Postdoctoral Research Fellow, SOAS University of London Jasmine Bhatia is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Development Studies at SOAS. Her research interests include civil wars, insurgent movements, and sub-national political settlements in violent contexts. In 2018, she received her doctorate in Politics from Oxford University. In addition to her academic projects, Dr. Bhatia has worked as a consultant for the United Nations and on several UK government-sponsored international development projects, primarily in Afghanistan and the Middle East.
Activist and Scholar, Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit Orzala Nemat is an internationally known Afghan activist and scholar. She holds a Ph.D. in Development Studies from the SOAS, University of London, and an MSc in Development Planning from the University College London (UCL). Dr. Nemat experienced how it is to be a war refugee for fourteen years in Pakistan. However, Dr. Nemat chose to rise above the situation by putting the focus on developing her career, at the same time, she assisted and helped the marginalized members of society through educational programs, building schools, protection of female victims of violence and peacebuilding for children.
Professor, Instituto de Estudios Políticos y Relaciones Internacionales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia Francisco Gutiérrez Sanín (@fgutierrezsanin) is a researcher at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia. He was member of the Comisión Histórica del Conflicto y sus Víctimas created during the Colombian government-FARC peace negotiations. His recent publications include “Clientelistic Warfare: Paramilitaries and the State in Colombia (1982–2007)” (2019, with Elisabeth Wood). He leads the Colombian research on Drugs & (dis)order.
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Development Studies, SOAS University of London Dr. Patrick Meehan is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Development Studies at SOAS University of London. He is also a co-Investigator on Drugs & (dis)order. His research explores violence, conflict and development in Myanmar’s borderlands. He has also undertaken research with the UK Government Stabilisation Unit, the World Bank, Christian Aid and Conciliation Resources.
Policy engagement and research uptake coordinator, Department of Development Studies, SOAS University of London Karen Brock is a research communication specialist who coordinates policy engagement and research uptake for Drugs & (dis)order. Funded by the Global Challenges Research Fund, this programme is conducting research into the dilemmas and trade-offs involved in transforming illicit drug economies into peace economies in the borderlands of Afghanistan, Colombia and Myanmar.