CV

My research is located at the intersection of international relations and historical political sociology. Eastern and southern Africa are my areas of geographic specialization.

I am presently conducting research on transnational processes impacting social policies and state formation in South Africa and Tanzania. This research is part of the CRC 1342 on Global Dynamics of Social Policy, and more specifically contributes to a comparison of “The rise, decay and renaissance of welfare politics” in Africa.

On the Democratic Republic of Congo, I have conducted several research projects. My doctoral dissertation analyses the interplay of humanitarian military intervention, armed groups, and local structures of rule in this country. I also direct a project on international efforts to combat sexualised violence in the DR Congo.

My teaching and research interests furthermore include topics like development cooperation, sovereign debt politics, the dynamics between collective contentious action and internationalized authority, conflict studies, and post-conflict state formation. Before joining the InIIS at the University of Bremen in 2011, I have been a researcher at Humboldt-University Berlin, University of Magdeburg and University of Bielefeld. From September 2013 to February 2014, I have been a visiting fellow at the European University Institute (EUI) in Florence.

Academic Positions
Studies and Degrees
International research

Studies and Degrees

February 2010     
Doctorate (Dr. phil.) awarded by the Institute for Social Sciences, Humboldt-University Berlin

2008 - 2010    
PhD studies in Political Science at the Institute for Social Sciences, Humboldt-University Berlin

June 2004     
Magister Artium (M.A.) awarded by Humboldt-University at Berlin

2000 - 2001     
Erasmus-Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London

1997 - 2004     
Afrikan Studies (major), Political Science and European Anthropology at the Humboldt-University Berlin