Class of 2025

 

José-Luis Amsler was raised in Berlin, Germany in a German-Peruvian-Iranian family. He recently graduated from Freie Universität Berlin with a B.A. in Media Studies and Political Science as the best student of the year. During his undergraduate studies he spent two semesters at Indiana University Bloomington where he learned a lot about international relations, American constitutional law, and corn fields. He also produced and directed an award-winning short documentary while there. Besides studying, he has been working as a rookie journalist for various media outlets including Berliner Zeitung and Rolling Stone Germany. Both academically and professionally, José-Luis is especially passionate about socioeconomic inequality and welfare policy. During TAM, he would like to focus on the rise of antidemocratic tendencies in the EU as well as on the impact of continued European integration on political attitudes and local politics. He will spend his second year at Humboldt University in Berlin on the Transatlantic Studies track.

 

 

Paola Andreu Sanz was born in Puerto Rico and raised in Charlotte, NC. She graduated from UNC-CH this past spring. She received a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science with a second major in Women’s and Gender Studies and a minor in Latina/o Studies with distinction. She has joined TAM’s European Governance track and will spend her second year at the Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona. She is interested in researching how gender plays a role in defining how rights are afforded to citizens of a nation. During her free time, Paola enjoys reading or going to sports events with her friends.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Till Bodenhagen studied communications in Salzburg, Austria from 2019 to 2023. He did an Erasmus semester abroad in 2021 for which he picked Gothenburg University. He took his first Political Science courses there and finally decided on pursuing an adjacent graduate program after not pursuing a Poli undergraduate program in 2019. It was also via the University of Gothenburg that he found out about TAM and the universities’ cooperation. As he has grown to love Gothenburg, he happily took the chance to return there as his overseas site on TAM’s European Governance track.
His political interests were invoked by the EU refugee crisis in 2015 and the US election campaign leading up to Nov 2016. Since then, he follows everyday politics focusing on US and German domestic politics. Concrete research interests of his, outside that grid, are climate politics, the Middle East, and the war against Ukraine. Till focused on Journalism in his undergraduate years, and this field is more often than not the lens he uses to understand politics. He is especially interested in the media’s role to responsibly educate its audience on an ever-more-complex-growing world and how media contributes to the democratic process. His interests outside university were lifeguarding/swimming until recently and making up for the lost covid time in every aspect that comes with that. He also considers politics as a hobby as he spends way too much free time on it to not call it such.

 

As a first-generation American from a Brazilian family in Raleigh, North Carolina, Marco Braga enjoys learning all about different cultures. He graduated Cum Laude in May 2023 from Western Carolina University’s Honors College with a BS in History and a minor in Leadership. His academic journey sparked a passion for politics and global affairs, and an ambition to discover and implement solutions for the issues of our generation. A highlight of his time at WCU was the opportunity to intern with NATO, an experience that greatly shaped his perspective of global affairs and future aspirations. After his first semester at UNC-CH, he will be continuing his TAM program at Bath University, England on the Transatlantic Studies track. He looks forward to hearing new ideas, meeting new people and foremost, to robust debates.

 

 

 

Kevin Bunga was born in DR Congo and has grown up in Raleigh. His earliest experience with politics was whilst growing up and discussing the little of politics that he knew with his family, be it in relation to US political events, geopolitics, or events that had or were transpiring in Congo.
He graduated from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro as a double major in Political Science and International Global Studies as well as a minor in French. During his undergrad he studied abroad at Vesalius College and interned at Laffineur Law firm, in Brussels, Belgium. He wrote a thesis, “Hungary, The Illiberal State within the European Union” about Hungary’s backsliding within the EU. His research interests include European politics and society, particularly democratization and regime change in the European context. His focus is primarily on how populist/authoritarian changes are managed within the context of the EU. He is looking forward to participating in the Transatlantic track at Sciences-Po in Grenoble in the spring semester and at Bath University in his second year. Outside of school his interests include reading, shows & movies, soccer, traveling, and hanging out with friends and family.

 

Phil Donofrio was raised in Rochester, NY before moving to Washington, DC to study at George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs. While an undergraduate, Phil spent a semester studying at Maastricht University in the Netherlands, where his interest in European politics and society was cemented. After graduating, Phil remained in Washington for work, most recently as a public policy analyst with FiscalNote.

