The Program in International and Comparative Studies invites you to attend the 2026 International Studies Honors thesis defense week. PICS students spent the last year in the Honors Plan working on a Senior Honors thesis in International Studies and starting on April 22, 2026, they will be presenting their work. Writing an Honors thesis is a huge commitment, and we congratulate all students in the 2026 cohort on their achievements. Sessions are open to the public and are held in Room 355 Weiser Hall - 500 Church Street. Students who are considering the International Studies Honors Plan are strongly encouraged to attend a thesis defense.

Program in International and Comparative Studies
2026 Student Honors Thesis Defense Schedule

Gabriella Alaish
2:00-4:00pm | Wednesday, April 22
Capital Structure Under Constraint: Financing and Scalability in Kenya's Digital Health Sector

Ellen Drejza
10:00am-12:00pm | Thursday, April 23
Behind the Democratic Facade: Corruption, Prebendalism, and Human Rights in Nigeria

Abby Green
1:00-3:00pm | Thursday, April 23
Oslo and the Production of Non-Sovereignty: Uneven and Combined Development in Palestine

Daley Fitzpatrick
10:00am-12:00pm | Friday, April 24
Fractured but Not Broken: How Language Barriers Affect the Quality of Emergency Health Care for Spanish-speaking Patients

Anniya Maysun
11:00am-1:00pm | Monday, April 27
Navigating Maternal Healthcare in Bangladesh: Structure, Agency, and Perceptions of Care

Kaia Kelly
2:00-4:00pm | Monday, April 27
Strategic Incentives and State Behavior: Explaining US and EU Responses to Uyghur Forced Labor and Genocide in Xinjiang

Isabela Pimentel
10:00am-12:00pm | Tuesday, April 28
Beyond The Worn Path: Path Dependency and Victim Recognition in Brazil's Transitional Justice Process

Ashley Chung
2:00-4:00pm | Tuesday, April 28
Sustainable Finance as Geopolitical Leverage: How ESG Regulations Shape Financial Sovereignty in South Korea and China

Savannah Halpern
10:00am-12:00pm | Wednesday, April 29
Guatemalan Migration and Displacement: Climate Change, Indigenous Vulnerability, and Legal Ambiguity

Gianna Limarvin
1:00-3:00pm | Wednesday, April 29
Religious Rhetoric and the Political Framing of Violence in Indonesia, 1965-1966: Elite Actors in Central and East Java