Alyssa Miller

Dr. Alyssa Miller is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the GIGA Institute for Middle East Studies, part of the German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA) in Hamburg, Germany. She also serves as the Scientific Coordinator for the Identities and Beliefs focus group within the Merian Center for Advanced Studies in the Maghreb (MECAM) project in Tunisia. Previously, she was a Visiting Lecturer at Scripps College and an Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wolf Humanities Center.

Education:

• PhD in Cultural Anthropology, Duke University
• MA in Middle Eastern Studies, University of Texas at Austin
• CASA Fellow, American University in Cairo

Dr. Miller’s research explores the intersections of religion, national identity, marginalization, borderlands, transitional justice, and kinship, with a regional focus on the Middle East, particularly Tunisia. Her work investigates how affective labor, such as kinship claims, reinforces citizenship rights under the Global War on Terror, especially in the context of families of Tunisian ex-combatants. She also studies youth precarity, labor movements like the UGTT, and the role of cinema in national identity formation after the Arab Spring.

Her recent publications reflect a thematic trend in post-revolutionary Tunisia, focusing on political accountability, social justice, and the emotional and cultural dimensions of democratic transition. These works span disciplines including anthropology, political science, and cultural studies, often combining ethnographic fieldwork with critical analysis of media, protest, and institutional power.

Scientific Awards:

• Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowship

Dr. Miller has been actively involved in advising and research coordination, notably as Scientific Coordinator for MECAM. She has secured research funding from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation (AvH) and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). She regularly presents her work at academic venues, including conferences and workshops at the University of Hamburg, Radboud University, and MECAM in Tunis. Her teaching includes contributions to the GIGA Doctoral Program, focusing on interdisciplinary research practices.

Labs and Research Teams:

• Merian Center for Advanced Studies in the Maghreb (MECAM), Tunis
• GIGA Institute for Middle East Studies, Hamburg
• Interdisciplinary Focus Group on Identities and Beliefs (IFG)