Research Assistant

Posted on: 2006-01-13

LISA POGGIALI [email protected] (917) 699-3302 506 E. 13th St., Apt. 20 New York, NY 10009 Education ? School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), London, UK • M.A. Social Anthropology of Development • Graduated with distinction, December 2005 • Dissertation: Towards an Ontological Notion of Human Rights: Urban Refugees in Nairobi, Kenya • Representative Coursework: African and Asian Diasporas in the Contemporary World; Neoliberalism and the State: Society, Politics, Culture; Introduction to Refugees; Anthropology of Development ? Barnard College, Columbia University, New York, NY • B.A. Anthropology/Human Rights (double major) • Graduated magna cum laude, June 2004 • Dissertation: Reimagining the Possible: Zapatista Discourse and the Problematics of Rights • Representative Coursework: Human Rights and the Question of Culture (graduate course); History and Human Rights: Capitalism, Colonialism, and Culture; Government and Humanity; Undesirable Otherness: Representations of Immigration in the European Union; Theoretical Foundations of Political Economy; Women and Gender in the Third World ? School for International Training (SIT), Nairobi, Kenya • Junior Year Abroad • Independent Study Project: Civil Society and the Politics of Protest: Opposition to the War in Iraq in Nairobi, Kenya • Relevant Coursework: Development, Health, and Society; KiSwahili Publications and Conference Presentations ? 2005. Reimagining the Possible: Zapatista Discourse and the Problematics of Rights. University of Sussex Journal of Contemporary History, Issue 8, Activism and Social Movements. • Presented at Human Rights in a Globalizing Era? Conference, University of Windsor, Ontario, Canada. August 4-6 2005. ? 2005. Solving Refugees’ Problems or Solving the Problem of Refugees?: North/South Relations and the Politics of Repatriation. Politikon: The IAPSS Journal of Political Science. Issue 10. • Presented at 47th Annual ISA Convention, Town & Country Resort and Convention Center, San Diego, CA. March 22-25, 2006. [upcoming] Research Awards ? Recipient of the prestigious Columbia University Meyers-Geitlowitz Human Rights Essay Award for B.A. Dissertation. ? Nominated by the Barnard College, Columbia University Anthropology department for the Katherine Reeve Girard Prize for students with interest in the international aspects of a major. Relevant Work Experience ? Research Assistant, Judy Larsen, Researcher and Educator. London, UK, 2004-2005 • Developed an analytical framework from a collection of surveys with administrators, teachers, and parents on inclusion and post-16 provision in the UK education system. • Drafted spreadsheets and reports based on interviews and surveys and distributed them to interested parties in the UK education system. • Transcribed interviews with key figures in the UK education system regarding newly formed Academies. ? Intern Researcher, The Creative Coalition. New York, NY, 2002 • Researched and documented country-wide First Amendment violations for the Advisory Board. • Created a database of celebrity contacts for the organization’s records. • Assisted in organizing and implementing the major fundraiser, Seconding the First, held at Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City. ? Writing Fellow, Columbia University. New York, NY, 2001 – 2004 • Read, edited, and commented on thirty student papers per semester. • Conducted one hour writing conferences with students regarding their papers, discussing issues such as structure, style, and grammar. • Trained to work with ESL (English as a Second Language) students. Overseas Travel & Research Experience Belgium • Canada • Croatia • Dominican Republic • England • France • Germany • Guatemala • Haiti • Iceland • Italy • Japan • Kenya • Mexico • Morocco • the Netherlands • Scotland • Slovenia • Spain • Tanzania ? Dissertation Research, Nairobi, Kenya, 2005 • Interviewed Executive Board members of prominent civil society organizations, refugees, and undocumented migrants. • Transcribed aforementioned interviews and produced a report on the place of urban refugees in the programming of Nairobi’s human rights and humanitarian organizations. • Employed other social science research methods, such as participant observation and primary source analysis. ? Thesis Research, Chiapas, Mexico, 2004 • Interviewed supporters and members of the Zapatistas at the 10th anniversary of the Zapatista uprising in Oventic, Chiapas, Mexico. • Collected and analyzed Zapatista communiqués produced from 1993 – 2004. • Employed discourse analysis and participant observation, and drafted a thesis on the Zapatistas’ relationship to human rights. Special Skills ? Technology • Proficient in Windows, Mac OS 9, Mac OS X, MS Works, Word, Excel, Office, Outlook, Quark Express, and FileMakerPro. • Typing Skills: 90 wpm. ? Language • Proficient in Spanish and Japanese. • Working knowledge of KiSwahili. ? Additional • Excellent writing, editorial, analytic, organizational, and interpersonal skills. • Ability to manage effectively multiple projects in a fast-paced environment. • Creative thinker. Detail oriented. Fast learner. References Available upon request.