Phil will spend his second year of the TAM program at Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona on TAM’s European Governance track. His research interests include: open and digital government; the Nordic model and welfare states; comparative European electoral systems; and the interplay between separatist movements and Euroscepticism.

In his spare time, Phil is an avid reader and traveler — his favorite authors are Kerouac and Camus, and his favorite trips were to São Paulo and Busan. He also enjoys running, cycling, and yoga, as well as both playing soccer and (foolishly) rooting for his beloved Arsenal Football Club.

 

Mackenzie Hansen graduated in May 2023 with a BA in Contemporary European Studies and an honors laureate from UNC-CH. During undergrad she participated in Model EU simulations as a member of the UNC team and worked for the UNC Center for European Studies and the Krasno Global Event Series to facilitate events on global affairs and the transatlantic relationship. She completed a virtual study abroad course through Humboldt University in Berlin, Germany, where she studied policymaking in the European Union. Mackenzie works as an international policy analyst with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. She has a FLAS award to study Portuguese during the 2023-24 academic year. After the year at UNC, Mackenzie will study in Berlin on the Transatlantic Studies Track.

 

Thomas Harley is from Miami, Florida, and graduated from UNC-CH in 2023 with degrees in Political Science and Economics. He also attended Duke University for part of his college tenure through the Robertson Scholars Leadership Program. Thomas is on the European Governance track with a focus in Comparative Climate Change Policy. He has research interests in rising ethnonationalism across the European continent and the role that this development can play in climate and immigration policies. Thomas plans to go to Barcelona for the second year of TAM, allowing him firsthand research experiences in a climate-vulnerable city.

 

 

 

 

Although Mariana Herrera was born in Colombia, she has lived most of her life in Raleigh, North Carolina. She graduated from UNC-CH with a double major in Contemporary European Studies and Peace, War, and Defense with a minor in Arabic in December 2022. During her undergraduate career, Mariana was a part of the Bonners Scholars Program, UNC’s Model European Union Team, and the Journal of Foreign Affairs (formerly known as The Internationalist). She was a FLAS recipient in 2021-2022 and is again this year (2023-2024) for Arabic. As a part of the Transatlantic track, Mariana plans to study at the University of Bath. Her research interests include refugee and immigration policy, conflict resolution, and international security. She is excited to continue exploring these areas and narrowing down her primary field during her time in the TAM program.

 

 

 

Leah Johnson graduated from Dartmouth College in 2023 double majoring in Government and Psychology with a focus on international relations. She will be studying at the University of Bath on the Transatlantic Studies track of the TAM program. Leah’s research interests include international security and conflict stabilization focused on intelligence analysis, counterterrorism, and diplomacy policy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Morgan Johnson is a passionate scholar, born and raised in Fayetteville, Georiga, who continues to pursue a well-rounded academic journey. With a diverse range of interests and a vibrant personality, Morgan utilizes her personal experiences in conjunction with her academic studies to work towards a better future for all.
Before joining the TAM Program, Morgan studied at the University of Pennsylvania for two years before making the decision to transfer to the University of Virginia, where she ultimately earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science with a concentration in Government. Throughout her undergraduate years, Morgan displayed exceptional dedication and intellectual curiosity, immersing herself in courses that explored the complexities of political systems, African American Studies, and governance.

Driven by a desire to further her academic pursuits and broaden her horizons, Morgan has chosen Humboldt University in Berlin as the destination for her second year of graduate studies on the TAM European Governance track. While in Berlin, Morgan is deeply interested in the intersection of political science and social justice. She is particularly drawn to issues such as prison reform, the school-to-prison pipeline, civil rights, constitutional law, African American studies, and exploring the Black experience across the diaspora. Morgan recognizes the critical importance of addressing these systemic challenges and seeks to understand how they transpire across the Western world with a comparative study of Germany’s history regarding race and human rights. She is fully committed to contributing to the ongoing efforts aimed at creating a more equitable and just global society.

