I am a doctoral candidate in International Relations and ESRC scholar at Oxford, and also an English-qualified lawyer with four years’ professional experience in top international law firm in London and Brussels.
My DPhil research focuses on the League of Nations, and the emergence and practice of its secretariat as an independent actor in international relations. Drawing on original archival research in sites worldwide (the League of Nations archives in Geneva, the British National Archives in London, the UN archives in New York, and the Deutsche Kongress-Zentrale archives at Stanford), I am working on interpreting the different meanings of 'internationalism' in the diplomatic, legal, and political practice of the League. More broadly, I am interested on the history of internationalism, international law, and diplomatic practice as constitutive elements of international society; more broadly still, on the relationship between history and International Relations, and international law and politics.
Prior to the DPhil, I obtained an MPhil in International Relations at the University of Oxford (Distinction) and a BSc in International Relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science (Distinction). In between LSE and Oxford, I qualified as a lawyer in England, working for four years at international law firm Shearman & Sterling, in London and Brussels. I am a former managing editor of the St Antony's International Review, Oxford's journal of international affairs (2016/17).
Teaching specialism, interests and experience
My teaching experience, in both lectures and seminar/tutorial teaching, include:
- International Relations theory at the University of Oxford (2017/2019)
- International history of the interwar period at the University of Oxford (2017/2018)
- International history of the Cold War at the University of Oxford (2017/2018)
- Research methods in International Relations and Politics at Oxford Brookes University (Associate Lecturer, 2017/18)
- Human Rights theory and practice at Oxford Brookes University (Associate Lecturer, 2017/18)
Awards
Economic and Social Research Council 2+2 scholarship, University of Oxford (2015-2019)
Full ESRC scholarship, covering tuition and maintenance fees, for both MPhil and DPhil.
Department of Politics and International Relations, Oxford (2015-2019)
Writing-Up Grant 2019.
Maurice Latey Award 2015, Winchester Awards 2016 and 2019, Oxford Project for Peace Studies Awards 2018 and 2019, Cyril Foster Award 2019.
St Antony’s College, Oxford, (2016, 2017, 2018)
Student Travel and Research Grant to fund presentations at international conferences.
International Studies Association (ISA) (2017)
Travel grant from ISA to present paper at the 2017 Annual Convention in Baltimore.
Languages
Portuguese: Fluent. Mother language.
English: Fluent. 2003 Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English: grade A.
French: Fluent. 2011 Paris Chamber of Commerce, Certificat de Français Juridique B2 (grade 80%)
- 2008 French top level at LSE degree course and economics monograph in French: First-class (74).
- 2004 Alliance Française DELF 4, grade AA; Université de Genève Cours d’été (grade 86%).
Spanish: Fluent. 2008 Instituto Cervantes DELE Nivel Intermedio (grade 93%).
German: Intermediate. 2005 Goethe Institut Zertifikat Deutsch (grade 85%).
Italian: Good working knowledge. Course in progress.
Research summary
Areas of expertise
- International Law (in theory and practice: English-qualified lawyer with four years' professional experience)
- International Relations theory and practice
- International history, especially 20th century, interwar period and Cold War
- International organisations and diplomatic history
- Research methods in International Relations and Politics, especially archival research
Research interests
United Nations, Constitutions, Institutions and Governments, Foreign Policy and Diplomacy, Political thought and ideologies, Institutions and organisations, Law and International law, Authority, Conflict management, Constitutions and Government, Foreign Policy and diplomacy, Global governance, History, Institutions and organisations, International law, International order, International organisations, Nationalism
Publications
Book chapter: ‘Competing Internationalisms at the League of Nations Secretariat, 1933-1940’ in The League of Nations – Present Perspectives, edited by Karen Gram-Skjoldager and Haakon A. Ikonomou (2019, Aarhus University Press).
Book review: 'The Fight Against War', review of The Internationalists by Oona Hathaway and Scott Shapiro, BBC World Histories (October/November 2017)
Conference Papers and Presentations
British International Studies Association (BISA) Annual Convention, London (June 2019)
Presented a paper entitled "Competing Internationalisms at the League of Nations".
International Studies Association (ISA) Annual Convention, Toronto (March 2019)
Two papers presented; one on the League of Nations secretariat in the 1930s and the other on fascist internationalism as a challenge to the liberal international order.
European International Studies Association (EISA) Annual Convention, Prague (September 2018)
Presented a paper entitled "A Tale of Competing Internationalisms: The League of Nations Secretariat in a time of turmoil, 1919-1946", analysing the inter-relationship between different versions of internationalism in the practice of the League secretariat, especially liberal and fascist internationalisms.
International Studies Association (ISA) Annual Convention, San Francisco (April 2018)
Presented a paper entitled "Internationalism as Practice in the Secretariats of the League of Nations and the UN, 1919-1961", analysing the League-UN secretariat relationship and precedent-setting dynamic in international law.
Resistance and Collaboration in Occupied Europe, Yale University (April 2018)
Presented a paper entitled "The League of Nations at a Crossroads, 1933-1940", exploring different interpretations of internationalism in the League secretariat and comparisons with fascist internationalism.
European International Studies Association (EISA) Annual Convention, Barcelona (September 2017)
Presented a paper entitled "Creating the International - The Practice of Internationalism in the Secretariat of the League of Nations, 1918-1946", analysing the development of the League of Nations secretariat as an international civil service.
International Studies Association (ISA) Annual Convention, Baltimore (February 2017)
Presented a paper entitled "How international law shapes politics: the case of the International Criminal Court", analysing the ICC’s potential to shape national and international law by political means.
International Studies Association (ISA) Annual Convention, Atlanta (March 2016)
Presented a paper entitled "How the degree of independence of the UN impacts its capacity to influence state behaviour: the UN as a free agent and as a motor of international society", analysing the UN’s role, in law and practice, in state-building missions in Kosovo, East Timor and Iraq.