Presenters
Aliza Berger | Johns Hopkins University
Bitcoin: A Viable Currency Alternative
Bitcoin: A Viable Currency Alternative
Aliza Berger is studying International Studies with a minor in Entrepreneurship & Management at Johns Hopkins University. She is spending her junior year enrolled the Johns Hopkins' School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) campus in Bologna, Italy. Her academic interests focuses on how technological disruption is affecting international relations. She will be returning this summer to Booz Allen Hamilton as a summer consultant.
Christopher Gyra | Georgetown University
Evaluating the Effectiveness of Implementing the International Child Development Program across Jusoor’s Safe Schools
Evaluating the Effectiveness of Implementing the International Child Development Program across Jusoor’s Safe Schools
Christopher is a member of the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service's Class of 2021, majoring in Science, Technology, and International Affairs (STIA) with a concentration in Business, Growth, and Development. While hailing originally from Massachusetts, he spent most of his life adolescence abroad living in London, Hong Kong, and Dubai. Outside of the Walsh Exchange, Christopher can be found debating for Georgetown's International Relations Club, playing saxophone for the GU Jazz Band, or competing with the GU Ultimate Frisbee Team. He is extremely excited to present his research on Syrian refugee psychosocial support this April!
Moez Hayat | Georgetown University
Oil, the Sultan, and Ghurkas: The British Withdrawal East of Suez and Bruneian Oil
Oil, the Sultan, and Ghurkas: The British Withdrawal East of Suez and Bruneian Oil
Moez Hayat is a junior in the School of Foreign Service majoring in International Politics with a concentration in Foreign Policy. He is also pursuing a minor in Arabic and an ACMCU Certificate in Muslim Christian Understanding. Moez is a writer for the MENA section of The Caravel, an on-campus international affairs newspaper, and a tutor for the DC Schools Program. He works for Campus Ministry’s Office of Muslim Life and serves on the board of the Muslim Students Association. Moez is a native of Shreveport, Louisiana where he has lived all his life with his family.
Paul Keh | Georgetown University
Study on the Effectiveness of Chinese Pipeline Construction in Myanmar on China’s Energy Security
Study on the Effectiveness of Chinese Pipeline Construction in Myanmar on China’s Energy Security
Born and raised in Singapore, Paul Keh is a sophomore in the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service (SFS), majoring in International Politics. Focusing on East and Southeast Asia through his academics, he is also pursuing a certificate in Asian Studies. Paul is interested in Asia-Pacific regional security and foreign policy, and plans to deepen his understanding of Chinese foreign policy and naval-strategic ambitions through original research. Paul is passionate about public policy and civil service and is a scholar of the SFS Walsh Scholars Initiative (WSI), which supports and prepares exceptional SFS undergraduate students for public service and global leadership.
Ming Kwang Teoh | National University of Singapore
The Paradoxes of Identities and Politics - Aung San Suu Kyi in Burma and Myanmar
The Paradoxes of Identities and Politics - Aung San Suu Kyi in Burma and Myanmar
Teoh Ming Kwang is a final year undergraduate in Global Studies at the National University of Singapore. He is currently researching on the role of identities in communal violence, nation-building, international relations, and global governance. He enjoys working and living in different countries. Previously, he interned in East Asia Institute, a leading think tank in South Korea, in Choson Exchange, an organisation that develops an entrepreneurship ecosystem in North Korea, and in Kyoto Pangaea, a non-profit organisation that fosters global citizenship values through youth-mediated communication tools in Japan. On a daily basis, he finds simple pleasures from brewing a nice cup of coffee and playing with dogs.
Eli Liebell-McLean | Rutgers University
Drones, Lethal Lawfulness, and the American Presidency
Drones, Lethal Lawfulness, and the American Presidency
Eli Liebell-McLean is a senior (Class of 2018) at Rutgers University - New Brunswick, majoring in English with a double minor in Political Science and American Studies. He participated in both the Aresty and Gardner fellowship programs, studying global melodrama and legal restraints on targeted killing. Eli's hobbies include Model United Nations, Dungeons & Dragons, and reading.
Marina Smith | Georgetown University
Addressing the Narratives in Health-Centric Data Collection: A Case Study of Cities in the US and South Africa
Addressing the Narratives in Health-Centric Data Collection: A Case Study of Cities in the US and South Africa
Marina Smith is a senior in the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. She is studying Science, Technology, and International Affairs with a concentration in Global Health. Her current research focuses on how and why local, urban public health departments in the U.S. and South Africa collect data related to health. She is interested in urban social epidemiology, and, in particular, how demographics and features of the built environment impact health outcomes. She plans to pursue a career in epidemiology and aspires to hold a leadership position at an urban public health agency.
Ari Weil | Pomona College
The North African Foreign Fighter Paradox: Comparative Transnational Insurgent Participation in Algeria and Tunisia
The North African Foreign Fighter Paradox: Comparative Transnational Insurgent Participation in Algeria and Tunisia
Ari Weil is a senior at Pomona College. He majors in international relations with a focus on international security, terrorism studies, military strategy, and civil-military relations. He has previously served as a research assistant with Dr. Bruce Hoffman at Claremont McKenna College studying Reagan-era counterterrorism, Dr. Kim Cragin at National Defense University examining virtually-planned terrorist attacks, and Dr. Colin Beck at Pomona College investigating the overlap between revolutionary situations and terrorist activity.
Lisa Xiao | Johns Hopkins University
Private Enterprise Development in Rural China
Private Enterprise Development in Rural China
Lisa Xiao ’18 is a Chinese-Canadian majoring in International Studies at Johns Hopkins University. She is a Woodrow Wilson Fellow, a three-year research fellowship at Johns Hopkins University and an early admit to the M.A. program at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). Previously, Lisa has taken on roles in policy research at an independent think tank in Beijing, refugee camp coordination in Greece, investment banking at J.P. Morgan, asset management at Morgan Stanley, and technology investing in private equity. She speaks Mandarin, French, Cantonese, and English. Presently, she is based in The Gambia, West Africa working for the United Nations. In her free time, she enjoys cycling and long runs.