Lisa-Marie Selvik

Lisa-Marie Selvik is a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at the WZB Berlin Social Science Center, focusing on democratic backsliding, information controls, and civil society advocacy. She holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of Bergen and has worked on research projects related to human rights, truth commissions, and political repression.

• Current Role: Research Fellow, Department of Global Governance, WZB Berlin Social Science Center (2024–present)
• Past Roles: Researcher at NORCE Norwegian Research Centre (2023–2024); PhD Candidate and Lecturer at the University of Bergen (2017–2022); Research Assistant at Chr. Michelsen Institute (2016–2017)

Selvik’s research explores the interplay between authoritarian governance and democratic resilience, particularly in Africa. Her work examines how governments regulate freedoms, suppress dissent, and interact with civil society actors.

Her recent publications analyze truth commission legacies in Latin America, democratic regression in Ghana, and state responses to fake news in Africa. These studies emphasize mechanisms of repression, civil society mobilization, and international diffusion of autocratic practices.

• Funding: Fritz Thyssen Foundation (current project); European Research Council (PROTECT project); Norwegian Research Council (Breaking BAD, Political Determinants of Health, Beyond Words projects)
• Education: PhD in Political Science (University of Bergen, 2022); MA in Political Science (University of Oslo, 2016)