Dr. Stephanie Rupp (Moderator)

Belfer Center, Harvard University

Dr. Stephanie Rupp is a joint research fellow with the Program on Intrastate Conflict and the International Security Program at the Belfer Center.  Her research focuses on the politics of categorization in comparative contexts (Africa, the Balkans, Southeast Asia, and the United States), examining the disjuncture between the fluidity of social categories and the rigidity of institutional categories, as well as how the institutional appropriation and manipulation of social categories may either exacerbate or attenuate conflict.  Dr. Rupp is currently on leave from the National University of Singapore, where she is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology.  She received her Ph.D. in anthropology from Yale University in 2001, having conducted her dissertation research on the formation and transformation of categories of identity in the Congo River Basin in central Africa.

Dr. Darren Kew

Tufts University

Darren Kew studies the relationship between transformative conflict resolution methods and democratic development, particularly in terms of democratic institution building in Africa and the growth of political cultures that support democracy. Much of his work focuses on the role of civil society groups in this development. Professor Kew has worked with the Council on Foreign Relations' Center for Preventive Action to provide analysis and blueprints for preventing conflicts in numerous areas around the world, including Nigeria, Central Africa, and Kosovo. He has also been a consultant to the United Nations, USAID, the US State Department, and to a number of NGOs, including the Carter Center in a 1999 effort by former President Carter to mediate the Niger Delta conflicts. Professor Kew is recognized by policymakers in Washington and academics here and in Nigeria for his deep, firsthand knowledge of Nigerian politics and society. His work on how conflict resolution methods promote democratization of national political cultures is among the first of its kind linking these important fields.

Mr. Yusuf Atang Tanko

Tufts University

Yusuf Atang Tanko, originally from Nigeria, is in the Master's program. He received a Bachelor's degree in English and a Graduate Certificate in Public Information. Mr. Tanko worked for over two decades as a journalist and newspaper columnist; as an editor and publisher; and as conflict resolution consultant to the Nigerian federal government. Mr. Tanko has also been a private sector executive as Board Member and Managing Director. He had a stint in political party administration and state governance. Mr. Tanko's interest is inter-group conflict, especially conflict bordering on ethnicity, religion, politics, and identity. His Master's research project is a study of the effectiveness of NGO's in inter-group conflict intervention in Nigeria. He is a Research Assistant for Professor Darren Kew. His hobbies include reading, writing, music, and public commentary.

Dr. Peilin Liu
Development Research Center, China

Peilin Liu, from China, is currently a visiting scholar in the Economics Department of Harvard University. Most recently Dr. Liu has served as the Deputy Director of the Second Division, and Associate Research Fellow, Department of Development Strategy and Regional Economy, Development Research Center of The State Council (DRC), P.R. China. Dr. Liu published Development Strategy and the Resources of Growth: an Empirical Research of Chinese Experience, in 2003, and continues to research the Chinese service and manufacturing sectors as well as development issues. He received a Ph.D. in economics from Peking University.

Mr. Adama Gaye

Adama Gaye, from Senegal, is currently a visiting research associate in the SAIS African Studies Program. Mr Gaye has also served as general manager of West Africa magazine, the oldest international English language news weekly on African affairs and recently wrote a book on China in Africa: China-Africa: The Dragon and the Ostrich. Prior to his current position, Mr. Gaye worked for several media groups, such as Jeune Afrique and Africa Nƒ 1. In addition, he was director of information of ECOWAS from 1992 to 1996. Mr. Gaye is a regular contributor to Newsweek and CNN. He publishes a weekly column: From the Balcony. Mr. Gaye holds a bachelor of journalism degree from the University of Dakar, a master of communications from the University of Paris II, and a master in political sciences from the Sorbonne University. Mr. Gaye was also a fellow in a seminar on U.S. foreign policy making at the University of Maryland.

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