Saxony Anders

Biography

Saxony Anders is a PhD researcher in Economics. Since starting her PhD in January 2024, Saxony has developed an interdisciplinary positioning for her work, drawing on Sociology, Politics, and Anthropology. Her research focuses on economic diversification in Iraq, examining how social norms shape female labour force participation and the role that forced migration and media have played in norm change and subsequent female labour inclusion. She utilises a mixed-methods approach, combining interviews with local stakeholders and population surveys alongside spatial and social network analysis.

Her key areas of interest are in the complexity of social norms, female participation and gender norms and how societal change occurs, particularly in post-conflict, post-colonial and climate-affected societies.

Saxony is actively engaged in her research community, having presented at and attended conferences including those at Cambridge, Oxford, UCL, and the Woolf Institute, and attended the Middle East Peace and Security (MEPS) Forum in Duhok, Kurdistan. Alongside her PhD, she has held TA positions in Economics and Sociology and guest lectured in Politics. She has served as PhD student representative since 2024, supported the organisation of the institution’s PhD Symposium, and sits on the organising committee of the All Faiths and None (AFaN) belonging group.

Prior to her PhD, Saxony worked in the UK education and charity sectors. She completed her undergraduate degree at Northeastern University London in 2023 and has studied Modern Standard Arabic through the University of Calgary and SOAS.

Qualifications

PhD Economics, Northeastern University London, ongoing (2024-2027)

BA (Hons) Philosophy with Economics, Northeastern University London / NCH, 2023