
Introduction
The GPS Next Generation Symposium will convene an international cohort of 20-24 graduate students and young professionals for an intensive 5-day program examining international security challenges from a GPS perspective.
The symposium is scheduled to take place November 11-15, 2019 in Washington, D.C.
The 2019 Next Gen Symposium is a part of a larger WIIS initiative to bridge existing divides between the traditional security community and the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) community. Through this initiative, we seek to (1) advance knowledge about the gender dimensions of international security challenges; and (2) support a community of international security experts that is both diverse and knowledgeable about gender dynamics of complex international security challenges.
WIIS is grateful to Carnegie Corporation of New York for its generous support of the 2019 GPS Symposium.
Selection
WIIS recived 500 applicants for the 24 spots making the selection process extremely competitive.
WIIS is happy to report that it recieved its largest and most diverse pool of applicants to date. Some details about the make up of each round of the selection process can be found below.
The nationalities of the final cohort are represented on the map below.

2019 Next Generation Symposium Sponsors
Carnegie Corporation of New York
Carnegie Corporation of New York is America’s oldest grant making foundation, established in 1911 by Andrew Carnegie to promote the advancement and diffusion of knowledge and understanding. In keeping with this mandate, the Corporation’s work focuses on the issues that Andrew Carnegie considered of paramount importance: international peace, the advancement of education and knowledge, and the strength of our democracy
John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation supports creative people, effective institutions, and influential networks building a more just, verdant, and peaceful world. MacArthur is placing a few big bets that truly significant progress is possible on some of the world’s most pressing social challenges, including over-incarceration, global climate change, nuclear risk, and significantly increasing financial capital for the social sector. In addition to the MacArthur Fellows Program, the Foundation continues its historic commitments to the role of journalism in a responsible and responsive democracy, as well as the strength and vitality of our headquarters city, Chicago.
Ploughshares
Ploughshares Fund is an anti-nuclear proliferation organization pooling and directing donations from wealthy individuals and philanthropies. It is the largest grant-making foundation in the United States focusing exclusively on peace and security issues. Founded in 1981 by Sally Lilienthal, the Ploughshares Fund has: funded American and Soviet scientists who first demonstrated the feasibility of verifying a treaty banning nuclear weapon tests; stopped the development of controversial and unnecessary nuclear weapons technologies like the ‘bunker buster’ in the post-9/11 era; brought together 30 organizations in a campaign to win ratification of the New START Treaty, reducing US – and Russian – deployed strategic weapons; and supported crucial diplomatic efforts to stop the spread of nuclear weapons, including the historic 1996 treaty to ban all nuclear tests. Ploughshares Fund has a unique approach to grantmaking that delivers the best returns for peace and security time and again.
The Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI)
The Nuclear Threat Initiative protects lives, the environment, and our quality of life now and for future generations. NTI works with leaders, partners, and citizens from around the world to develop policies to reduce reliance on nuclear weapons, prevent their use, and end them as a threat. NTI designs innovative threat-reduction projects that show governments the way and build momentum and support for action. NTI works with presidents and prime ministers, scientists and technicians, educators and students, and people from around the world. NTI collaborates with partners worldwide, raises awareness, and advocates for creative solutions.
The Embassy of Liechtenstein, Washington DC
Liechtenstein is a country with no military force (since 1868) or current defense agreements with neighbors; as such its sovereignty relies on the upholding of international law. The Embassy of Liechtenstein seeks to build an engaged partnership and dialogue with the US not only in Washington but throughout the 50 states at all levels, from political and economic to cultural and academic. The WIIS Gender, Peace, and Security Policy Roundtables and Policy Briefs are supported by the Embassy of Liechtenstein. The Embassy is hosting the Next Generation Participants on Wednesday November 13, 2019 at a reception.
The German Embassy, Washington DC
The German Embassy is the official representation of the Federal Government of Germany in the United States. Decades of US-German cooperation have created a tightknit fabric of bonds. The German Embassy aims to further strengthen relations in Washington and across the US, across all areas of the USGerman relationship. H.E. Emily Haber, German Ambassador to the United States, will be receiving the Next Generation Participants on November 11, 2019.
Participants

