I graduated from the University of Sussex in 2001 with a BA (Hons) in Geography and Development Studies. I then developed my career as a researcher by working for British non-governmental organisations Barnardo’s and Centrepoint. Starting as a graduate researcher and advancing to Senior Policy and Research Officer, I conducted research into the issues facing vulnerable children and young people from various social, economic, and cultural backgrounds.

I returned to academia in 2008 to pursue a Masters in ‘Children, Youth and International Development’ at Brunel University. Subsequently, I was awarded a studentship to study for a PhD at the University of Reading, which I completed in 2014. My PhD thesis, titled ‘Making the transition to adulthood in Zambia: a comparison of caregiving and non-caregiving youth’, explored significant developmental issues in Zambia.

While completing my PhD, I was employed at the University of Reading as a Teaching Fellow, co-teaching on several undergraduate modules, and as a Research Fellow, collaborating on various UK-based research projects.

I have volunteered and conducted research in several sub-Saharan African countries, including Uganda, Kenya, and Zambia, and have also worked as a youth worker in the UK. Following the completion of my postgraduate studies, I joined the University of Portsmouth as a lecturer in Geography and Development.

My research interests focus on various issues within the broader discourse of International Development. These include children, young people and families, HIV and AIDS, disability and caregiving, and the broader role that gender plays in the development of the global South.