FLAME University

HAPPENINGS @ FLAME

The latest happenings in the FLAME Community

The Centre for Experimental Social Sciences (CESS) Nuffield – FLAME University aims to promote cutting-edge social science research in India by using rigorous experimental techniques. As part of this mission, CESS Nuffield – FLAME University welcomes our 2017 Pre-Doctoral Fellow Kimberlee Chang, a Ph.D. candidate from the University of Colorado – Boulder. We also welcome Silvia Spodaru, a D.Phil. candidate at the University of Oxford, as one of our Ph.D. visitors and Mr. Nicholas Haas who is a Ph.D. candidate in the politics department at New York University.

Ms. Chang will be working with with CESS Nuffield – FLAME University Director Sharon Barnhardt on a lab experiment focusing on the effect of civil society engagement on inter-ethnic communication and common pool resources. Ms. Spodaru will be on campus conducting preliminary qualitative work in preparation for an experiment on sacred values and inter-ethnic cooperation. Mr. Haas will be working with CESS Nuffield – FLAME University Director Sharon Barnhardt and co-Director Pavan Mamidi on a field experiment that focuses on improving police treatment of women.

CESS Nuffield - FLAME University is also pleased to welcome our two undergraduate summer interns Ms. Katherine Leung and Mr. Connor Staggs . They join us this summer at FLAME as part of Princeton University's International Internship Program. The internship program runs from 19 June to 25 August, 2017.

Kimberlee Chang, University of Colorado - Boulder

Kimberlee Chang is a Ph.D. candidate in the Political Science Department at the University of Colorado - Boulder. Her research focuses on natural resource governance, polycentric governance, and identity-based conflict mitigation. Her current research compares women’s empowerment in forest-dependent communities in Tanzania, Peru and Indonesia and also looks at the effect of decentralization reforms on local forms of conflict in the African continent.

Prior to joining the University of Colorado - Boulder, Ms. Chang worked at the International Food Policy Research Institute, the International Center for Research on Women, and the InterMedia Survey Institute, all of them in Washington, D.C. She holds a B.A. (Honors) in Political Science from George Washington University.

Silvia Spodaru, University of Oxford

Silvia Spodaru is a D.Phil. candidate in the Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford, and a member of St. Cross College. She holds two M.A. degrees in European Studies from the College of Europe and the University Sorbonne Nouvelle, where she majored in International Relations. Her research broadly focuses on religion, identity and conflict. She is currently working on several projects including extremism, religious intergroup conflict, and immigrant religious minorities.

Silvia has also worked for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Paris as a Political Analyst, and as a Research Assistant at the Ian Ramsey Centre for Science and Religion at the University of Oxford.

Mr. Nicolas Haas, New York University

Mr. Haas is a Ph.D. Candidate in the Politics department at New York University. His research interests lie in comparative politics, political behavior, political economy of development, and experimental methods. He is also the current Managing Editor for the Journal of Experimental Political Science. Prior to NYU, Mr. Haas worked as a researcher at Harvard Law School and Harvard Business School. He holds a B.A. with highest distinction from the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor.

Katherine Leung

Katherine is a rising second year student at Princeton University. She is deeply interested in applying rigorous analytical thinking to solving public policy problems. She plans to major in Public and International Affairs through Princeton's Woodrow Wilson School and minor in East Asian Studies.

Connor Staggs

Connor is a rising fourth year student at Princeton University. His interests include South Asian cultures and languages, particularly Urdu. He is majoring in Politics, focusing most of his independent work on language policy in India. He is contemplating pursuing a career in academia after graduation.