Felicia Dede Addy

Political Officer, Embassy of Japan
MA in International Affairs
The Legon Center for International Affairs and
Diplomacy, University of Ghana, Ghana
BA in Politics
Felicia Dede Addy is the Political Officer of the Embassy of Japan in Ghana, where she liaises with civil society groups such as the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Center to coordinate the Embassy’s support for security and peacebuilding in the West African sub-region. She is a member of the African Youth Panel (AYP), a network of young persons on the continent working to influence youth policy through advocacy, empowerment, and leadership. She is the coordinator for the AYP Ghana Chapter. Prior to joining the Embassy of Japan, Felicia was the Programmes Coordinator for Women, Media and Change (WOMEC), an organization committed to building the capacity of journalists in gender reporting. She also helped in the rehabilitation and reintegration of freed ‘Trokosi’ slave girls in Ghana in her previous role as the Programmes Officer for the Baptist Relief and Development Agency.

Shikshya Adhikari

PhD Student, Rockefeller College
PhD Student in International Relations
University of Albany, USA
MA in Sociology
Illinois State University, USA
BA in Liberal Arts
St. John’s College, USA
Shikshya Adhikari is a PhD student at Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy at the University at Albany. She is an International Relations major, focusing on international security and state sponsorship of terrorism. Her Masters degree focused on rural development. She has worked as a research supervisor for Rockefeller College’s Project on violent conflict and has experience working in the field of international development, including earthquake emergency response in Nepal. She also has five years of teaching experience as an elementary school teacher and teaching assistant.

Rahaf Aldoughli

Lecturer, Lancaster University
PhD in Politics and International Relations
Lancaster University, England
MA in Contemporary Literature Studies
Lancaster University, England
BA in English Language and Literature
Damascus University, Syria
Dr. Rahaf Aldoughli teaches comparative politics and international relations of the Middle East and is a Visiting Fellow at the LSE Middle East Centre. Her research focuses on the association between the rise of nation-states in the Middle East and the perpetuation of militarism, despotism and fundamentalism, analyzing militarism in the Arab context not only as an institution used by the state, but also as an ideology that perpetuates masculinity and gender bias. Rahaf is a Lecturer at Lancaster University teaching Modern Middle Eastern History, based at the Centre for Cultural History of War. She is currently working on a book: Constructing the Syrian Nation: Politics, Ideology and Gender.

Mutti Anggitta

Fulbright PhD Student, SUNY Albany
PhD Student in Political Science, International
Relations & Comparative Politics
SUNY Albany, USA
MS in Science and Security
King’s College, England
BA in International Relations
University of Indonesia, Indonesia
Mutti Anggitta is currently a Fulbright PhD student in Political Science. Previously, she worked as a Lecturer in the Department of International Relations in BINUS University. Her research interests include nuclear non-proliferation, the Korean Peninsula crises, the Iran nuclear deal, and CBRN terrorism. She is also a Certified Nuclear Security Professional with a specialization in Science and Engineering for Nuclear Security.

Çağlayan Başer

Instructor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC)
PhD Candidate in Political Science
Loyola University Chicago, USA
MA in Cultural Management
Bigli University, Turkey
BSc in International Relations
Middle East Technical University, Turkey
Çağlayan Başer is an instructor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) and a PhD Candidate in the Department of Political Science at Loyola University Chicago. Her research focuses on questions related to political violence and gender and combines insights from both interpretive and positivist literature in Political Science. Her dissertation examines how the operation of rebel groups is shaped by gendered dynamics and uses statistical analyses of observational and experimental data as well as qualitative case studies based on primary sources. Her research is published in World Politics. She has been teaching courses on gender and security, social justice, race and ethnicity, and international relations.

Zoya Belmesova

National Policy and Planning Officer, OSCE
MA in Comparative Local Development
Consortium of Universities, Hungary, Germany,
Italy, Slovenia
BA in International and Comparative Politics
American University Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan
Zoya Belmesova works for the Organization for Security and Cooperation (OSCE) mission in Kyrgyzstan focusing on political-military and human dimensions of security. Her professional and research interests include the role of international organizations in shaping regional security, the New Great Game, nuclear power politics, human development, and women’s and youth empowerment. Zoya is a member of EvalYouth ECA, a regional chapter of a global network of young and emerging evaluators, where she helps run a mentorship program for young professionals from Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and South Caucasus.

