About me

I am a Postdoctoral Research Fellow based at the Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore. My current book project focuses on the comparative politics of informal trade and markets. I earned my PhD from the University of Michigan, based jointly in the departments of Health Management and Policy (HMP) & Political Science in the summer of 2025. I have a specific regional focus in Vietnam and Southeast Asia, where I was based for two years conducting fieldwork for my dissertation, meeting and interviewing traders, food safety specialists, managers, and global experts. I especially enjoy visiting traditional markets (chợ truyền thống) to learn about cultural and historical aspects of food trade. Besides my research in Vietnam I also have interest in studying historical political development in the American South. I am affiliated with the HMP Governance Lab at the University of Michigan.

My dissertation research was supported by a Boren Award for International Study, FLAS, the Menakka and Essel Bailey fellowship, and the Rackham Graduate School, among others. Prior to moving to Michigan years ago, I taught social sciences at a magnet high school in Sejong City, South Korea and helped develop community partnerships and programs for the Mississippi Center for Obesity Research. I received my master's degree in International Health Policy from the London School of Economics and Political Science in 2015, and my bachelor's degree from the University of Mississippi in 2014.