Beyond her academic pursuits, Morgan has an adventurous spirit and loves to explore new destinations, immersing herself in different cultures and broadening her perspectives. She is a foodie and enjoys sharing these experiences with friends and family. Morgan is also actively involved with her sorority, where she engages in community service initiatives that align with her values of social justice and empowerment.

 

Luis Leandro Ortega goes by Leandro or Leo. He is a 23-year-old student hailing from Nicaragua, but he has been living in Sweden for most of his life. Recently, he completed his Bachelor’s degree in Global Studies with a specialization in Development Studies at the University of Gothenburg. He will be returning there to finish up the TAM-program on the European Governance track. Being a full-time student has kept him quite busy, leaving little time for much else apart from part-time jobs. In addition to his studies, he serves as a board member at the Latin-American Amnesty group in Sweden.

When he does find some free time, he cherishes it by spending it with loved ones and friends. He also has a deep appreciation for nature, so going on hikes is a real delight. As for research interests, they span a wide range, but he particularly focuses on LGBTQ+ rights. His Bachelor’s thesis explored the impact of labor rights on the lives of transgender individuals. Additionally, he has a keen interest in understanding how organizations and institutions contribute to overall development and human rights.

 

Dale Seufert-Navarro graduated from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill in 2023, receiving degrees in both Political Science and Sociology. Graduating with honors, his thesis was awarded the Terry Sanford Award for Excellence. He is now a graduate student in the Transatlantic Master’s Program, studying first at UNC-Chapel Hill and then finally at Bremen University in Germany. Dale is a Section Editor with the Carolina Political Review, where he was also a 2023 Spring Writing Fellow. His research has been published in the North Carolina Journal of European Studies and is forthcoming in the Journal of Foreign Affairs at Carolina. Dale’s research interests are firmly rooted in studying the causes and consequences of economic inequality and varying welfare state efforts to address it.

 

 

 

 

 

Jasmin Singh holds a Bachelor of Arts from Queens University of Charlotte, North Carolina. While at Queens, she studied International Relations, focusing on International Law and Organization. Jasmin was also a dual sport Division II collegiate athlete playing Women’s soccer and lacrosse. Upon graduation, she had a small stint playing professional women’s soccer in Quito, Ecuador. After her time in Ecuador, she moved to Washington, DC, where she started her career in International Development. She worked directly with US government agencies on entrepreneurship, civic engagement, and technology programs. Jasmin joins TAM through the European Governance track. She plans to spend the program’s second year at Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona, Spain. She is a FLAS recipient for the academic year 2023-2024 for Turkish. Her research interests include comparative social policy, specifically immigration policy, and integration.

 

 

 

Elton Smole will be joining TAM on the European Governance track, with his overseas site in Berlin, Germany. Elton grew up in Washington, DC, and received his BA in Philosophy & Public Affairs from Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, California, spending one semester studying in Havana, Cuba. After graduation, he spent about two years working at the National Democratic Institute (NDI) in Washington, DC, focusing on programs in Central America and Brazil. Elton is seeking to shift his career focus to the Eastern Europe region, with a particular interest in the Balkans. Elton is half-Albanian and will be studying Serbo-Croatian at UNC through FLAS. Research interests include conflict resolution and the EU ascension process in Kosovo. Other interests include Eastern European (and Latin American) history, music, and arts, as well as Southern rock music.

 

 

 

Hunter Steen is from Asheville, North Carolina and will be joining TAM under the TransAtlantic track. He finished his undergraduate studies at UNC-CH in 2023 with a double major in Global Studies and Peace, War, and Defense alongside a minor in German. In addition to his TAM program, Hunter is learning Arabic as part of his Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowship for the 2023-2024 school year. For the second year of his program, Hunter plans to study at Humboldt University of Berlin. When not studying transatlantic security or international affairs, Hunter loves learning languages, seeking out new adventures, and spending time with his friends and family.

