New Faces at the IEE

Please meet the new Research Fellows who recently joined our team!

Irene Among is a PhD researcher under the ADAPTED project. Her research focuses on building coherent social protection systems. She previously worked as a Social Development Consultant. She was lead investigator on gender and social impact assessments, evaluation of programmes on women’s economic empowerment, youth employment, disability inclusion, and various aspects of social protection. Prior to that, she worked as a Social Development Adviser for the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) in Uganda, where she led a project on social protection and gender equality programming. Irene holds a MSc. (International Development) from the University of Birmingham (UK), MA. (Public Administration & Management) and a BA (Social Sciences) obtained from Makerere University (Uganda).

Leonie Sophie Grunau joined the IEE as a research fellow in November 2021. She holds a Master of Arts in International Development Studies with a focus on Latin America from the Philipps-University Marburg, and graduated from the University of Applied Sciences Fulda with a Bachelor of Arts in Social Studies with a focus on Intercultural Relations. Her research interests are related to the localisation of the Sustainable Development Goals and to the political settlements of extractivism in Latin America, especially in Mexico. At the IEE, she supports the coordination of the Master of Arts in Development Management (MADM), fulfills her teaching assignment, and works on her doctoral research.

Akua Martinson has been working at the IEE as a Research Fellow since September 2021 as part of the EU-funded programme, ADAPTED. Before joining the Institute, she worked as Project Officer for the Training Project with the Deutsche Sparkassenstiftung fur internationale Kooperation (DSIK-Western Africa). Akua holds a Master of Science degree in Development Economics from the School of Oriental & African Studies (SOAS), University of London; and prior to that, she earned an undergraduate degree in Economics from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science & Technology in Ghana. Her research interests include economics of growth and development, poverty reduction, and employment creation in developing economies.

Simon Rahn is now working at the IEE as a research fellow. He holds a Master of Arts in International Relations and Development Policy from the University of Duisburg-Essen and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and African Studies from the University of Leipzig. His research interests include the transfer of political authority to regional organizations; and regional governance in policy areas such as democracy promotion, human rights, and social protection. At the IEE, he will primarily support the coordination of the European Joint Doctorate, ADAPTED.

Muhammad Saleh is now working as a Research Fellow and PhD Student (ADAPTED) at the IEE. He holds a Master Degree in Economics from the University of Punjab, Pakistan. He has also graduated in Development Studies with specialization in Economics of Development from the International Institute of Social Studies (ISS), Erasmus University Rotterdam, Netherlands. He has experience in estimating poverty headcounts and analyzing poverty and inequality dynamics in the context of developing countries. Mr. Saleh has also assisted in coordinating and monitoring the implementation of the SDGs agenda; administering the World Bank social sector development assistance, and economic and technical appraisal of social sector development projects. With research interests in the fields of Development Economics and Political Economy, he has an increased research focus on areas of poverty, human capital development, development finance, and economic growth.

Natalia Zakharchenko is a doctoral student in International Development Studies at the Institute of Development Research and Development Policy, Ruhr-University Bochum. She holds two postgraduate degrees: an MA in politics and security (magna cum laude) from the OSCE Academy in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, and an interdisciplinary LLM in politics of international law (cum laude) from the Vrije University Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Before joining the ADAPTED programme, Natalia worked as a consultant in human rights for the Norwegian Helsinki Committee, engaged in gender mainstreaming for the UNDP Gender programme in Kyrgyzstan, and served as an officer at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic. She has also completed research fellowships at George Washington University, USA, and the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs, Norway. Following critical reflections on international law, her PhD research focuses on rights-based approaches to social assistance and the way global human rights discourses manifest through local legal mechanisms in Sub-Saharan Africa.