What are you most excited about in your new role?

I am most excited about the opportunity I have been given to connect and build relationships with restrainers and realists in the Marcellus Policy Fellowship. I can’t wait to contribute to their professional development both as writers and thinkers of prudent policy but also as practitioners in the space of U.S. foreign policy. 

What books on U.S. foreign policy have most influenced your career? 

One of the most influential books for me has been John Mearsheimer’s The Tragedy of Great Power Politics. I first read it at a time when my international relations degree was being taught largely through the lens of the liberal international order, with emphasis on institutions, cooperation, and American leadership around the world. Mearsheimer’s argument that international politics is defined by competition among great powers, driven by the logic of offensive realism, challenged much of what I was learning and reshaped how I thought about the incentives and limits of U.S. foreign policy. The book eventually guided me to the understanding of defensive realism which segued into my alignment with a more restrained, interest-based strategy. 

What’s something most people don’t know about you? 

I am extremely passionate about defense policy, specifically the U.S.’s cybersecurity posture within its armed forces. This passion of mine began after exploring the intersection of U.S. foreign policy and cybersecurity in a professional environment. In this day and age, it’s clear that these two fields increasingly go hand in hand when it comes to America’s defense posture and strategy.