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Description: "My daily tasks included copy editing, fact checking, translating academic articles and policy papers (German-English), and researching for the larger projects, i.e. coming issues of Internationale Politik. The main topics for the coming issues were Turkey and Afghanistan. For the Turkey volume my research focused on foreign direct investment, specifically in the banking and financial sector, over the past decade and on infrastructure development – two areas that are critical for Turkey’s emergence as a global economy and influential state at the intersection of Europe, Asia, and Africa. This research coincided with the protests against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, making market and financial research particularly interesting, as economic development is one of the main tenants of Mr. Erdogan’s presidency. For the Afghanistan issue my research focused on security policy and the current roles of NATO forces and Afghan Security Forces. Again, this research was incredibly timely. Sources for both included the World Bank, US Department of Defense Reports, and various journals and databases. Research topics change with issues, however the main focus is normally on one country or one major development in international relations, and this focus always requires research by interns. We would then attend meetings with the editorial staff in order to share our findings; the meetings were conducted in German."

Comments: "The projects were all very interesting and gave me a lot of insight into current developments and discourses in international relations and political theory. These insights will be helpful in future academic study and career plans.

Most rewarding was being able to attend conferences and interact with students and intellectuals alike, in order to discuss political happenings at a time when the world is faced with a major crisis like the one in Syria."

For further information, please write to pierre.j.allegaert@gmail.com