Bénédicte Anthony is a PhD candidate in Political Science at Bilkent University in Ankara, Turkey. Under the IDEoPOP project, she researches populist conceptions of the world order from a post-colonial and post-imperial perspective. Her research interests encompass post-colonial studies, peace and development. She holds a MSc in Development Studies from Lund University, Sweden and a BA (Hons) in International Relations with Spanish from the University of Nottingham, Malaysia. She was a Research Intern at the United Nations in Mauritius and a Nordic Scholar at the Nordic Africa Institute in Uppsala, Sweden.
Bénédicte speaks French, English, Spanish, Swedish and basic Turkish.
Çağla Aydoğan is a Marie Curie Doctoral Fellow at the University of Bath as part of the IDEoPOP project. Her PhD research focuses on populist branding in international politics. She holds an M.A. in Political Science and a B.A. in International Relations from Bilkent University, and completed a semester at Malmö University’s Department of Global Political Studies. Before her PhD, she completed a long-term internship at UN Migration (IOM), working on migrant protection and assistance. She also interned at the Turkish Ministry of Interior’s Directorate General of Migration Management, where she contributed a report on the legal framework of human trafficking. Her broader research interests include critical security studies, foreign policy analysis, and peace and conflict studies.
Ivo Joller is a doctoral student at the University of Gothenburg. His research focuses on engagement and disengagement strategies of populist governments in international organisations, whereby he combines quantitative and qualitative research methodologies. Before joining the IDEoPOP network, he acquired a bachelor’s degree in Politics, Psychology, Law, and Economics from the University of Amsterdam and a master’s degree in Comparative and International Studies from ETH Zurich and the University of Zurich. At ETH he taught courses on international politics and conflict studies. Beyond international politics and populism he is interested in the subjects of contentious politics, democratisation, and state building.
Simon Kaack is a doctoral candidate at the University of Bath. He researches how populist governments in India, Turkey, Brazil, the United States and elsewhere conceptualise regional and international orders. Previously, he earned an MA in Human Rights Studies from Lund University and a BA in Political Science and Law from Leuphana University. His professional record features, among others, climate-education programme development for Welthungerhilfe (WHH) in Cambodia, facilitation of sustainable-transport cooperation at the United Nations ESCAP in Bangkok, and environmental governance analysis for the German Institute for Global and Area Studies in Hamburg.
Evangelia Kapeli is a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Fellow at the University of Gothenburg within the IDEoPOP network.
Her doctoral research investigates the impact of populism on the European Union’s institutional design, policies, and decision-making processes.
Her research interests include populism, international relations, comparative politics, EU governance, and public policy analysis.
She holds a Master in Public Policy (Politics and Public Policy) from Sciences Po Paris, supported by the Lilian Voudouri Foundation Scholarship (Greece), and a BA in International and European Studies from the University of Piraeus.
She has previously worked at the European Parliament, the German Bundestag, the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP), and the Institute of International Economic Relations (IDOS).
Ignacio Lasheras Feijoo is a PhD candidate at the University of Freiburg. He is conducting his research on the topic of populist politicization of foreign policy. He holds a dual degree in Law and International Relations from IE University in Madrid, and an MA in European Studies (specialization in International Relations) from Maastricht University. He previously worked as a teaching fellow at Maastricht University for two years.
Antonluca Lecce is a PhD Candidate at Jagiellonian University. He holds a BA in International Relations (University of Catania), a Double MA in European Studies (University of Padua–Jagiellonian University), and an Executive Master in Diplomacy and International Politics (Université libre de Bruxelles, 2023–25). His research explores populism and global governance infrastructures within EU enlargement. From 2020 to 2025, he served as a civil servant at the European Commission, contributing to policy evaluation and decision-making. He has also worked with governmental and non-governmental organizations across Italy, Spain, Poland, and Belgium, specializing in diplomacy and international affairs.
Sophie Maier is a PhD candidate at Sciences Po in Paris a member of the International Dimensions and Effects of Populism (IDEoPOP) network. She completed her Master‘s degree at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg and spent a semester abroad at the Uniwersytet Wrocławski in Poland. Her research focuses on Hindu nationalism, Climate Policy and International Relations. Her work at Sciences Po explores the special relationship between populist parties in democracies and non-democratic governments abroad.
Aristea Paraskewopoulos is a doctoral candidate in the IDEoPOP network at the University of Freiburg. Her PhD research is about the contestation of the Liberal International Order by populist leaders in the so-called Global South. She holds a BA in European Studies and a MSc in European Studies from Maastricht University and an MA in Political Science from the University of Cologne. Before joining the University of Freiburg, she worked as a Teaching Fellow in the BA European Studies at Maastricht University.
Khayyam Rzazade is a PhD candidate in Security and Strategic Studies at the University of Genoa, focusing on the role of populist actors in shaping foreign and defense policies in Europe. He holds master’s degrees from the College of Europe Bruges Campus and Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, and a bachelor’s from Baku State University. His research spans populism, EU foreign policy, and policy change. His experience includes teaching political science, assisting at the European Parliament, engaging in international diplomacy training and so on.
Corneel Weyers is a PhD candidate at Sciences Po Paris. His research examines how populism shapes diplomatic policymaking, focusing on the Itamaraty during the Bolsonaro administration in Brazil. He explores how foreign policy was politicized and how diplomats responded to these shifts. Through fieldwork in Brazil, including interviews with key actors, his project contributes to a more global understanding of diplomacy and reflects on what Europe can learn from such experiences. Corneel holds a master’s degree in Economics from Ghent University and a second master’s in European Studies from LUISS University in Rome. He previously interned at the United Nations in New York with a scholarship from the Flanders Trainee Programme.