I am an associate professor at the political science department and lead the Politics of Diversity group. My research has been awared a string of highly competitive grants, including the Dutch Research Council (NWO) VENI (2013), VIDI (2017) and VICI (2024). I am co-founding, and currently consuliting editor of the European Journal of Politics and Gender.
Currenlty, I am leading three international comparative projects:
1) 'Political Masculinities in Europe', VICI-project funded by the Dutch Research Council (NWO), 2024-2029;
2) 'Masculinities for the Future of European Democracy'(MEN4DEM), funded by the European Commission, 2025-2028;
3) 'Online Anti-Gender Equality Mobilizations and Counter Strategies,' Work Package of Horizon-funded project Push*Back*Lash, 2023-2026;
4) 'Barriers and opportunities: towards equal representation of people with a migration background in the Netherlands', funded by Porticus - country case in REPCHANCE project, 2022-2024.
The past years I fulfilled a range of administrative roles within my university. I served as interim head of department (February-September 2024), lead the Amsterdam Research Centre for European Studies Diverse Europe research theme group (2019-2024) and directed the Amsterdam Research Center for Gender and Sexuality (2016-2019). I also chaired the UvA-wide Taskforce on Social Safety, which resulted in the report Breaking the Silences. Social Safety at the University of Amsterdam (September 2019-February 2021).
My co-authored work has been awarded with the Politics 2018 Best Article Award, American Political Science Association (APSA) 'Cynthia Weber Award' for the best paper presented at the 2019 annual meeting on the topic of sexuality and politics and the Journal of Common Market Studies Best Article Prize for 2021.
The past years I have received various international residential fellowships: Alexander von Humboldt (AvH) Alumni Short Return Visiting Fellowship at the Berlin Institute for Integration and Migration Research (BIM), Humboldt University Berlin (2021); AvH fellowship at the Social Science Center Berlin - WZB (2020-2021); fellowship Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities and Social Sciences (2016-2017); fellowship Women and Public Policy Program Harvard Kennedy School (2014-2015); visiting scholarship at the Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies at Harvard University (January-June 2012).
I believe in public and academic service and I am passionate about gender equality and diversity in politics and academia. To this end I regularly communicate my scholarly insights and findings to non-academic audiences in public panels, media interviews, lectures, keynotes and writings. Follow me on LinkedIn, BlueSky, Intagram or X for links to interviews, writings and other public engagements.