Global / Transnational

Research Interest

Zhehang Zhang

PhD Student
Sociology

Zhehang Zhang is a PhD candidate in Sociology at the University of California, Berkeley. His research lies at the intersection of political sociology, political economy, development, and economic geography, with a regional focus on China and Southeast Asia. His dissertation examines cross-border industrial development in the China–Southeast Asia borderlands, asking how state-led development operates across sovereign boundaries and how these transnational projects reshape state institutions, territorial governance, labor, and local political economies. His broader interests include...

California, Technology & The World

Jessica Olney

IIS Executive Director

Jessica Olney joined the Institute of International Studies the Executive Director in January 2026.

Jess brings extensive international experience as a practitioner and researcher on conflict, peacebuilding, human rights, and humanitarian response. She has led studies for and advised various governments, embassies, international NGOs, UN agencies, universities, institutional and private donors, and the International Criminal Court. She is passionate about working with students, and has trained dozens of refugee youth to lead research, advocacy, and humanitarian...

Rebecca Herman

Associate Professor
History

Rebecca Herman is an Associate Professor of History at the University of California, Berkeley. She has received grants and fellowships from the Social Science Research Council, the Mellon Foundation, the Smithsonian Institution, and the Council on Library and Information Resources. Prof. Herman studies modern Latin America, along with U.S.-Latin American relations, environmental and international history.

Oct. 2 Event | Cross-Strait Relations and U.S Foreign Policy Toward China

September 21, 2026
Event Hosted By the Alexander Hamilton Society of Berkeley Featuring U.S Naval War College Associate Professor Ian Easton and UC Berkeley School of Law Professor Chris Hoofnagle.

Join the Alexander Hamilton Society of Berkeley for their first speaker event of the year: a conversation on cross-strait relations and U.S. foreign policy toward China! This conversation will be moderated by Professor Chris Hoofnagle, and there will be free pizza.

Foreign Policy

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Conflict & Fragility

Oct. 15 Book Talk | Defiance: Awakening, Rebellion, and Survival in Syria

September 16, 2026
Book talk by journalist and author Loubna Mrie

IIS and the Center for Middle Eastern Studies welcome Loubna Mrie to discuss her life story and book Defiance: A Memoir of Awakening, Rebellion and Survival in Syria, a finalist for this year's Kirkus Prize, in conversation with UCB Professor Daniel Zoughbie.

Book Synopsis

From publisher Penguin Random House:

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Sep. 23 Talk | The United States and Global Anti-Authoritarian Movements

September 15, 2026
Public talk by Professor Stephen Zunes, University of San Francisco

What is the most effective means by which the United States can support popular struggles for freedom around the world? Does Washington have the credibility to support such movements in light of its ongoing backing of allied authoritarian regimes and occupation armies? Can the U.S. take credit (or blame) for some of these pro-democracy struggles? What kinds of policies have proven effective and which have ended up strengthening the regime or risking civil war? Professor Stephen Zunes examines the...

Daniel J. Sargent

Associate Professor
History
Goldman School of Public Policy
Daniel J. Sargent is associate professor at the University of California, where he is jointly appointed in the Department of History and the Goldman School of Public Policy. He is a historian who specializes in U.S. foreign policy and the history of international relations. His research has explored how states and decision makers adapt to long-term changes in their international environments, including the historical advance of globalization. He is presently interested in how the United States has strived, over the long arc of its history, to constitute and sustain international order,...