Elena Bernardi is a Master in Public Affairs student at Brown University, and Director’s Fellow for the Military Fellows Program at the Watson Institute for Public and International Affairs. In the last several years, she has worked in international development, risk-assessment, and countering violent extremism. Her interests are at the intersection of public opinion, security, and political language. Elena obtained her bachelor’s degree in peacebuilding and development from Eastern Mennonite University with foundations in law from Université Libre de Bruxelles. Elena is fluent in Amharic, French and Italian, and proficient in Spanish.  She is from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.