Team Members
Team Leader
Dr Eliza Gheorghe
Eliza Gheorghe is a Research Associate at the ROCCA Lab at Vanderbilt University and an Assistant Professor in the International Relations Department, Bilkent University. She received her Ph.D. in International Relations from the University of Oxford. Before becoming a professor, she held research fellowships at Yale University, the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Harvard Kennedy School, Cornell University, and SAIS-Johns Hopkins University, among others.
Dr. Gheorghe’s research interests lie at the intersection of International Relations Theory, International Security, and Nuclear Politics. Her work examines the causes and consequences of nuclear proliferation, with particular emphasis on the evolution of nuclear trade (licit and illicit), questions of grand strategy and nuclear alliances, and contagion effects in nuclear behavior. Her research at ROCCA includes a joint project with Professors Andrew Coe and Bradley Smith dealing with the effectiveness of the nonproliferation regime, a second project focusing on strategies of extended nuclear deterrence, and a third project studying the interaction of supply and demand in the nuclear market.
Graduate Researchers
Esra Ansel
Esra Ansel is a Ph.D. Candidate at the History Department at Bilkent University. Prior to her experience as a researcher on this project, she worked on two research projects during her MA studies at Bogazici University and another at Sabancı University. She also taught several classes at Bogazici University as a teaching assistant, visiting lecturer at Istanbul Aydin University, and part-time instructor at Bilkent University.
Murat Iplikci
Murat Iplikci is a Ph.D. candidate at the Department of History at Bilkent University. He earned his BA (2012) from Bilkent University, Department of Industrial Engineering, his master’s degrees from Bilkent University (2015), and Illinois State University (ISU) (2019) Department of History. His research interests are in the investments of American multinational companies in Turkey within the framework of diplomatic, commercial, and business relations between Turkey and the USA. Prior to his experience as a researcher on this project, he taught several classes at Bilkent University and worked as a teaching assistant at Illinois State University.
Şule Taşcıoğlu Örs
Şule Taşcıoğlu Örs is a Ph.D. student at the Political Science Department at Bilkent University. She holds an M.A. from the Department of Sociology at Middle East Technical University. Her research interests are gender, state, and violence. In the Globalization of the Atom project, she works as a research assistant.
Widy Susanto
Widy Novantyo Susanto is a Ph.D. Candidate in the History Department at Bilkent University. His current research focuses on the history of US-ASEAN relations, and his interests include the history of development and modernization. As a graduate fellow in the Globalization of the Atom project, he conducts various research tasks, including archival research. He is also co-authoring an article with Asst. Prof. Eliza Gheorghe on nuclear technology transfers from the United States to Indonesia.
Taylan Paksoy
Pursuing his Ph.D. degree in the Department of History at Bilkent University with the
title “Victor and the Vanquished: Modern Elite Circulation and the US Intervention in the
1958 Lebanon Crisis,” Taylan Paksoy received his MA degree from the same institution in
2017. Specializing in human networks in the Levant and the genealogies of Mount Lebanon,
Taylan Paksoy spent a semester at the American University of Beirut as a visiting researcher,
conducting archival and field research. Subsequently, he joined GlobAtom, where he
contributed to the project by providing archival research on the “Middle East and North
Africa” from the British National Archives and various online databases. His monography on
Chehab Family, titled “Enchained Lions: Story of a Lebanese Aristocratic Family” is
scheduled to be released in 2025.
Researchers
Asuman Bilir
Asuman Bilir is a Bilkent University graduate with an International Relations degree and a minor in Philosophy. She is interested in 20th-century world history and political psychology. She works as a research assistant in the Globalization of the Atom project.
Göze Hazal Maral
Göze Hazal Maral is a Bilkent University graduate with an International Relations degree with an emphasis on environmental politics. She is interested in climate change science, climate change and public health, environmental degradation and fast fashion, climate mitigations and waste management. Formerly she has worked as a research assistant and currently she is working as a communications assistant and helps with project planning.