Chantel Cole

Research Assistant, Queen's University
MA in Political Studies
Queen’s University, Canada
BA in International Development Studies &
Political Science
University of Toronto, Canada
Chantel Cole is the Executive Director of the WIIS-Canada Toronto Chapter and a Research Assistant at Queen’s University. Her research interests lie at the intersection of international relations, comparative politics, and development studies. In particular, she is interested in understanding the causes and dynamics of organized criminal violence in Latin America and the Caribbean. Chantel has field experience in Guatemala, Peru, Ecuador, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti. She will begin her doctoral studies in the Department of Political Science at the University of Toronto in September 2020. She hopes to combine her research training and expertise in politics, development, gender, violence, and conflict with her academic work in a research institute, government, or an international organization to develop tangible solutions towards the goal of combating organized violence in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Merve Erdilmen

PhD Student, McGill University
PhD Student in Political Science
McGill University, Canada
MA in Political Science
McGill University, Canada
BS in Sociology
Middle East Technical University, Turkey
BA in Philosophy
Middle East Technical University, Turkey
Merve Erdilmen is a PhD Student whose research interests include localization of humanitarianism, peacebuilding, gender and forced migration, international practices of the refugee regime, and humanitarian development initiatives in the Middle East. Merve’s research is supported by Mitacs Globalink (2016-2018), Centre for the Study of Democratic Citizenship (2016-2018), McGill Graduate Research Enhancement and Travel Awards (2017-2018), and the Local Engagement Refugee Research Network (2019).

Farnush Ghadery

Visiting Lecturer, King’s College
PhD Candidate in Law
Dickson Poon School of Law, King’s College, UK
LLM in Transnational Law
Dickson Poon School of Law, King’s College, UK
LLB in German Law
University of Birmingham, UK
Farnush Ghadery is a Visiting Lecturer and PhD Candidate at the Dickson Poon School of Law, King’s College London. She was a recipient of the Yeoh Tiong Lay LLM Scholarship and is currently the recipient of the Dickson Poon Postgraduate Research Scholarship. Farnush’s PhD project examines women’s rights and women’s participation in the context of the United Nations 'Women, Peace and Security’ agenda in post-conflict states and analyses the international framework set up for these purposes. Her research focuses on the relationship of the United Nations with local women’s civil society groups in post-conflict states, focusing on the case study of Afghanistan.

Melodie Ha

Research Assistant, NDU
MA in Security Studies
Georgetown University, USA
BA in Political Science
Wellesley College, USA
BA in Chinese Language and Culture
Wellesley College, USA
Melodie Ha was a research assistant for the Center for the Study of Chinese Military Affairs at the U.S. National Defense University’s Institute for National Strategic Studies. Her research areas include the People’s Liberation Army, U.S.-China relations, and cybersecurity and emerging technologies. Prior to this, she worked at the Office of Chinese and Mongolian Affairs at the U.S. Department of State and the Center for a New American Security. Melodie served as a David L. Boren Fellow to China in 2016 at Beijing Foreign Studies University.

Layla Hashemi

PhD Candidate, Schar School of Policy and Government George Mason University
PhD Candidate in Public Policy
Schar School of Policy and Government
George Mason University, USA
MA in International Relations with a concentration in Middle Eastern & Islamic Studies
New York University, USA
BA in International Affairs & Comparative Politics
New York University, USA
Layla M. Hashemi is a PhD Candidate at George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government and a graduate research assistant at the George Mason University’s Terrorism, Transnational Crime and Corruption Center (TraCCC). Ms. Hashemi received her M.A. from New York University in International Relations with a concentration in Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies. Ms. Hashemi has worked for various governmental and non-governmental organizations including Forum 2000 (Prague, Czech Republic) and The Journal of Civil Society. She is currently an adjunct professor of Political Science at Montgomery College where she teaches a variety of courses including Comparative Politics, International Conflict Resolution and a course she helped develop on Global Human Rights. Her current research focuses on illicit trade, human trafficking and corruption in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

Ibrahim Abdulmajeed

Regulatory Engineer
PhD in Safety Engineering and Disaster Control
Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, Nigeria
BA in Engineering (Mechanical Engineering)
Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, Nigeria
MA of Science Engineering
Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, Nigeria
Ibrahim Abdulmajeed is a Regulatory Engineer with The Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority at the Department of Nuclear Safety Security and Safeguards, he is charged with the responsibility of protecting life and the environment from the harmful effects of ionizing radiation, he has a keen interest in issues of Nuclear Safety, Security and Non Proliferation of WMD and to ensure the safe operation of Nuclear Technology, Security of Nuclear facilities and materials. He desires to see that the World is free from the threat of weapons of Mass destruction, which also includes biological and chemical weapons. He was also a visiting fellow at the James Martin Centre for Non-Proliferation Studies Monterey USA.

