Collaborators
André is a civil servant with the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF) and has worked for more than 20 years in diplomacy and international cooperation, with a particular focus on countries in crisis and those emerging from crisis. He previously served as a Ministerial Advisor and has also worked at the French Embassies in the Central African Republic (where he was awarded the rank of Commander in the National Order of Recognition), the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi. This followed his role, notably, in charge of civilian crisis management at the French Ministry of…
Emerging Scholar
Maria Aftimos joined the DESS in International Studies at the University of Montreal after completing her master's degree in International Relations, Security and Defence. Her research focuses on the new "Great Game" in the Middle East since 2011 from the perspective of the Land-Sea duality. She seeks to analyze the dynamics behind international and regional power rivalries in the Middle East. Maria Aftimos is also interested in the discovery of offshore oil fields in the Eastern Mediterranean and its implications both regionally and internationally.
Emerging Scholar
François Akilatan is a PhD candidate in International Studies at Université Laval, under the joint supervision of Professors Anessa Kimball and Arthur Silve. He holds a master’s degree in international relations and a bachelor’s degree in political science. His doctoral research examines the perception and construction of borders as security threats, the mechanisms underlying the contagious and cross-border diffusion of terrorist threats in sub-Saharan Africa, and the measurement of state presence in the Sahel’s border regions. Situated at the intersection of security studies, border studies, and African studies, his work seeks to deepen understanding of the relationships between border…
Emerging Scholar
Marie-Pier is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in the Department of Political Science at Queen's University, co-supervised by Dr. Stéfanie von Hlatky and Dr. Sarah-Myriam Martin-Brûlé. She holds the position of Publications Coordinator and Emerging Researcher within the Strategic Analysis Network (SAN). Originally from Quebec, she earned her Bachelor's degree in Political Science and International Studies from Bishop's University in 2021, and subsequently completed a dual Master's degree in Political Science and European Studies at the University of Montreal and the Catholic University of Louvain in 2023. Marie-Pier specializes in international relations, with a particular focus on issues related to peace…
Emerging Scholar
Isabella Aung is a Research Fellow affiliated with the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Toronto. She is also a Consultant Research Analyst at PerceptX, a Canadian veteran-owned advisory firm focused on defence and aerospace. She holds an MA in Political Science from Simon Fraser University and an honours degree in International Relations from Linfield University. She is an incoming Juris Doctor (JD) candidate at the University of Ottawa. Isabella held research and policy fellowships at the University of British Columbia, the University of York, Queen’s University, and the Centre for International and Defence Policy…
Fellow Researchers
Niagalé Bagayoko holds a PhD in Political Science from the Institut d'Études Politiques (IEP) in Paris. Her thesis was awarded the first prize of the Institut des Hautes Études de la Défense Nationale (IHEDN). A specialist in security system reform (SSR) in Francophone Africa, international security policies in sub-Saharan Africa, and African conflict management mechanisms, she has directed the "peacekeeping and peacebuilding" program of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, after working as a researcher at the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) at the University of Sussex (UK) and the Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD, France), as well…
Collaborator
Pauline Baudu works on the convergence of climate change, geopolitics and security, with a focus on the European and North American Arctic and the role of NATO in addressing these issues. She is also interested in the intersection between climate change and gray-zone tactics, and climate-driven migrations. She is a Senior Fellow with Arctic360 (Toronto), a nonresident Research Fellow with the Center for Climate and Security of the Council on Strategic Risks (Washington D.C.), and an Associate with Arctic Security Consultants (Ottawa). She previously served as a Research Assistant at the Polar Institute and the Environmental Change and Security Program of…
Emerging Scholar
As a master’s candidate in International Law (LL.M.), Daphné Beaudoin’s research focuses on issues related to the protection of human rights during armed conflicts. Since the defence of human rights is a key component of her professional interests, she has contributed to the works of UQAM’s Clinique internationale de défense des droits humains, as well as Amnesty International Canada and the Canadian Red Cross. Given her close connection to the academic world, she has worked at UQAM’s Faculty of Political Science and Law and is also an active member of the Société québécoise de droit international. More recently, she had…
Emerging Scholar
Kim Beaulieu is a Ph.D. student at the University of British Columbia. Under the supervision of Katharina Coleman, her research focuses on prison and justice system reforms in (post-)conflict contexts. She holds an M.A and a B.A from the University of Montreal. Her master's thesis focused on feminist foreign policies, especially the strategic and political dimensions related to the adoption of a feminist label on the international stage. She is a doctoral student for the Research Network on Women, Peace and Security. She was also awarded the Killam Undergraduate Award in 2018.
Researcher
Philippe Beaulieu-Brossard is a Marie S. Curie Fellow at the Centre for Military Studies, University of Copenhagen, an assistant professor (on leave) specializing in Defence, Security Studies and Design Theory, and the design thinking curriculum lead for O4-O5s at Canadian Forces College (CFC). Philippe is the co-founder of Innovation Methodologies for Defence Challenges (IMDC), the leading global annual convention gathering military designers, instructors, and researchers from around the world since 2016. He also successfully designed, coordinated and led two world-class design thinking exercises called Shifting Sands for 80 students supported by 8 facilitators, 11 regional experts, 6 directing staffs during…