Müride Zülal Danışman
Müride Zülal Danışman is a Bilkent University graduate with a degree in International Relations. She is interested in international human rights law, clean energy, and sustainable development. In the Globalization of the Atom project, she works as a research assistant.
Undergraduate Researchers
Kutup Aytekin
Kutup Aytekin is a Bilkent University student majoring in International Relations and minoring in Psychology. He is interested in diplomacy and poverty eradication. He works as a research assistant in the Globalization of the Atom project.
Muhammet Muhammetgulyyev
Muhammet Muhammetgulyyev is a Bilkent University student majoring in American Culture and Literature. He is interested in nuclear proliferation, international security, and great power politics. In the Globalization of the Atom project he is a research assistant. He co-authors with Dr. Eliza Gheorghe “Networked Proliferation: Globalization, International Institutions, and the Spread of Nuclear Weapons”, and “The Ineluctable Tension: Deterrence, Assurance, and Hegemony in Cold War Nuclear Alliances”.
Talia Türkan Çıdam
Talia Türkan Çıdam is a Bilkent University student majoring in International Relations. She is interested in International Organizations and Postcolonial Studies. In the Globalization of the Atom project she is a research assistant.
Project Alumni
Ali Mert Cengiz
Ali Mert Cengiz is a Bilkent University student majoring in International Relations. He is interested in post-colonial studies and East Asian politics. He works as a research assistant in the Globalization of the Atom project.
Anita Köhler
Anita Köhler is a student from the University of Erfurt majoring in International Relations. She is interested in feminist approaches to peace, conflict and security, and Middle Eastern politics. She works as a research assistant responsible for German sources in the Globalization of the Atom project.
Bilgehan Salih Uyhan
Bilgehan Salih Uyhan is a Bilkent University graduate with a degree in International Relations. His areas of interest cover international trade of nuclear technology, nuclear politics, and regional security in the Middle East. He has been working as a research assistant on the Globalization of the Atom project since January 2021.
Efe Babuşçu
Efe Babuşçu is a Bilkent University student majoring in International Relations. He is interested in Transatlantic Relations as well as the U.S. Foreign Policy. In the Globalization of the Atom project, he works as a research assistant.
Efe Umut Ateş
Efe Umut Ateş is a Bilkent University student majoring in Industrial Engineering. He is interested in corporate finance and international security. He is a research assistant responsible for algorithm coding in the Globalization of the Atom project.
Helin Dide Ayşan
Helin Dide Ayşan is a Bilkent University student majoring in International Relations. She is interested in foreign policy analysis and conflict resolution. In the Globalization of the Atom project, she works as a research assistant.
Jennet Charyyeva
Jennet Charyyeva is a Bilkent University student majoring in International Relations. She is interested in nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation. In the Globalization of the Atom project, she works as a research assistant.
Nafisa Agha
Nafisa Agha is a Bilkent University student majoring in International Relations. She hopes to concentrate in neo-colonial relations and South Asian studies. She works as a research assistant in the project on the Globalization of the Atom.
Nira Atak
Nira Atak is a Bilkent University student majoring in International Relations and minoring in Philosophy. She is interested in global environmental issues as well as international law. In the Globalization of the Atom project, she works as a research and communication assistant.
Onurcan Mısır
Onurcan Mısır is a Bilkent University student majoring in International Relations. He is interested in international development, commercial diplomacy, and their implications for security. He works as a research assistant in the Globalization of the Atom project.
Özge Karban
Özge Karban is a Bilkent University student majoring in International Relations. She is interested in international law, protection of human rights and migration. In the Globalization of the Atom project, she works as a research assistant.
Selin Güngör
Selin Güngör is a Bilkent University student majoring in International Relations. Her areas of interest are global environmental issues and gender studies. In the Globalization of the Atom project, she works as a research and communication assistant.
Zehra Gündüz
Zehra Gündüz is a Bilkent University student majoring in International Relations and minoring in Psychology. She is interested in international organizations, security, and environmental issues. In the Globalization of the Atom project, she works as a research assistant.