant professor of political studies at Pitzer College. He received his PhD from Columbia University in 2015. His research and teaching interests include distributive politics, political parties, local governance, and state capacity. In partic- ular, his work suggests that local democracy in India leads to the selection of politicians with pro-poor preferences over distribution, and that elections are much freer than existing work suggests. He served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom in the World.

Jean Scrimgeour is a public diplomacy and democratic governance specialist with experience working in the United States, the United Kingdom and Southern Africa. Currently a global proposal development manager for Volunteer Services Overseas, Jean was formerly a parlia- mentary, political, and communications officer for the British High Commission in South Africa and trade, science, and innovation communications lead for the British Embassy in Washington, DC. Jean has masters’s degree in conflict resolution in divided societies from Kings College in London as a British Chevening Scholar and a bachelor of social science degree in law and politics in international relations from the University of Cape Town. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Ben Self is the inaugural Takahashi Fellow in Japanese Studies at the Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center. Before joining the Center in September 2008, Self was at the Henry L. Stimson Center as a senior associate working on Japanese security policy. While at the Stimson Center, he directed projects on Japan-China relations, fostering security cooperation between the U.S.-Japan Alliance and the People’s Republic of China, Japan’s nuclear option, and confidence-building measures. Self has also carried out research and writing in areas such as nuclear nonproliferation and disarmament, ballistic missile defense, Taiwan’s security, Northeast Asian security dynamics, the domestic politics of Japanese defense policy, and Japan’s global security role. He served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom in the World.

Dustin N. Sharp is an assistant professor at the Kroc School of Peace Studies at the Univer- sity of San Diego. His current research focuses on critical theories of human rights and transitional justice. He holds a juris doctor degree from Harvard Law School and is a PhD candidate at Leiden University. Sharp previously worked for Human Rights Watch, where he was responsible for designing and implementing research and advocacy strategies in Francophone West Africa. He served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Debbie Sharnak is a PhD candidate at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and teaches at New York University and St. Francis College. Her research focuses on transitional justice and human rights discourse in the Southern Cone. She has worked at several organizations including the International Center for Transitional Justice, Public Action Research, and the New Media Advocacy Project. Her research has been published by Foreign Policy, the North American Congress on Latin America, Latin Correspondent, Diplomacy & State- craft, and in several edited volumes. She was a Fulbright Scholar in Uruguay in 2014. She served as an Americas analyst for Freedom in the World.

Elton Skendaj is a lecturer in the department of political science at the University of Miami. His research focuses on how international and local actors can sustain peace and democracy in postwar societies. He has published a book with Cornell University Press and several articles in Global Governance and Problems of Postcommunism journals. He has also worked professionally with international organizations and civil society organizations in Europe and the US. Skendaj holds a PhD in government from Cornell University, and has had research fellowships at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for scholars and the University of Notre Dame. He served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Mira Sucharov is an associate professor of political science at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, where she is a three-time teaching award winner. She is the author of The Interna- tional Self: Psychoanalysis and the Search for Israeli-Palestinian Peace, and has published articles in International Studies Perspectives, the Journal of International Relations and Development, Armed Forces & Society, the International Journal, and the Journal of Politi- cal Science Education. She is a frequent columnist at Haaretz, The Jewish Daily Forward and the Canadian Jewish News, and has also written for the Globe and Mail and the Daily Beast. She served as a Middle East and North Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Natalie Sykes is a second-year law student at Columbia Law School. She earned her master’s degree in human rights at the London School of Economics, and holds a bachelor’s degree in foreign service from Georgetown University. A former intern at Freedom House, she has written for both Freedom in the World and Freedom of the Press. She served as an Americas analyst for Freedom in the World.

Farha Tahir is a senior program officer at the National Democratic Institute focusing on governance issues in Africa. She previously served as project manager at the International Interfaith Peace Corps and as a program coordinator and research associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. She received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Free- dom in the World.

Michael Toomey is a lecturer of political science at Wenzhou-Kean University in Wenzhou, China. He earned his master’s degrees in international studies and European Politics from University of Limerick and Lund University respectively, and recently received his doctor- ate in global affairs from Rutgers University. He has contributed to Freedom of the Press, and served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Jenny Town is the assistant director of the U.S.-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies. Previously, she worked for the Human Rights in North Korea Project at Freedom House. She received a master’s degree from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, with a concentration in human rights. She served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom in the World.

Noah Tucker has worked both in the nonprofit sector and as a researcher on Central Asian religion, human rights, security, and conflict. He received a master’s degree from Harvard University’s Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies. He served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom in the World.

