Valentin Chenier

Doctoral researcher

  • Institution Tampere University
  • Department/faculty Social Sciences, Youth Studies

I am a doctoral research in Social Sciences, Youth Studies. My thesis research explores skateboarding culture in Morocco and the lived experiences of Moroccan skateboarders through an ethnographic approach.

Maria Fedina

Doctoral Researcher

  • Institution University of Helsinki

In my doctoral project, I investigate connections between belonging, development of group identities, urbanization, and political representation and participation in decision-making in the restrictive settings of contemporary Russia. More specifically, in my study, I analyze the peculiarities of these phenomena among non-Russian ethnic minorities and Indigenous peoples. My research is based on the case study of Komi people inhabiting Syktyvkar, the capital of Russia's north-western Komi Republic.

Leena Vastapuu

Postdoctoral researcher

  • Institution Tampere University
  • Department/faculty TAPRI - Tampere Peace Research Institute

Researcher of world politics with an emphasis on Sub-Saharan Africa. In my PhD project, I examined the post-war realities of former girl and women soldiers in Liberia and gained my doctorate in 2017. My recent publications include a book 'Liberia's Women Veterans: War, Roles and Reintegration' (Zed Books 2018) and several peer-reviewed articles on gender, post-war reconstruction, child soldiers, inequality, and visual research methods. I have lived, studied and/or worked in Liberia, Senegal as well as Zambia and am eager to develop innovative ways to study and understand different phenomena around the world.