I entered the MPhil Development Studies at Queen Elizabeth House in 2005. In the summer of 2007 I headed to Sierra Leone to conduct interviews for my Master's thesis on the state of reintegration of former RUF-rebels. I completed the MPhil in 2008 and started my doctoral research at the Department for Politics and International Relations and Nuffield College. My dissertation deals with intergenerational conflict in Sierra Leone specifically and questions surrounding the empowerment and exploitation of youth in Africa more generally. In this respect, I focus on the transformative effect violence and war as well as post-conflict environments have on power struggles and bargaining between elder and younger generations.

Further details on my fieldwork and research/work

My studies and fieldwork have been generously funded and supported by the Cusanuswerk, the German National Academic Foundation, the Haniel Foundation, Nuffield College and the DPIR/Norman Chester Fund.