Biography

I completed an undergraduate degree at NYU (Magna cum laude) in Economics and Italian Studies (Honors Thesis: “Social and Economic Aspects of Italian Neo-Realism: a Comparison Between Fellini’s La Dolce Vita and Principles of Erich Fromm’s Humanistic Philosophy”). Before moving to Bloomington, I worked as a legal assistant in a boutique trusts and estates law firm, and thereafter as an electronic discovery paralegal for a prominent Wall street law firm. The combination of these experiences, particularly in law, evolved into my dissertation focus: digital privacy through the lens of legal anthropology. I completed a dual degree in law and area studies, at the Maurer School of Law and the Russian and East European Institute. As a doctoral candidate in the Media School, I study individual privacy perceptions and laws that affect it. My methodology is qualitative interviewing of American and Russian individuals and content analysis of legal documents.

Recent Projects: US-Russia Social Expertise Exchange Fellowship (Moscow, Russia). I completed the SEE Fellowship in 2014, during politically-charged times of Ukrainian revolution and the annexation of Crimea. I collaborated with Moscow-based human rights NGO “Public Verdict Foundation,” during which I attended demonstrations in order to identify safest strategies for the public to engage in protest against police violence. I interviewed well-regarded Moscow and St. Petersburg human rights activists and lawyers to identify strengths and weaknesses in police oversight in Russia. I also participated in ABA-ROLI conferences targeting exchange of expertise between American, British, French and Russian professionals.