 

 

 

 

 

Evan Thomas graduated with Highest Honors from Appalachian State University (ASU), where he earned his B.A. in Languages, Literatures and Cultures. His concentration was in German studies, and he also minored in Philosophy. During his time as an undergraduate student, Evan was introduced to the institutions and governing bodies of the European Union, as well as the political systems of its constituent member states. This newfound perspective of Europe as a complex, geopolitical entity ultimately pushed his research interests into the realm of political science, whilst still remaining interested in the sociocultural aspects of European experience. Reflecting these research interests, Evan participated as a panelist at the 2022 Southeast German Studies Workshop, where he presented a paper on the link between post-socialist nostalgia and democratic and antidemocratic sentiments in former East Germany. Before earning his Bachelor of Arts at ASU, Evan also had the rewarding experience of working as a teaching assistant in beginner German classes. After undergrad, Evan has continued to seek opportunities to improve his language skills, which led to his decision to spend a summer studying German at Middlebury College in Vermont, where he participated in the school’s world-renowned language immersion program in 2022. Evan is currently an incoming student to the TAM European Governance, Double-Degree track. He will be pursuing a Master’s of European Studies at the University of Gothenburg after his first year at UNC-CH. Aside from his passion for learning foreign languages (he is currently learning Swedish), Evan has a keen interest in philosophy and world history, while also being an avid music fan. His research interests include the role of international and intergovernmental institutions in the ongoing process of European integration, immigration within the EU and immigration policy at the national and supranational levels, as well as the Nordic welfare state as an economic model.

 

Melanie Viso was born and raised in Lima, Peru. She graduated from UNC-CH in 2022 with a Bachelor of Arts in Global Studies with a second major in Political Science. Melanie is on the Transatlantic Studies track and plans to attend Humboldt University in Berlin, Germany, in Spring 2024 as well as Sciences-Po in Grenoble, France, the semester after. Her research interests include, but are not limited to, European immigration policy, integration, security, and inequality. Furthermore, Melanie hopes to develop a comparative analysis of integration policies from the previously mentioned EU member-states and research the impact of national identity on European policy-making regarding immigrants’ rights.

 

 

 

 

 

An alumnus of Appalachian State University in Boone, NC, Andrew Williard holds a double degree in Environmental Economics & Policy and German Languages, Literatures, & Cultures, which he obtained in 2022. During his studies, he completed a virtual internship for FEASTA, an Irish-based sustainable economics NGO. After completing his undergraduate degree, he was awarded a Fulbright Grant for the 2022-23 period, serving as an English Teaching Assistant at Ehrenfried-Walther-von-Tschirnhaus-Gymnasium in Dresden, Germany. Driven by his passion for education, languages, and travel, he successfully fulfilled his responsibilities under the Fulbright Grant and embarked on further academic pursuits at UNC-CH. He joined the Transatlantic Masters program, with the intention of specializing in European Governance on the Comparative Climate Change Policy path. He plans to study at UNC-CH and Humboldt University in Berlin, Germany, bringing together his interests in sustainability, the environment, and the German language. He intends to focus on studying the comparative paradigms of food production. Additionally, he aims to explore the benefits of decentralizing food systems to promote more sustainable farming practices, local food production, cooperatives, and other models such as urban agriculture or 15-minute city plans.

 

 

Alexandra (Ola) Zubrowicz is from Wallace, North Carolina and graduated from UNC-CH in 2022 with a BA in Contemporary European Studies with minors in History and Slavic and East European languages and cultures. In the last year, Ola has taken a gap year to live and work in Madrid, Spain, as a Business English teacher to adults and to practice her Spanish. This experience has allowed her to explore and learn more about what she studied during her undergraduate years. Ola is on the Comparative Climate Change Policy path through the European Governance track and will be spending her second year in Gothenburg, Sweden. Her research interests include political backsliding, environmental policy-making, and social issues within the EU.

Class of 2024 – this is our largest TAM class ever with twenty-nine students. Please read a few of their bios below.

 

Cassandra Alvarino

Cassandra Alvarino is from Greensboro, North Carolina and graduated from UNC Chapel Hill in 2022 with degrees in Global Studies and Contemporary European Studies. She wrote an undergraduate honors thesis titled, “Turks in Germany: Analyzing the Voting Behavior of Germany’s Largest Minority.” Cassandra is on the European Governance track in TAM and is now in Gothenburg for her second TAM year. Her research interests include, but are not limited to, environmental policy-making, international law, the politics of green energy, and European social policy. Cass had a FLAS award for the summer 2023 and has Fulbright funding for her year in Sweden.