Elinor McNamee

Women, Peace and Security Specialist, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Canada
MSc in Women, Peace and Security
London School of Economics, UK
BA in International Studies
Simon Fraser University, British Columbia
Elinor McNamee is a Women, Peace and Security Specialist at the Canadian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Elinor has previously worked in trade, humanitarian, and non-profit sectors, always centering human security and gender equality in her work. Elinor co-founded Young Gen for Inclusive Peace, a research and advocacy platform dedicated to promoting the inclusion of young voices in advancing the WPS agenda. Elinor is also a contributor at the Centre for Feminist Foreign Policy and a regular guest lecturer at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Elinor served as an elected student representative during both her graduate and undergraduate studies, has served on the Board of Directors of the Canadian International Council (Vancouver Branch) and Leave Out Violence Society BC, and was a member of the International Humanitarian Law Steering Committee for the Canadian Red Cross in BC & Yukon.

Mónica Mendez Caballero

Security & Defense Policy Advisor
MAS in International and European Security
University of Geneva and the GCSP, Switzerland
Leadership in International Security Course
GCSP, Switzerland
MBA in Top Management
IPADE Business School, Mexico
BA in Political Science
ITAM, Mexico
Mónica Mendez Caballero is a political scientist specialized in policy design for security, defense, and rule of law sector. Her work focuses on analyzing the Security Sector Reform in Mexico. While at public service, her work designing and implementing a Strategic Management Model for public security agencies was awarded with the 3rd place of the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) 2017 Contest on Management for Development Results (MfDR). Mónica has technically assisted the Guatemalan Ministry of Government and the National Civil Police in planning methodologies to strengthen public security institutions. And she had taught the subject "Strategic planning tools for police operation" in the Program for Police Command presented by the Center for Research and Teaching in Economics (CIDE) and the National Commission of Security. She has served in the Federal Government of Mexico, as Deputy General Director at the National Commission of Security; as Director at the Secretariat of the National Security Council; as advisor to Undersecretaries at the Secretary of Interior and at the Secretary of Civil Service.

Dismas Ndayikengurukiye

Coordinator, Greenland Alliance
MPhil in International Peace Studies
Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
BA in English Language and Literature
University of Burundi, Burundi
Dismas Ndayikengurukiye works as a Coordinator at Greenland Alliance. He recently graduated with Distinction in Master of Philosophy in International Peace Studies from Trinity College Dublin. Being part of the Young African Leaders Initiatives (YALI), he is very passionate about leadership and peace with focus on gender issues in post-conflict contexts. He volunteered with different local youth organisations in conducting trainings on leadership, non-violence and conflict resolution, and gender topics.

Amanda Trea Phua

Senior Analyst, RSIS
MSc in International Relations
RSIS, Singapore
BA in English Literature
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Amanda Trea Phua is Senior Analyst at the United States Programme at the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Singapore. Amanda previously worked as an international news producer and editor-in-chief of an interdisciplinary arts publication. Her research interests lie at the intersection of international relations theory, gender studies, and critical social thought.

Emily Sample

Executive Director, Genocide Prevention Program
George Mason University, USA
MA in Human Rights and Genocide Studies
Kingston University, England
BA in History, Russian & Post-Soviet Studies
The College of William and Mary, USA
Emily Sample is the Executive Director of the Genocide Prevention Program at the George Mason University School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution and is in the process of earning her PhD. Previously, she worked as Associate Director of Education at the Holocaust Museum Houston, for the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region Ugandan National Committee on the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide and Mass Atrocities, as well as for the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC. Her research interests include sexual and gender-based violence, climate change mitigation, and mass atrocity prevention.

