One of my greatest joys as an academic is supporting postgraduate students as they pursue a PhD. I always am happy to hear from potential applicants with well-considered proposals that relate directly to my research interests and expertise, particularly related to feminist International Relations and peace studies, critical childhood studies, youth-led peacebuilding, global peace governance, and everyday approaches to peace and conflict.
If you are interested in supervision you may want to first read this post with some general advice to consider if you want to do a PhD “on” Youth, Peace and Security. I have collected some key advice and answers to common questions.
If you do reach out to me to enquire about supervision via email, please ensure you include an up-to-date CV, a transcript of your previous degree/s, a clear 3 page research proposal, your funding context, and a short (max 300 word) statement about why you want to work with me. This will make it easier for me to provide an informed and quick reply!
I get many more supervision requests than I have capacity to supervise, so I am grateful for your understanding if I cannot supervise your research.
Current and Former Students
Erika Isabel Bulan Yague, in progress, PhD, principal supervisor: Advancing the Youth Peace and Security Agenda in Southeast Asia.
Find Erika on LinkedIn | She was one of the lead authors and researchers for the first ASEAN Regional YPS Study, 2025 | Read her article co-authored with Helen Berents in The Pacific Review on the ‘paradox of youth engagement’ in Southeast Asia |
Erika is a PhD Candidate at Griffith University with expertise in youth in emergencies and peacebuilding. She is also currently working with UNICEF HQ (New York) on young people’s engagement in peace, emergencies and DRR with the Adolescent Development and Participation Team. She previously served as the ASEAN-UN Partnership Officer with UN DPPA-DPO in Jakarta and has also worked with UNFPA and UNICEF at headquarters, the Asia and the Pacific Regional Office and Philippine Country Office. Erika has also served as an emergency responder and a government-elected youth councillor in the Philippines. Erika holds a Master’s in Peace and Conflict Studies from the University of Queensland through the Rotary Peace Fellowship, a Bachelor of Science in Community Development from the University of the Philippines, and a Youth, Peace and Security Leadership Professional Programme Certificate from Columbia University.
Lukas Nagel, in progress, PhD, associate supervisor: “You messed with the wrong generation!” Resilience and protest motivations among young Myanmar pro-democracy activists in exile.
Find Lukas on LinkedIn | He is currently a Teaching Fellow in the School of Government and IR at Griffith | He is actively engaged in solidaristic activism on Myanmar in multiple capacities | Read a piece he co-authored at Lowy’s The Interpreter on Gen Z protests and gerontocratic rule in Southeast Asia.
Lukas is a PhD candidate in the School of Government and IR at Griffith University. Lukas’ research focuses on the vital role of young activists in challenging authoritarianism, particularly in the context of the February 2021 military coup in Myanmar. His project investigates political motivations and explains why they risk their lives in political struggle. It also explores their future aspirations and protest repertoires. Before pursuing his studies in Australia, Lukas gained valuable experience working on anti-corruption initiatives in Kenya and engaging in peacebuilding and research efforts across Myanmar, the Philippines, and India. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Sinology (Free University, Germany) and a master’s in Asian studies (Lund University, Sweden). As a certified Peace and Conflict consultant and a committed human rights advocate, he actively contributes to an NGO that supports the democratic aspirations of the Milk Tea Alliance.
—
Dr Ingrid Valladares, 2024, PhD, Principal Supervisor: Bringing generations together: Intergenerational dialogue in youth-led social movements in Latin America. [pdf]
Find Ingrid on LinkedIn. | Read about in-progress FBA-funded project on intergenerational engagement and the YPS agenda of which Ingrid is co-CI | Aus Outlook, 2022 ‘Seeing Youth Issues as Shared Issues“
Ingrid’s research interests include youth political participation, intergenerational engagement, environmental justice, and political activism. With over 10 years of experience in public policy, electoral participation, international relations, and community engagement, she has worked across government, not-for- profit, and community sectors. Her educational background includes studies in economics, education, political sociology and international relations.
Dr Nyasha Mutongwizo, 2024, PhD, Principal Supervisor: Non-mobilised movements in repressive socio-political contexts: an exploratory study of marginalised youth’s everyday agency [pdf]
Nyasha is now a postdoctoral research fellow at QUT Centre for Justice | Read her chapter with Tariro Mutongwizo “Proactive or predatory: Citizen perceptions of the Zimbabwe State Police“
Nyasha is a researcher and social justice advocate dedicated to advancing the inclusion of marginalised populations through meaningful and inclusive engagement. She recently completed a PhD examining the socio-political participation of marginalised youth in the authoritarian context of Zimbabwe. As an emerging author on unconventional forms of engagement, her work offers fresh perspectives on everyday life and collective action in repressive environments.
Dr Megan Parker, 2024, PhD, Associate Supervisor: Navigating the Paradox: Judicial Decision-Making About Young People Who Sexually Offend [pdf]
Megan and her principal supervisor, Kelly Richards won the 2023 Allen Austin Bartholomew Award for the best article published in the Journal of Criminology for their article “A ‘central paradox’
Dr Judith Newton, 2022, PhD, Associate Supervisor: Social Media Activism and the Fight against Forced Labour: Slacktivism, Clicktivism and Offline Participation [pdf]
Judith and her principal supervisor, Erin O’Brien, published a Briefing Paper on ways to improve anti-slavery activism mobilisation on Facebook.
Dr Michelle Ringrose, 2021, PhD, Principal Supervisor: Gendered Narratives of Genocide and the Ethics of Storytelling: An Analysis of Civil Society Representations of the Yazidi Genocide [pdf]
Michelle published an article in Genocide Studies and Prevention on the politicisation of the genocide label in the UNSC | She wrote for Australian Outlook on the Rohingya genocide | She now works as a research officer with the Queensland Parliamentary Service.
Gisella Lopes Gomes Pinto Ferreira, 2020, MPhil, Associate Supervisor: Preventing Teenage Intimate Partner Violence: Advocate Perceptions of Education Programs in the Global South. [pdf]
Find Gisella on LinkedIn | Read her 2023 article on mapping digital dating abuse in Australia and Brazil in English and Portuguese | Gisella is currently a PhD candidate in the School of Justice QUT.
Helen Berents 