Sinan Arda

Sinan (Turkish, German) holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Bamberg, Germany. Sinan completed his degree with an undergraduate thesis on the “Counterterrorism Policy of the European Union”. He has undertaken an academic exchange semester at Istanbul Bilgi University in Fall 2019, studying Turkish foreign and domestic policies, and has studied at Charles University Prague in Fall 2020, whereby he gained expertise in the security policy domain. Sinan has interned as a DAAD PROMOS grantee in the Konrad-Adenauer Foundation’s Greece foreign office based in Athens, researching policies of the Néa Dimokratía government as well as Greek-Turkish relations. Thereby, he has co-published an academic paper dealing with the 2021 Cypriot legislative election results. Furthermore, he has worked as a Research Assistant at the Institute of International Relations Prague, whereby he has co-published an article on the recent Turkish-Egyptian rapprochement and its role in downgrading Russian diplomatic and military expansion in the EU’s southern neighborhood. Sinan is an alumnus of the “Beyond Erasmus” project of the European Neighbourhood Council, a Brussels-based foreign-policy think tank, and the Friedrich-Naumann Foundation in Turkey through his engagement in EU-Turkish relations. Furthermore, he is an alumnus of the 9th Greek-Turkish Young Leaders Symposium, a project of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation fostering academic exchange between Greek and Turkish scholars. Coming to TAM as a Fulbright scholar, Sinan is now in his second year of the program at Bath University. He is funded by a DAAD award. His research interests are the evolvement of the modus operandi of the terrorist threat and its implications for counterterrorism efforts. He had two DC internships in the summer of 2023 – one at the Bertelsmann Foundation and another at the American Friends of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.

Allison K.Carpenter

Allison (USA) holds a BS in Business Administration and a BA in Contemporary European Studies with a minor in Politics, Philosophy and Economics (PPE) from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with highest distinction. While an undergraduate, Allison also studied at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) in Spring of 2021 and Copenhagen Business School (CBS) in Fall of 2021 as a GLOBE Scholar, through Kenan-Flagler Business School. Allison completed a Senior Honors Thesis, When Pragmatism Prompts Recentralization: EU Accession and Executive Constraints in the Czech Republic and Hungary, which considers the role that pre- and post-accession EU funding played in the recentralization of national governments in the ‘big bang’ CEE countries. Allison was a part of the Young Global Professional Summer 2022 cohort at a transatlantic foreign policy think tank, the Atlantic Council, in their Europe Center based in Washington D.C. In the summer of 2021, she was an intern for the Public Affairs Section at the U.S. Embassy in Prague. In the summer of 2019, she was an intern for the European Affairs Communications Department of the Office of the Government of the Czech Republic. Allison began the European Governance (dual-degree) Track of the Transatlantic Master’s program at UNC-Chapel Hill in Fall 2022. In her second TAM year, she will study at the Humboldt University of Berlin. She is a FLAS recipient for the academic year 2022-2023 for Turkish. Her current research interests are Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkans, and EU Accession and conditionality. Over the course of the program, she hopes to deepen her knowledge and quantitative skills in these areas, as well as broaden her research interests.

Jimmy Doegerl

Jimmy is German/Brazilian and joined TAM after 2.5 years of working as a political analyst for large financial institutions and multinational corporations. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in political science from Free University in Berlin, having specialized in EU politics and climate diplomacy. In the past, Jimmy has interned for the German Foreign Office and the Brussels Office of the Greens in the Bundestag. At the UNC, he assumed the position of Director of Environment for the Graduate Student Government, looking to make the University more sustainable and raise climate ambition. Jimmy is now in Berlin for his second year of TAM and makes YouTube videos about EU politics in his free time. Check one out here.

Nils Elofsson

Nils is from the deep forests of Sweden. He pursued a Bachelor’s degree in European Studies at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden in 2021. During his undergraduate years, Nils also completed an exchange term at the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia and interned at the intergovernmental organization International IDEA in Stockholm. His time as an intern at International IDEA sparked Nils’s research interests in questions regarding the rule of law, good governance and the nexus between climate change and democracy. These are interests that he wishes to continue to pursue in his upcoming time at the European Governance Track in TAM. He is now in his second year of TAM back in Gothenburg, Sweden. This past summer he worked for the US Chamber of Commerce in Stockholm and now works part-time for Sweden’s biggest employer agency, the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise/ Svenskt Näringsliv.

