Alina Polyakova

Dr. Alina Polyakova spoke on the rise of nationalism in Europe in a seminar for IPSCON Junior Scholars interested in translating their PhD research into policy-making and policy-relevant careers. Dr. Polyakova addressed how the rise of nationalism has changed the US foreign policy posture towards Europe, how the role of international institutions has changed in an era of nationalism, and how Europeans are experiencing this change. She also argued against several theories used to explain the rise of nationalism, including economic downturns, an influx in immigration and the lack of materialization of charisma in political leaders.

Dr. Polyakova is the founding director of the Project on Global Democracy and Emerging Technology and a fellow in the Center on the United States and Europe at the Brookings Institution where she leads the Foreign Policy program’s Democracy Working Group. She was part of the inaugural class of David M. Rubenstein fellows at Brookings and is also an adjunct professor of European studies at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.

Companies

• President and CEO Center for European Policy Analysis (2020)
• Adjunct Professor of European Studies The Johns Hopkins University - Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) (2018)
• Director, Global Democracy and Emerging Technology The Brookings Institution (2017 — 2020)
• David M. Rubenstein Fellow, Foreign Policy The Brookings Institution (2017 — 2019)
• Director of Research, Europe & Eurasia Atlantic Council (2017 — 2017)
• Deputy Director and Senior Fellow Atlantic Council (2015 — 2016)
• Senior Research Fellow and Assistant Professor University of Bern (2013 — 2015)
• Consultant and Research Manager Open Government Partnership (2014 — 2014)
• Instructor UC Berkeley (2010 — 2012)