Profile

My first name is pronounced Dah-En. I am a PhD candidate in the Department of Politics and International Studies. I have previously received an MSc in Comparative Politics and a BSc in Government from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). Before joining Warwick, I worked at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Policy Centre and an international parliamentary advocacy network. I also have years of teaching experience. I am currently working as a Research Assistant for the Warwick Interdisciplinary Research Centre for International Development (WICID).

Research

The working title of my doctoral thesis is Legitimation in Contemporary Regional-Global Partnership Peacekeeping. Focusing on the partnership between the African Union (AU) and the United Nations (UN), my research aims to understand how peacekeeping agents practice (discursive) legitimation vis-à-vis each other within contemporary context where international peacekeeping faces normative contestation. It takes a discourse analysis approach, where discourse materials - strategic documents and staff interviews - are analysed thematically. In doing so, I also reflect on illustrative cases of the UN-AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) and the AU mission in Somalia (AMISOM). More broadly, I am interested in the workings of legitimation efforts and struggles within the contemporary global-regional peace and security structure.

My PhD project is co-supervised by Dr Jessica Di Salvatore and Professor Briony Jones. Professor Michael Saward was a temporary second supervisor for this project in 2022.

Areas of my research interest include:

• Peacekeeping/Peacebuilding
• Legitimacy and Legitimation
• Global/Regional governance
• Peace and security in Africa
• United Nations
• African Union

Teaching

2023/24 - PO231 International Security

2022/23 - PO131 World Politics

2021/22 - PO131 World Politics

Conference Presentations

• Audiences and Legitimation in Regional-Global Partnership Peacekeeping. British International Studies Association (BISA) 2024 Conference, Birmingham, June 2024.
• "African Solutions to African Problems"? Ownership and Legitimacy in the AU-UN Partnership Peace Operations. Midlands African Studies Hub (MASH) Conference, University of Warwick, May 2024
• Legitimacy Crisis and the UN-AU Partnership in Contemporary Peacekeeping Operations. BISA Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding Working Group Conference, Open University, February 2023
• Sharing the Responsibility to Protect: Peacekeeping Partnership as the UN's Legitimation Strategy. BISA Intervention and Responsibility to Protect (IR2P) Working Group Annual Conference, University of Leeds, November 2022
• Legitimacy in Practice. (co-presented with Evelyn Strongylakou) PAIS Research Conference, University of Warwick, June 2022

Other Activities

• Research Assistant for the Warwick Interdisciplinary Research Centre for International Development (WICID)

• Co-Chair of the 2022-23 Critical International and Political Studies (CRIPS) graduate working group

• Co-Representative of PAIS Graduate Teaching Assistants