Tim Frei

Tim graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2022. He doubled majored in Contemporary European Studies and Economics, with a minor in German. Tim is a dual citizen of the United States and Switzerland. Tim is on the European Governance track and is spending his second year of TAM in Bremen, Germany. He is interested in behavioral economic policy implementation and the role of multinational corporations.Over the summer, he interned for the US Chamber of Commerce in DC.

Enio Guevara Jr.

Enio is a first-generation student from Dale City, Virginia. He graduated with distinction from Virginia Tech in May 2022. He obtained his Bachelor’s degree in International Studies with a concentration in National Security & Foreign Affairs, with two minors in International Business and Italian. He is enrolled in the European Governance track of TAM and is spending his second year at the Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF) in Barcelona. He is pursuing a double-degree from UNC and UPF. Enio’s research interests include counterintelligence and immigration policy.

Sam Hart

A Durham, North Carolina native, Sam graduated in three years, magna cum laude with dual Bachelor’s degrees in Political Science and History from North Carolina State University. He is excited to be joining TAM this fall pursuant to dual Master’s degrees in Political Science and European Studies while studying in Chapel Hill and Gothenburg, Sweden. Sam’s research interests include international relations and security, comparative politics, and public policy, and privately his passions include Wolfpack football, history, and his friends and family.

Steven Heine

American and longtime Chapel Hill resident, Steven graduated from Allegheny College in 2020 with a degree in Political Science and a minor in Journalism in the Public Interest. He is excited to learn more about the structure and design of European institutions, and how the format of and interactions between these and national member state institutions impacts policymaking and the integration process. Steven joins TAM on the European Governance track, and his overseas partner site is Gothenburg. While this is not his first time studying overseas, Steven is looking forward to gaining further insight into daily life in Europe. Steven loves reading and thinking about international affairs and is a casual flutist. After TAM, Steven wants to pursue a career in political analysis or university study-abroad programming.

Anita Knöchelmann

Anita is from Germany. She obtained her Bachelor’s degree in European Studies at Maastricht University in the Netherlands with an Erasmus semester at Linköping University, Sweden. Afterwards she interned at Deutsche Gesellschaft e.V. in Berlin and the European Institute of Public Administration in Maastricht.
With TAM, after one year at UNC, she will complete her MA at Gothenburg University, Sweden. Not least through the research of her Bachelor’s thesis, she is interested in societal issues of populism and political extremism and their impact on democracy. Other research interests include, but are not limited to, external relations within and outside the EU and cross-border policymaking. When not volunteering politically, she enjoys spending her free time in the outdoors, climbing and hiking, reflecting her interest and concern for environmental sustainability.

Chloe C. Kofman

Chloe was born and raised in Wisconsin, USA. She recently graduated from the University of New Hampshire with a student-designed major in Religious Studies and a second major in Italian Studies. Her research interests span many subjects, including geography, food studies, and European-Jewish history and culture. She also enjoys exploring the different aspects of the human experience and how the past and the present work together (or don’t!). After the fall 2022 semester in Chapel Hill, Chloe studied in Bath, UK. She then had a FLAS award for the summer and studied Italian in Italy. She will study in Siena, Italy for the fall 2023 semester. Outside of the classroom you might find her reading novels, writing, or trying her hand at foreign languages; she’s currently fascinated by Italian and Romanian.

Kay Langley

Kay is a North Carolinian born and bred from Apex, NC. She graduated from UNC-CH in May 2022, obtaining a Bachelor’s degree with Highest Distinction in Contemporary European Studies with Philosophy and History minors. She received Highest Honors on her senior thesis, “Centralizing Coin: Examining the UK Conservative Party’s Position towards Scottish Devolution through Fiscal Policy.” As an undergraduate, she interned in the UK Parliament and Office of the Director of National Intelligence, served as the managing editor of the Carolina Political Review, worked as a research assistant, and competed on UNC’s inaugural Model EU team. Her academic interests focus on the impact of the EU on regional governance and multi-level governance. She also has a burgeoning interest in labor policies. Kay is enrolled in the European Governance Track of TAM and is now at the University of Gothenburg.