Kristian Coates Ulrichsen is a Baker Institute fellow for the Middle East. Working across the disciplines of political science, international relations, and international political economy, his research examines the changing position of Persian Gulf states in the global order, as well as the emergence of longer-term, nonmilitary challenges to regional security. His books include Insecure Gulf: The End of Certainty and the Transition to the Post-Oil Era and Qatar and the Arab Spring. His most recent book is entitled The Gulf States in Interna- tional Political Economy. Coates Ulrichsen’s articles have appeared in numerous academic journals, including Global Policy and the Journal of Arabian Studies, and he consults regu- larly on Gulf issues for the public and private sector around the world. Coates Ulrichsen holds a doctorate in history from the University of Cambridge. He served as a Middle East and North Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Daria Vaisman is a New York–based writer and producer. Previously, she was an analyst at Transparency International, deputy director of the Eurasia Foundation in Tbilisi, Georgia, and a journalist covering the Caucasus and Central Asia. She received a master’s degree from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and is a PhD candi- date in criminal justice at the City University of New York’s Graduate Center. She served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom in the World.

Angela Vance is a senior program officer at the National Democratic Institute focusing on governance and advocacy issues in Africa. Previously, she served as a program officer at World Learning and was based in East Africa working for Pact, Save the Children, and Common Hope for Health. She holds a master’s degree in conflict, security, and develop- ment from King’s College London and a bachelor’s degree in international relations from American University with a concentration in peace and conflict resolution. She served as a sub-Saharan Africa analyst for Freedom in the World.

Rebecca Vincent is a human rights activist and former U.S. diplomat who has worked on human rights issues in Azerbaijan for more than nine years. She is currently the coordinator of the Sport for Rights campaign, and has worked with a wide range of Azerbaijani and international human rights organizations. She has published widely on human rights issues in Azerbaijan for outlets including Al-Jazeera, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Index on Censorship, and the London-based Foreign Policy Centre, where she is a research associate. She holds a master’s degree in human rights from University College London, and a bache- lor’s degree in political science from the University of North Texas. She served as a Eurasia analyst for Freedom of the Press and Freedom in the World.

Anja Vojvodic is a PhD candidate at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. She studies women and politics, and comparative politics. Her interests include social move- ments in the Western Balkans, gender quota implementation in parliaments, and the substan- tive political representation of women and minority groups. Anja holds a master’s degree in global affairs from New York University and a bachelor’s degree in political science from Queens College. She was a United States Fulbright Scholar in Serbia from 2011–2012. She served as a Europe analyst for Freedom in the World.

Christine Wade is an associate professor of political science and international studies at Washington College, where she is also the curator of the Louis L. Goldstein Program in Public Affairs. She has authored and coauthored numerous publications on Central Ameri- can politics. She received a PhD in political science from Boston University. She served as an Americas analyst for Freedom in the World.

Elisabeth Wickeri is executive director of the Leitner Center for International Law and Justice and adjunct professor of law at Fordham Law School. Wickeri also directs the Center’s Asia Law and Justice Program and is chair of the New York City Bar Association’s International Human Rights Committee. She concentrates her research on human rights defenders, socio- economic rights, and the rights of vulnerable groups and people. She has led human rights fieldwork in Bolivia, Cambodia, China, Ghana, Myanmar, Nepal, Hong Kong, Rwanda, and Tanzania, and also serves as a law lecturer and course director with the Center for Interna- tional Humanitarian Cooperation. She was an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom in the World.

Anny Wong is an adjunct political scientist with the RAND Corporation and a research fellow with the John G. Tower Center for Political Studies at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. She produces analytical reports on politics and economics in East and South- east Asia for senior business executives. She has also written extensively on science and technology policy, international development, military manpower, and U.S. relations with states in the Asia-Pacific region for U.S. government agencies and international bodies. She received a PhD in political science from the University of Hawaii, Manoa, with support of a graduate studies scholarship from the East-West Center, a federally funded education and cultural exchange institution. She has served as an Asia-Pacific analyst for Freedom in the World.

Academic Advisers

Julio F. Carri´on is an associate professor and associate chair of the Department of Political Science and International Relations at the University of Delaware.

Kathleen Collins is an associate professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis.

Javier Corrales is Dwight W. Morrow 1895 Professor of Political Science at Amherst College.

Tanya Domi is an adjunct professor at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, an affiliate faculty member of the university’s Harriman Institute, and a fellow at the Emerging Democracies Institute.

Michele Dunne is the director and a senior associate in Carnegie’s Middle East Program. She was the founding director of the Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East at the Atlantic Council from 2011 to 2013 and was a senior associate and editor of the Arab Reform Bulletin at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace from 2006 to 2011.

Tulia Falleti is the Class of 1965 Term associate professor of political science and senior fellow of the Leonard Davis Institute for Health Economics at the University of Pennsylvania.

Robert Lane Greene is an editor at the Economist in London, and a former adjunct assistant professor of global affairs at New York University.

Steven Heydemann is Janet W. Ketcham 1953 Professor and Director of Middle East Studies at Smith College, and a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution Center for Middle East Policy.

Melissa Labonte is an associate professor of political science and associate dean for strategic initiatives at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Fordham University.