Sana Jaffrey

Dr. Sana Jaffrey is a Research Fellow and Lecturer in the Department of Political & Social Change at the Australian National University (ANU). She holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of Chicago and has over 15 years of experience in political violence and state-building research, focusing on Asia with a specialization in Indonesian politics. Currently, she is a Non-Resident Scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s Asia Program. Previously, she served as Director of the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC) in Jakarta and led the World Bank’s National Violence Monitoring System (NVMS) project in Indonesia. Her research bridges academia and policy, contributing to journals like Studies in Comparative International Development and Terrorism and Political Violence.

Education: PhD in Political Science (University of Chicago), Master of Political Science (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor), Bachelor of Political Science (University of Pennsylvania).

Research Interests: Political violence, extremism, populism, democracy dynamics, minority rights, and conflict prevention in Asia. Her work emphasizes quantitative and qualitative approaches, particularly in Indonesia and Southeast Asia.

Recent Projects: Leading ANU-funded research on Indonesia’s CT/CVE programs and neighborhood leadership roles. Previously, analyzed post-Suharto violence trends and right-wing populism’s impact on vigilante violence.

Policy Engagement: Regular contributor to Foreign Affairs, Carnegie Endowment, and New Mandala. Her work informs policy on conflict mitigation and governance in Southeast Asia.