I'm a political scientist who researchers about refugee resettlement, global migration governance, and international relations. In late 2022 I took the step to focus on my role as the Co-Founder and Executive Director of Pairity, a platform applying data-driven solutions to support refugee resettlement and measure the impacts of community sponsorship programs. I'm also a Research Affiliate at York's Centre for Refugee Studies, where I research asylum and irregular migration trends.
I also teach about migration and politics, particularly interactions between state and regional migration policies and changes in irregular migration systems; global governance; and refugee integration.
From 2020 to 2022 I was a Senior Research Associate at the Canada Excellence Research Chair in Migration and Integration at Toronto Metropolitan University, where I helped lead research on global migration governance. I was previously Associate Director of the Global Migration Lab. at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, where I taught graduate seminars on global migration governance.
My research is grounded in long-term fieldwork. I've spent several years trying to understand irregular migration systems by talking to migrants, refugees, policymakers, civil servants, NGOs, and security personnel throughout the Middle East, North Africa, Western Balkans, and Europe. My previous SSHRC-funded research has looked at the determinants of intercontinental irregular migration to Canada, and the role of legal aid in access to justice for refugee claimants. My current research investigates relationships between visa policies and the global determinants of mixed migration, with Co-Investigators in Tijuana, Mexico.
I believe it's important to contribute to public debate. I provide commentary for television, radio, and print journalism. I have appeared several times before the Canadian House of Commons Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration, and Senate Committee on Human Rights, and regularly speak with policymakers.
I teach on Migration and Refugee Studies, and International Relations. My teaching philosophy is that students learn most when encouraged to think critically, engage with big debates, and consider the moral and political tensions in policy-making.
Politically, I worry about the decline of long-term thinking and failure to understand how rights and equality contribute to healthy political communities. I find inspiration in my students, mentors, and community.
Outside work I enjoy back-country hiking, yoga, running, gardening, and sharing food and drink with friends and family.