Sydney Rehder

Sydney is a native of North Carolina. She graduated from UNC Chapel Hill in 2022 with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Contemporary European Studies, and a minor in Geography. Sydney is on the European Governance track and is now at the VU Amsterdam. She is interested in environmental governance, sustainability, and the role of politics in climate change. Specifically, Sydney hopes to research how small-scale governance solutions to climate change can be transformed into international policy. Over the summer, she has a FLAS award to study Portuguese.

Kalum Rock

Kalum is a German student who received his Bachelor’s degree from Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg in Political Science and Philosophy. During his time as an undergraduate, he focused on US-politics and wrote his thesis on Atheism and Non-Religion in the US Congress. Kalum is a member of the United Nations Society Nuremberg and has thereby attended various Model United Nations Conferences, which have reinforced his interest in diplomacy and international relations. He will attend Humboldt University in Berlin for his second year in the European Governance track of TAM. Over the summer, Kalum has an observer position for a NATO Civilian-Military exercise and interned for the Bertelsmann Foundation in Berlin.

Alex Russell

Alex is from Buffalo, New York. He received his undergraduate degree from Binghamton University in upstate New York, double majoring in Political Science (with a concentration in global and international affairs) and German Studies and minoring in Global Studies. As an undergraduate, he spent a semester as an exchange student at the University of Leipzig. He has now returned to Germany to study at the Humboldt University of Berlin as a TAM student on the Transatlantic Studies track. He wrote his undergraduate honors thesis on the topic of the East/West divide in German politics as a catalyst for support for the Alternative for Germany Party and has other research interests in radical right-wing populism, German politics, and democratic backsliding. He hopes to use his knowledge and experiences gained through the TAM program in his future career, which he hopes will deal with foreign policy.

Aleks Trivanovic

Aleks Trivanovic is from Charlotte, North Carolina. He graduated with Highest Honors from UNC in 2022 with Political Science and Contemporary European Studies degrees. During his undergraduate studies, Aleks worked on many research projects within the Department of Political Science and the Gillings School of Public Health. He also served as a captain for the Mock Trial team, a delegate on the UNC team to the 2020 Schuman Challenge, an Admissions Ambassador within the Office of Undergraduate Admissions, and a Moderator for UNC Global events. He spent his first year in the TAM program at UNC as a FLAS Fellow studying Bosnian, Croatian, and Serbian, and he is now in his second year in Berlin on the European Governance track. Aleks is interested in researching the politics of transition in Europe and the rise of populism in the global North. Some of these interests manifest in his paper published in the North Carolina Journal of European Studies, “The State of Populism in Post-Industrial Democracies: Fading Out, Growing Ever Stronger, or Preparing to Unveil a New Face.” Over the summer, Aleks was a Workforce Development and Training Intern for Charlotte Water.

Lia Adriana van Dijk

Lia is a 23-year-old, Dutch student in the European Governance track. She followed her undergraduate studies in Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. She minored in Law and Global Society, and took additional courses in the Spanish Language and Culture. For her second year of TAM Lia Adriana is back at her undergrad university in Amsterdam. Lia Adriana has an interest in the so called ‘soft side’ of international politics. Her focus is on human rights, safety and development within international relations and diplomacy. This summer, Lia worked at a restaurant which provides people with disabilities get the chance to gain professional opportunities. She now works in the International Office at the VU.

Alexander Waters

Alexander Waters is an American TAM student specifically interested in European immigration, the background/politics of Northern Ireland, and multi-level governance. Alexander is extremely passionate about language learning and its applications to his research. Alexander graduated Summa Cum Laude from his undergraduate studies at UNC-Chapel Hill, majoring in Political Science & Global Studies with a minor in Hispanic Studies. Alexander attended the Humboldt University of Berlin in the spring of 2023 and will be attending the University of Siena in the fall of 2023. This summer he had a FLAS award to study Italian in Italy.