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Meet the

Leadership Team

The Leadership Team operates under the guidance of the Board of Directors. Team leads and fellows oversee day-to-day work within their portfolios and support the Center for International Relations and International Security (CIRIS) in line with strategic priorities set by the Board.

The leadership team is comprised of:

Raffaele Petroni
Editor in Chief

Raffaele Petroni serves as Editor in Chief and leads the editorial direction and peer-review workflow of the Panoply Journal.

Leadership Team Nikolaj Oudman
Nikolaj Oudman
Program Lead, Fundraising & Outreach

Nikolaj leads CIRIS fundraising and outreach initiatives and supports partner engagement and development.

Leadership Team Akshita Jain
Akshita Jain
Program Lead, Digital Content

Akshita leads CIRIS digital content strategy and supports publication workflows across the website and social channels.

Leadership Team Francis Kapito
Francis Kapito
Senior Fellow, Africa

Francis Kapito serves as Senior Fellow for Africa, contributing regional analysis, research support, and strategic guidance.

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Mursel Sabir
Senior Fellow, SWANA

Mursel Sabir serves as Senior Fellow for the SWANA (South West Asia and North Africa) region, supporting research and regional analysis.

Hashim
Hashim Al Mahfoodh
PR Specialist

Hashim supports CIRIS communications and public relations, helping strengthen outreach and visibility.

Research Associates

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Anna Goelz
Research Associate

Anna contributes research support across CIRIS projects and publications.

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Louis Power
Research Associate

Louis supports CIRIS initiatives through research assistance and project coordination.

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Yucheng Hou
Research Associate

Yucheng contributes to CIRIS research and editorial support across ongoing projects.

Ivana
Ivana
Research Associate

Ivana supports CIRIS research and content development across assigned topics such as the Balkan Desk.

Zeno
Zeno Morra di lavriano
Research Associate

Zeno contributes to CIRIS research and editorial support across ongoing projects.

Carol
Carol Thomason
Research Associate

Carol contributes contributes to CIRIS research and editorial support across ongoing projects.

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Ellesmere Foley
Research Associate

Ellesmere contributes contributes to CIRIS research and editorial support across ongoing projects.

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Ha an Nguyen
Research Associate

Ha An contributes contributes to CIRIS research and editorial support across ongoing projects.