Working Toward a More Just and Equitable World

You have been recognized for your excellence in online teaching. How do you keep students connected and engaged?

In some ways, we are more connected than ever! Students from around the world have been able to join us virtually, expanding accessibility and adding richness to the graduate school experience. Students engage with each other’s ideas; they challenge, support, and learn from one another. They hold study sessions, work collaboratively, make presentations, and receive feedback. We host virtual events, guest speakers, online advising, group discussions, o ice hours, and one-to-one chats.

Your research focuses on the role of women in democratization. What impact do women have on policy and access to leadership?

Women’s leadership needs to be the new normal. We need to address patriarchal structures that marginalize women using legal reform and continued engagement. The pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on women, yet policies are largely gender blind. We celebrate women leaders for performing better in containing COVID-19, but women in leadership are outliers; despite years of advocating for greater representation of women at all levels, this still lags in practice. For example, in Sierra Leone, the focus of much of my research, women represent less than 10 percent of the leadership in key institutions charged with fighting the outbreak, despite leading on the frontlines as health care workers. COVID-19 reminds us that the battle for gender equity and equality is far from over.

How does the School of Diplomacy and International Relations prepare students to work in today’s diverse world?

Our community is a microcosm of the world. Our students are the changemakers leading the way. Our Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Justice Coalition is listening to students and alumni, assessing curriculum, developing new courses on race and racism, and building the pipeline of diverse international a airs professionals. Our students challenge us to be more responsive and to represent a range of voices. As faculty, we are learning from them and working together to be intentionally anti-racist and address inequality.

How do students benefit from the school’s multidisciplinary, multilateral approach to international a airs?

Our proximity to New York City and Washington, DC, and unique alliances with the UN community expands students’ knowledge base and perspective on global challenges. Students learn from scholars and practitioners engaged in research and policymaking. We represent the complexities of decision-making and analysis of world events from multiple perspectives. Students work with professors as research assistants and co-author articles and opinion pieces, gaining advantage in the job market.

What advice can you give young professionals interested in international a airs?

Never lose your passion for transformative change. Be open to learning from those who do not look like you, as well as from those you want to “help.” Admit that what you do not know is much more than what you do. A key message for students is that development has to change—they have to play their part in decolonizing aid and development institutions and promoting equity in development. International cooperation and multilateral solutions to global problems have never been more essential. The world needs our graduates. This is a critical time to become an international a airs professional.