Ana Sanchez Cobaleda

Researcher, University of Leiden
PhD in International Public Law
Universitat de Barcelona, Spain
MA in International Law (LLM)
Universitat de Barcelona, Spain
MA in International Organizations & Cooperation
Universitat de Barcelona, Spain
BA in Law
Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
Dr. Ana Sanchez Cobaleda is currently a visiting researcher at the University of Leiden and holds a post-doc position at ESADEGeo, where her research focuses on international peace and security as a global public good. Ana's PhD thesis at the University of Barcelona focused on the international legal regime of dual-use goods and how it relates to the non-proliferation of WMD. She is an alumnus of the OECD’s NEA International School of Nuclear Law and a member of the Chaudfontaine Group on strategic trade control. Ana has been a visiting researcher at the KU Leuven, the University of Geneva, the University of Amsterdam, and the Council of Europe. Previously she worked as a lawyer in a private sector law firm and at the UN Development Program’s Regional Centre for Latin America and the Caribbean.

Sophie Schor

PhD Student, Korbel School
PhD Student in International Studies
Josef Korbel School of International Studies, University of Denver, USA
MA in Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies
Rothberg International School at
Hebrew University, Jerusalem
BA in Government and Middle Eastern Studies
Smith College, USA
Sophie Schor’s work focuses on the intersection of nonviolent civil resistance and feminist movements in Israel/Palestine. Her research interests include spatial politics, critical political theory, language, and community-based research approaches. Her previous work includes a historical ethnography of feminist peace movements in Israel, focusing on Women Wage Peace; a critical reading of Hebrew language textbooks; and an analysis of bus-routes and borders in Jerusalem. She was a member of the first ever women’s group of Combatants for Peace, and served on the steering committee of Sumud Freedom Camp in the South Hebron Hills in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Madison Schramm

Post-Doctoral Fellow, University of Notre Dame
PhD in International Relations
Georgetown University, USA
MA in Government
Georgetown University, USA
BA in Political Science
Sarah Lawrence College, USA
Dr. Madison Schramm is a Postdoctoral Fellow in Innovative Approaches to Grand Strategy at the University of Notre Dame. Her research focuses on international security, the domestic politics of foreign policy, political psychology, and gender and foreign policy. Madison has previously worked with the Council on Foreign Relations, the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs, Yale University's Political Violence FieldLab, and the RAND Corporation.

Smita Singh

Assistant Committee Officer, Parliament of India
PhD Candidate in Diplomacy & Disarmament Division
Jawaharlal Nehru University, India
MPhil in Disarmament & Diplomacy Division
Jawaharlal Nehru University, India
MA in Politics
Jawaharlal Nehru University, India
BA in Political Science
St. Xavier’s College, University of Calcutta, India
Smita Singh is currently working as an Assistant Committee Officer in the India Parliamentary Committee on External Affairs. Previously, she held the position of Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science in Lady Shri Ram College for Women, University of Delhi. She has been awarded a Senior Research Fellowship in both International Relations and Political Science from the University Grants Commission, India. Her research interest lies in the areas of foreign policy analysis, comparative government, strategic and nuclear policy, and gender politics.

Dallin Van Leuven

Program Manager, Search for Common Ground
MA in Law and Diplomacy
Tufts University, USA
BS in Justice Studies
Westminster College, USA
Dallin Van Leuven is a Program Manager for Search for Common Ground (Search), where he has worked for the past four years. He has researched the drivers of radicalization across the Middle East, led the creation of Search’s CVE guide and training curriculum, and advised on the UN Women-funded research project “Women and Violent Radicalization in Jordan.” Van Leuven has co-authored a number of research studies, including Search’s “Youth and Contentious Politics in Lebanon: Drivers of Marginalization and Radicalization in Tripoli,” and the United Nations Development Programme’s “Kosovo-Wide Assessment of Perceptions of Radicalisation at the Community Level.” He also authored a book chapter on ISIL’s unprecedented use of gendered strategies to recruit foreign men and women, which was published in Foreign Fighters under International Law and Beyond. Van Leuven is a native of the state of Idaho in the United States and currently resides in Rome, Italy.

Jana Wattenberg

Deputy Director of the David Davies Memorial Institute of International Studies
PhD Candidate in International Politics
Aberystwyth University, UK
MA in International Studies/ Peace & Conflict Studies
Goethe University Frankfurt am Main, Germany
BA in Sociological European Studies
University of Bremen, Germany
Jana Wattenberg is a PhD Candidate in the Department of International Politics at Aberystwyth University, and the Deputy Director of the David Davies Memorial Institute of International Studies. She holds a BA from the University of Bremen in Sociological European Studies and a MA in International Studies/Peace and Conflict Studies from Goethe University Frankfurt. She is currently working on research projects on ideas about nuclear weapons and disarmament, nuclear stigmatization and women in nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation.