Helen Berents is a researcher interested in the politics of children and youth in international conflict and peacebuilding. She is a Senior Lecturer and Australian Research Council DECRA Fellow with the School of Government and International Relations at Griffith University in Brisbane, Australia. Prior to this she worked at Queensland University of Technology (QUT). She received her PhD in International Relations from the School of Political Science and International Studies at the University of Queensland. Her work is motivated by a genuine belief in the importance of recognising the contributions and capacities of children and youth in navigating violence and building peace.
Her research draws on feminist international relations, critical security studies and the sociology of youth and explores representations and participation of children and youth in peace and conflict, everyday approaches to peacebuilding, and local-global relations in peace and security governance. Her work is concerned with both representations of young people in contexts of crises and conflict, and with engagements with the lived experience of violence-affected communities. Her book Young People and Everyday Peace was published in 2018. She is currently undertaking a project funded by the Australian Research Council DECRA scheme on Youth Leadership and the Future of Peace and Security. For more on her academic and non academic writing see her various completed and in progress Research, or her Writings & Media.
Helen has lived all over Australia, as well as in the UK, Venezuela, and Colombia. Her pronouns are she/her/hers. If she isn’t writing, she is most likely baking something delicious. You can follow her writing, as well as occasional baking updates, on twitter: @hmberents. You can contact her here.
Helen Berents 